Did many pros do their own processing?

rayonline_nz

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Just out of interest. I only do this as a hobby and I process my own film. I do know some who now just rather use the lab but they don't shoot it all that often. With working pros, did many just outsource many of it? Even with BW film which have the least amount of raw materials but can be the more costly option at the lab.

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fdonadio

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At least in Brazil, and especially in color, I can safely assume that pretty most everyone outsourced processing.
 

IMoL

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Back in the 80s, I interned with a commercial photographer and all processing was outsourced, mainly due to volume. One of my jobs as the intern was go to on drop off/pick up duty.
 

RalphLambrecht

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gone

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Commercial and stock photographers sent it out, as did anyone w/ color film probably. B&W "fine art" work/documentary work /etc was usually done by a printer, LF shooters usually did it all themselves. Bresson developed his own film, but someone else printed his later works and they tend to look better. He wasn't that enamored w/ darkroom work, and was focused on being a photographer.

That word "pro" is a problem for me, as anyone that produces really good work is a pro, it really has nothing to do w/ working for an agency or making it a commercial enterprise. I think it's probably better to designate people as amateurs, pros, and commercial photographers, which would include news photographers, product photographers, sports photographers, etc. People whose job is to be a photographer, you're someone who is sent out on assignments to get specific photos, etc.
 
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Pieter12

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Depends. There were commercial photographers who had assistants do processing, including reversal color film. The great majority would send film to a commercial lab.
Some photojournalists would process their own B&W in the newspaper's labs, others had technicians at the paper do the work. Many would just send film back to the publication for processing.
As far as I know, fine art photographers tend to do their own processing and printing, at least for B&W.
 

MattKing

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I'm going to disagree with momus about the definition of "pro", because all the "official" means of identifying that classification define professional photographers as those who sell photography and earn a fee.
I certainly knew photographers who who ran businesses which included in-house processing, but they basically fell into two groups:
1) high volume photographic businesses, usually employing more than one photographer, who brought processing and printing in house to reduce costs. They usually employed their own technicians;
2) old time photographers who sent their colour work to labs, but still processed themselves the relatively small amount of black and white they did - usually large format.
When I worked in a lab printing colour for professionals, I knew a couple of professional photographers who tried to save on costs by doing their own colour work. One in particular tended to screw up the film development so badly that we ended up refusing work from him.
 
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mshchem

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I had the privilege of knowing a wedding, portrait and commercial photographer in the 70's and 80's. He and a couple others did most everything in house. He was trained in the US Navy. He processed color and early a lot of black and white.
He had a photo store as well Hall's Photo in Marion Iowa.
Worked 80 hours a week. Darrel Hall, he bought the original studio from an old timer. I have the original 1917 Folmer and Schwing 11x14 studio camera from the old shop.
 

Ian Grant

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Some did and some didn't. When I worked commercially I did all my own processing except 120mm E6, but I mainly used B&W. .

Two friends who were commercial/advertising photographers both did all their own B&W processing and printing and outsourced their colour work. Later one of them added E6 and C41 processing and RA-4 printing, although he employed an experience technician/printer. Julian had major international clients and it meant that art directors could return with 120 or 5x4 E6 transparencies at the end of the day. It gave him an edge over competitors.

Ian
 

Pieter12

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Many of the photographers I worked with would send snip tests to labs for rush processing, being able to get them back before striking a set sometimes. A car photographer I worked with had his own E6 processor and could get results while we were all still in the studio. Back in the heyday, of course, and not on location. Now with digital all that is moot.
 

Rob Skeoch

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I worked at five different newspapers, agencies as a photographer. At four of them, each photographer did their own processing. The fifth one had darkroom technicians, so the photographers processed their own film, made contacts, and submitted those to the editor. Final colour prints for the paper were done by the tech. When I went to Major League Baseball, and then the NFL, everything was slide film, so it was all sent out. Deadlines weren't like they are now. I would take my film to the camera store each Monday and pick up last weeks film while I was there. Mostly we shot Kodachrome 200 so the turnaround wasn't that quick. On occasion, like when I returned from an assignment in Cambodia and things were needed quickly, I would drive to the Kodak plant in Toronto after hours and convince the guard at the gate to take my film into the lab. They would process it that night and I would return to Kodak the next afternoon and it would be ready. A lot of driving but you could get the film back in one day. Again this was only special situations.
I don't think I've ever sent a roll of black and white out to a lob to get done, although I'm sure they would do a great job.
 

Mal Paso

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Back when I shot commercial, I had an E6 water tempered batch line so I could process each day's shoot before changing the set.
 

Philippe-Georges

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Till about two years ago I was a "pro" photographer (for nearly 35 years) having my own studio annex darkroom.
For about 20 years, till 2010 (when I switched to digital for colour work), I did the E-6 and B&W reversal processing in house using a Colenta AT60.
I did this as a service/incentive for my clients, mainly (book-) publishers. After a long day of 'shooting', mostly on location, I could process the films during the night and deliver early in the morning when the publisher's office opened, what they liked a lot.
And for me, it was like a test: within less than 24h I could examen the results and if necessarily go back, as in most of the cases the set was still up. This was above all very useful for cookery books as colour, texture, sharpness and appearance of substance was of paramount importance!

Have a look: http://www.photoeil.be/books/carnet-de-cuisine.html
 

BMbikerider

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In todays world where things are always wanted yesterday, I do not know of anyone in the Pro market in England that processes his/her own work - even digital. Apart from the time aspect, to the Pro, time is money so why waste time in the darkroom when you could be on the next assignment photographing for the his/her client. It is a bit like a conveyor belt where the work is never ending. That is certainly very true with weddings, get the proofs to the guests who are at the reception then you should be able to get more sales.

Having said that, the traditional Pro where film was king is sadly diminishing simply because after buying the equipment for digital it is both cheaper and quicker with no costs for what is now expensive film. (But perhaps not so satisfying.)
 

radiant

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Do you fix your own car if your business is heavily depend on it? No. You take it to repair shop and maybe have some other car while your car is being fixed.

If I were pro PHOTOGRAPHER, I would ask someone else develop the films for me. Unless I would be pro film lab worker
 

foc

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I was a professional photographer (1985 - 2020) mainly shooting weddings and studio portraits and a small amount of commercial work. My catchment area was mainly rural and small towns.

I also had a high street retail shop (with the studio) and a minilab. I did all my own C41 & B&W processing and printing (film 1985 - 2000, digital 2000 - 2020) and it wasn't really that hard or time consuming. E6 I sent out.

Since I sold mostly prints (RA4) all the colour C41 & RA4 processing was automated and strictly controlled. The negs on the Fuji Frontier were scanned semi-auto and were correct 99.5% first time.

I had learned very early on that you should view a print and within 5 seconds decide if colour and density is correct or not. Don't over analyse. The same can be applied to viewing a digital image on screen. (a correctly calibrated screen )
 

Philippe-Georges

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Allow me to disagree with your statements.

About the car: well, yes and no, when wherever on location, I always took a basic tool kit, a spare V belt, motor oil, iron wire, WD40 and spare bulbs for my car. The regular maintenance and checkup was done by the dealer in accordance to the safety regulations.
But I have to admit that my uncle had a garage and when I was a boy I spend a lot of time working on cars (I drove a (used) Ford Cortina Lotus for a while).

About developing films: wel yes, I did the processing in house, so it went faster and trustworthy. If it was film and printing, B&W or colour, I never found a decent lab that could do it to my willing, unless I went to Paris (the few good ones in Brussels were permanently flooded by work) and spent an important amount of time and money to which the publishers wouldn't want to contribute.

The rare Cibachrome prints I might occasionally need, were made by a very special and costly lab in Amsterdam...
 

Alan Edward Klein

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Architects design the building but the General Contractor builds it.
 

Alan Edward Klein

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Would you expand on that last point (bolded)? Thanks. Alan.
 

Cholentpot

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Whatever film I shoot on a gig I process myself.

I'm shooting 95% digital 5% film though.
 

foc

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Alan Edward Klein said:
Would you expand on that last point (bolded)? Thanks. Alan.
Click to expand...
Hi Alan, this is what I meant.
I have made a print from a negative. I look at the print in daylight or under a led daylight lamp. I will decide in no more than 5 seconds if the print is the way I want it.
  • I will look at the density. Is it too light or too dark or correct?
  • I will look at the colour. Does it need a correction? If so what amount of correction?
  • I will look at the crop. Does it need to be cropped in or to one side?
I have found that taking longer than 5 seconds to make a critical decision about a print leads to over analyses and corrections are made where none are necessary.
It can be like a painter stands back and views the painting from afar before deciding to add that extra dab of paint
It is a case of tweaking and then tweaking some more and it goes on.
Just watch a person new to photoshop. The first time they make corrections it is nearly always too much.

The same would apply to two or more similar images of a scene or portrait. Which one do you select?
Make the decision quickly and stand by it.
I hope that has answered your question.
If not just ask?
 

Alan Edward Klein

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That makes sense. I look at a picture and know in two seconds whether I like it or not whether they are mine or someone else's doesn't;t matter. It's a great way to go through let's say 40 of your pictures and pick out the best five.
 

wiltw

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Back when I shot professionally, I would send out all jobs...$4 to process a single color neg rollfilm. If I did my own, it would cost me time and chemicals. I could get color prints from negs for $6.50.
I did my own Cibachrome (later renamed Ilfochrome) printing and processing for personal pleasure, as sending that out was way more expensive to send out.
 
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