New to C41

[snegron]

I would like develop my own 120 film color negatives at home. Any helpful links, publications, suggetsions regarding chemicals needed and proceedures? My lab charges $15.00 per roll including 4" x 5 " prints. I only get 15 frames per roll on 120 film so I need to save money on processing by developing my own film then scan for printer.

 

[brent8927]

That sounds really expensive... I use Calypso Imaging, I think their pricing is about $3.00 per roll, and you can ship to them; if you're interested, they're located in Santa Clara, CA, and they have a website that would explain everything.

 

[Canuck]

Processing is almost as easy as B/W. Only hard part is keeping the initial developer temperature stable. WIth the new kits nowadays (I use the Agfa kit nowadays but others are available), you can adjust the temperature/time ratios to get nice negs if don't want to develop at 100F. Other temps will give different times for developer.

As for tips, well, just make sure you have the chemicals at the proper temp, though the only critical one is the colour solution. I use a large plastic wash basin with the temperature I want (for me, 100F), use a presoak (110F just because the tanks are cooler initially) to warm up the development tanks for about 5 minutes (I use Patterson), then go into the development sequence (developer, blix, wash, and stabilizer). Nerve racking the first time through but pretty easy after that. Good luck!

 

[srs5694]

I've recently begun doing my own C-41 processing (I just did my sixth roll today), so I've got several beginner references handy:

• Here's an article from several years ago from Shutterbug magazine. It covers the basic procedures, offers advice on chemistry, etc.
• Here's another page with basic information. A lot of this page's information will be old hat if you're familiar with B&W processing, though.
• Jobo (the US distributor for Tetenal chemistry, among other things) has a page with information on the basic process.
• If you're into mixing chemistry from scratch, check out this page, which has formulas for all of the major components. I don't claim these are the best formulas available or even that they compare favorably with the commercial kits, though.
• Another home-brew developer is described (there was a url link here which no longer exists) (copied from the November/December, 1994 issue of Darkroom & Creative Camera Techniques). This has the advantage of being a divided developer (hence long shelf life, at least in theory) and of working at 75 degrees F rather than the usual 100. Again, though, I can't comment on its quality.

It's probably best to start with a commercial kit or with individual components sold commercially, rather than mixing your own. (If you're well-versed with mixing your own B&W chemistry and have most of the components at hand, though, you could start out that way.) In the US, mail-order outfits like B&H, Dead Link Removed and Freestyle sell C-41 chemistry from Kodak, Tetenal, Paterson, and others. Note that some components are considered hazardous, so some mail-order outfits (like B&H) won't ship them, and others will ship them only by ground. In particular, bleaches and stabilizers fall into this category, as do some developers. Note that some kits omit stabilizers. I've seen conflicting information on whether they're really necessary with modern films. For safety of preserving your images, it's best to use it -- but stabilizers contain formaldehyde, so for your personal safety, wear gloves when using it.

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

I have been using the Agfa 500ml kits for some time. I use Grolsch beer bottles for the chemicals as they are pretty close to 500ml filled to the brim, and they have nice seals. The Agfa kits are designed to be used for 35mm film, but it's not too difficult to use them for 120.

 

[Photo Engineer]

I would rather have the Grolsch beer! I can't get it here.

I store my chemistry for up to 1 year in Jobo plastic bottles. They are the most oxygen impermeable that I have ever found.

PE

 

[snegron]

You guys are awsome! Thanks for all the helpful tips! I can't wait to start.

 

[Dave Parker]

I would like develop my own 120 film color negatives at home. Any helpful links, publications, suggetsions regarding chemicals needed and proceedures? My lab charges $15.00 per roll including 4" x 5 " prints. I only get 15 frames per roll on 120 film so I need to save money on processing by developing my own film then scan for printer.

$15.00 per roll for 645 120 film, that is crazy!!!

I pay about $7.00 a roll with prints around here!!

Anyway, C41 is pretty easy to do, as long as you have good temp control in place, it is only a three step process, so have fun doing it.

Dave