I'll show me mine if you show me yours!

[bmac]

Lets start a thread to discuss darkrooms. Feel free to post a photo of yours in the new gallery.

 

[Sean]

Great thread, I would love to see some photos of people's darkrooms. Mine is currently 'under construction' , but I'll post a pic as soon as it's almost finished.

 

[Nige]

I've posted a pic of mine in the "Non Gallery" gallery

 

[Silverpixels5]

Looks like I'm the only one so far still struggling with a bathroom. I guess I'll refrain from posting a picture of my shower and toilet....

 

[Jeremy]

I don't use the bathroom, but I do convert my bedroom into a darkroom. An air purifier/odor defuser right next to my chemicals cuts down on the smell and if I printed too close to bedtime I just sleep on the couch.

 

[Robert]

I have a space. Best way to describe it. Basically one corner of the basement. The thing is I need to block all the windows so the whole thing is dark.One of these days I'll put up walls in one corner but I know it'll end up feeling tight after using the whole basement. A real space will work better but it will take getting used to.

 

[marcello.brussard]

No Silverpixels5, you're not alone. I use the bathroom and I've learned to convert-it in darkroom in 15 minutes!

 

[SteveGangi]

Same here. I use the bathroom, after the sun goes down. It's a hassle, but it works.

 

[bmac]

I have a corner of our garage set aside. I have the windows blocked, and wait for the sun to go down in order to avoid any fogging from light leaks. It is kind of a drag because our washer and dryer are out there too, so it is a constant battle against dust. I am planning on buying a cedar outbuilding when we get our own place (we rent now) and dedicating it to darkroom and photo storage. a 10X8 building costs about $1500 around here.

 

[Les McLean]

. I am planning on buying a cedar outbuilding when we get our own place (we rent now) and dedicating it to darkroom and photo storage. a 10X8 building costs about $1500 around here.

Brian, consider having a custom built wooden building instead of "off the shelf". Having had a custom built wooden shed as a darkroom for the past 15 or so years I can recommend it. I don't know how good the cedar building are that you mention but they need to be of very solid construction especially the floor otherwise you could have a situation that when you move your enlarger moves. I had the framework of mine built with 3" x 2" joists at 15" centres and nothing moves, even when I'm rocking to Zeplin. In Northern England where the climate can be a bit on the cold side it was necesarry to insulate the whole of the darkroom but I don't think you will have the same problem in CA.

A custom built shed may cost more but it will pay off long term.

 

[Silverpixels5]

I have a very small two section bathroom that I'm using. One half has the toilet and bathtub and the other has a linen closet and sink. The two parts are separated by a door and then there's another door which closes off the first part from the rest of the house. I had to put some weather stripping in that door to keep out the light, which works really well since there is no window. I put a piece of 1/2 inch birch plywood over the bathtub and set my 23C on it alongside my developing chemicals. This causes me to have to be very careful since i have no division of wet and dry areas. I keep all my paper, filters, cutters, negs, etc in the other half of the bathroom. I hang all washed prints in the linen closet to dry, and washed negatives hang from the shower rod. It all works out pretty well, except that it is very constrained...not to mention the fact that i have to move everything in and out of the bathroom each time I want to print something. Its really gonna suck when I finish putting my Omega D5XL together and then have to drag that in and out of the b-room.....

 

[bmac]

For those who have temporary sports that they set up each session. How do you deal with enlarger alignment?

 

[Silverpixels5]

For those who have temporary sports that they set up each session. How do you deal with enlarger alignment?

Strangely enough, I don't. I check my alignment probably once a month and everyting has always been in order. I have a Besseler 23C with a condenser head (soon to be cold light head as soon as it gets delivered). It's pretty rugged and nothing ever changes without a lot of effort having to be put forth. I've really only had to align it twice. Once when i first got it, and last week when I replaced the plastic cogs that raise and lower the head.

 

[Eric Rose]

Your suppose to check alignment?? I will post pics of my darkroom asap.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

Small bathroom in a small Manhattan apartment, but at least it's bigger than my last apartment.

The enlarger rolls on a typewriter table (remember them?) and slides in over the toilet. Trays go in the bathtub. Daylight tanks I can do on the sink. Chemicals are kept in plastic crates in a different room, out of the way, under a bench. I keep some paper out that I'm using, and the rest is in the fridge.

I've had a permanent darkroom in the past and would prefer it, but it's not happening any time soon.

I can print easily up to 11x14" from 35mm to 4x5" (or contact printing 8x10" or 11x14") with this arrangement, and that suits the kind of printing I've been doing anyway lately. I could go to 16x20" in a pinch, and could rent darkroom space to print larger or to enlarge from 8x10".

 

[Tim Budd]

Having had a custom built wooden shed as a darkroom for the past 15 or so years I can recommend it.

Les,

Do you have a mains supply of water attached to your shed, if so how was it done. I remember when your darkroom was moved (by crane) so did it cause any problems?

 

[David Hall]

I do all film in the kitchen, and I do all printing (color neg too) in a rental darkroom about 15 minutes away.

dgh

 

[Donald Miller]

I converted a room in my home for darkroom use. The problem that I have now is inadequate room to set up the vacuum frame (26X32) for contact printing. I will probably need to convert the matting area to a dual usage area.

 

[Les McLean]

Having had a custom built wooden shed as a darkroom for the past 15 or so years I can recommend it.

Les,

Do you have a mains supply of water attached to your shed, if so how was it done. I remember when your darkroom was moved (by crane) so did it cause any problems?

Yes I do connect to the mains water when I move the darkroom (this is the 3rd move). I normally take a spur from the nearest point in the house and run the pipe underground to the darkroom. However, the house I now live in had an outside tap near to where the darkroom went so I picked up the supply there. In the 15 or so years that I've done this the water supply has frozen only twice and both were during brass monkey weather. I do make sure that the pipes are well insulated. Hopefully, Both me and my wife don't ever wish to move house again and I have said my next move will be in a pine box, or cardboard, when I pop my clogs.

 

[glbeas]

I converted a room in my home for darkroom use. The problem that I have now is inadequate room to set up the vacuum frame (26X32) for contact printing. I will probably need to convert the matting area to a dual usage area.

Sounds like you could use a hinged tabletop that will swing up and hook out of the way with the vacuum frame permanently installed under it. Kinda like what they do in campers sometimes.

 

[Loose Gravel]

I've got a 9x21' room that is divided as darkroom and finishing room. It is in the house and was a sleeping porch long ago. Problem is the low ceiling, about 7' max.

Building a new darkroom/finishing room in an outbuilding. That darkroom has 7.5' ceiling and is 9x12'. Finishing room has cathedral ceiling from 10' to 16' and is one side of a 12x18' room. It was all framed 3 years ago, but the county seems to think we need a permit. Go figure.

 

[glbeas]

Mine is in the basement, a framed in 12x14 room with 10 foot ceilings. I've got a stainless morgue table converted to a darkroom sink, a 4x5 beseler, a darn near walk-in film drying cabinet. vacuum easel, and lots of shelves and cabinets. It's not easy to get a good shot of it, I had to shoot from 4 different directions to show much of it. My digitoy doesn't have much of a wide angle to it.

 

[Aggie]

..

 

[bmac]

thats the vacuum to suck the dust off the negs jk

 

[glbeas]

The old Dichro heads have a wall mounted blower to cool the 400 watts of light inside.