Darkroom portraits

negative pressure, from what I understand means exhaust is pulled from the room via an intake......

positive pressure is where you push air out of the room.

Robert Oliver said:

I am using a 300cfm negative pressure system... sucking air through two 14x14 inch air filters. it will be easy to upgrade the fan if I decide I need more air flow. The space is also hooked into the central ac / furnace.

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Looks like you're having fun. When I built, I was cautioned by the HVAC professionals NOT to hook into the house AC, even though that would have been by far the easiest to do. Unless your AC capacity is overbuilt for the house (mine wasn't) and your DR is well insulated (mine is), you will overtax the entire AC system. Then there is the problem of introducing forced air dust into the DR from the house.

I ended up with the smallest available "split system" heat pump which serves only the DR. There is no air communication to the outside (no light leaks), as it recycles room air (I have separate outside fresh air by negative pressure exhaust). It is very efficient and effective for both heating and cooling as well as dehumidifying (really, cooling). I cannot recommend these systems highly enough. They are used widely throughout the world and are beginning to replace forced air systems in the U.S. The unit cost for small units sufficient for small rooms is not much more than a stand alone cooling or window-type unit (actually the same as better units, ~$200-$400). The extra cost (either judged to be worth it or necessary) is in the installation, where it pays to obtain someone with experience in split systems.

I installed a bigger unit than needed with the thought of my future darkroom...

I wish I would have known about heat pump system. It sounds really cool (literally ) and effecient.

Robert Oliver said:

negative pressure, from what I understand means exhaust is pulled from the room via an intake......positive pressure is where you push air out of the room.

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Hrrrrmmm. I think you are trying to say the right thing, just saying it backwards.

Positive pressure: the pressure in the darkroom is greater than the surroundings; air is pushed into the darkroom with a fan; it escapes through a free-flow exhaust and/or cracks and leaks; you need to place an air filter on the fan that blows air into the darkroom, dust exits the darkroom through the exhaust and the cracks and leaks and is blown from the room when you open the door - thus positive pressure is the way to go for a dust-free darkroom.

Negative pressure: the pressure in the darkroom is less than the surroundings; air is drawn from the darkroom with a fan; it enters through a free-flow vent and/or cracks and leaks in the room; you need to place air filters in the intake vent and the the cracks and leaks, however, you can never seal all the cracks and dust gets sucked into the darkroom every time you open the door - in general, negative pressure is a bad idea

Nicholas is right, you would want positve pressure for your darkroom. Negative pressure is for TB isolation

My last and final version of my darkroom with almost all the equipment I would ever need.
Might be small and might not look as impressive as some glorious photographic halls pictured here, but its one of the very few dark rooms left in the country and possibly the best equipped.

Needs a "Darkroom sweet Darkroom" sign

Looks great to me Ari. A lot bigger than mine! Is this from where your recent postings in the Gallery have originated? If so it looks like everything's working just fine.

Aristotelis,

Your darkroom looks very tidy and well organized, an example I should follow...

Tom

Of course it is the best equipped - it has Aristotelis using it.

Really glad to see you posting again about photography/posting again in the gallery.

Matt

Yep, that's where the magic happens.
And surprisingly it is the most well kept place in my home and the pictures actually make it look much more cluttered than it is.
People have commented on the seemingly sterile laboratory environment, because they have never seen the elaborate spaces that more professional darkroom magicians keep and probably imagine every darkroom to be a converted closet space or bathroom.
Actually, it changed face many times through the years and it did begin looking worse than a makeshift lab by a war photographer during Vietnam.
As for the comment "most well equipped" it is more of a statement of affairs in this country than a brag, but I am a bit proud for my little magic place, it is true. I put the warning signs all over to inspire me to act in discipline, but I can't help not dancing around while printing.
That door though is useless and apart from the humidity trouble, I have never been able to make it completely light tight for more than a bit.
The only upgrades I could really use would be the paper safe box I am getting and a better print washer, even though the system right now is very adequate for RC prints up to 30x40cm.

I've started this thread 4 1/2 years ago (and I'm very glad I did). Since then we moved to France. After prospecting for a year, we've bought a 2 century old farmbuilding right in the middle of the Livradois-Forez national parc. So, now we live at a 1000 m, overlooking the whole chain of (extinct) volcanoes in the French Auvergne region. It's a landscape photographers paradise. After 25 years of working and living in big cities, I'm back in a small rural village with friendly helpfull people, and a healthy environment for my children. We have been very happy since we moved here, even while earning less than half the money I got in my old job. But . . . one thing has been missing.

Since our move I haven't had a darkroom. 120 and 4x5 films have been stocking up waiting for development and printing. Sure, with friends I created aDead Link Removed. But that's a one hour drive back and forth. So, I have been longing for my own darkroom, to work and to teach in. A few months ago I started converting an old granite stone barn into a teaching darkroom. Is anybody interested in following this process online here, giving suggestions going along? Or should I start a new thread here? Or a blog elsewhere?

argentic said:

I'm converting an old granite stone barn into a teaching darkroom. Is anybody interested in following this process online here? Or maybe in a new thread?

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Yes.

If you are going to cover the whole thing in installments, maybe a new thread.

I, too, am about to start from scratch on a new darkroom - having also recently moved. My plan is to do a blog and document the thing from start to first "darkness"...

Once that's started, I'll announce the blog here.

Wilbert,
with more than 166.000 views, this thread seems to be the best place for it.
My 2 €cents.

My new darkroom

I'd like to share photos of my new darkroom.

I also want to ask whether I should increase the breadth of the black matte paint behind the enlarger. I've followed Ansel's recommendations. His book recommends light walls and black matte paint behind the enlarger to prevent reflection from the walls. I wouldn't say I have an overabundance of light, with only 4 individual safelights. I considered adding some blinders on either side of the enlarger but there is a door just to the left of the enlarger so I don't have space around the enlarger on that side even if blinders would have helped. However, in looking at possibilities, I couldn't see a discernible drop off in the amount of light hitting the baseboard anyway.

I've put the enlarger where it is (that is, not further away from the sink and not directly opposite it, as Ansel suggests) because the floor, which is uncomfortably uneven, is most level where I've put the enlarger. The workbench is attached to the wall, but sitting at a slant can drive one crazy. It was a decision based on the frequency of making contact prints at long exposures.

I hung the plastic clothes storage bag to keep film from getting too dusty while drying (based on recommendations from this site). I squeegee it first and it seems to dry fairly quickly.

I have nice computing and matting space on the opposite side of the wall.

I welcome any suggestions for improvements of the darkroom.

The room is about 7' x 11'. I bought the used 7' long Leedal/Calumet sink from Craig's list. We moved the washer & dryer out of the space, and with a contractor's help built a wall and door to separate it from the computing/workroom.

The overall space is a 1927 single garage which was sliding down a hill at some time in the past. A year ago we replaced the door with one I hoped to be light- and dust-tight. We almost got there. I've added some black plastic where there was a chance of some light leaks. Also a photographer told me once that if you tape a black plastic bag to the wall it will attract dust; then all you have to do is wipe it down, so I figured these plastic strips can work as dust magnets as well. We put a small air conditioner in the adjacent room for cooling and positive pressure, a Doran 12x12 louver in the separating wall (with a filter) so I'm not sure there is a lot of draw from 12x12 Doran ventilating fan. (I tried blowing bubbles--a test I'd heard about once--and wasn't impressed.) Still, I plan to open the door often. We'll see how much dust that brings in. Live and learn.

I'm excited to get started.

(This is my first time posting images. I hope they follow after all this build-up.)

Sara

My new modest darkroom, on its maiden run…

My new modest darkroom, on its maiden run…

On the left a nova print pod under a ventilation unit, next to it rinse water, since I do not have running water and therefore refresh the water from time to time. The prints are washed in the kitchen. The enlarger on the right, although with a colour head is used to print exclusively black and white. Out of the picture on the right is the rest of my work surface. Behind is a storage cupboard which is fully light tight for loading spirals for negative development, as the rest of the room is dark enough for printing but certainly not enough to load spirals!

Regards
Charles

There have been several updates since last time. I added a dry working table besides the enlarger one and I built in a light box in it to view my negatives.
I added a white board which is easy to have standard dev times at hand and to make quick notes and made some other rearrangements.
Still debating whether I should make a black space behind the enlarger. Gonna try it I suppose but when I tested the safe lights I couldn't find any sort of light messing up the paper.





@ Argentic: I would love to follow that build. Always interesting to see what choices people make and why. A seperate thread might be useful to keep it less cluttered and to follow and look back at the project more easily without wading through other posts.

Contrastique, I think the black around the enlarger is to kill white light spilling from the enlarger and having an effect on the light sensitive paper while your exposing for a print.

At least that is what I thought.

You have a really nice darkroom, thanks for sharing.

fotch said:

Contrastique, I think the black around the enlarger is to kill white light spilling from the enlarger and having an effect on the light sensitive paper while your exposing for a print.

At least that is what I thought.

You have a really nice darkroom, thanks for sharing.

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Thanx! I enjoy it immensely!

You're right about that, but I tested it also with the enlarger on while protecting the paper from direct exposure with the red filter, if I remember correctly. I'll try it again just to see if my memory isn't a little flaky

Contrastique said:

Thanx! I enjoy it immensely!

You're right about that, but I tested it also with the enlarger on while protecting the paper from direct exposure with the red filter, if I remember correctly. I'll try it again just to see if my memory isn't a little flaky

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The enlargers are opposite the raised sink? How high is the ceiling?

Tom

Tom Kershaw said:

The enlargers are opposite the raised sink? How high is the ceiling?

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Yup, they are. It's quite low with 2.07 meters / 81". Why do you ask?

Contrastique said:

Yup, they are. It's quite low with 2.07 meters / 81". Why do you ask?

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I had provision a cut out or ceiling extension for my DeVere to be able to reach full height.

Tom Kershaw said:

I had provision a cut out or ceiling extension for my DeVere to be able to reach full height.

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Ow lucky you
When we were doing the ceiling I totally forgot about the height of my enlarger and when we started putting the darkroom together I was like, shoit, I need to work with a lower table to fit it in

Now that I'm slowly looking for an 8x10 enlarger, I am facing some serious problems. We are thinking about moving between now and 3 yrs or so, so I'll just postpone that hole in the ceiling a bit

@Contrastique: Your darkroom is indeed looking nice but I have the feeling it was also a good excuse to show your new wet plate camera. Which is a beauty by the way. When will you start messing around with it? (sorry for being a bit of topic)

Can't use mine now because I have to much stuff in it.

Peter de Groot said:

@Contrastique: Your darkroom is indeed looking nice but I have the feeling it was also a good excuse to show your new wet plate camera. Which is a beauty by the way. When will you start messing around with it? (sorry for being a bit of topic)

Can't use mine now because I have to much stuff in it.

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Hey Peter, The showing off of that camera I already did in another thread it was more for the darkroom itself with the new modifications and the camera happens to be situated there for the moment.
I have started ordering all the chemicals, waiting for a final password to a chem-site. The silver nitrate should arrive anytime, as should its darkbox, the collodion has already been ordered etc. I hope I can start next month or so.... following an online course by Quinn atm so I should be doing fine