Red or Amber/Yellow Safe Lights

[MegoApesNut]

What safe lights do you use? Does anyone have a mix of filters?

 

[Leigh B]

I use the Thomas Duplex sodium vapor safelight, which is yellow by definition.

Great, bright safelight. I can read small print anywhere in my 10'x15' darkroom.

- Leigh

 

[Rick A]

Strictly dark red for me, for over 55 years, and never a problem. Some of the newer VC papers can be used with OC filters, but I use ortho films and most of my older papers are Eastern European and require red. I wouldn't mix colors, you can try it and see what happens and report back with your findings.

 

[MattKing]

My newest safelight is wonderful - a 16 foot red LED rope light.
Bright, even, almost shadow free illumination in my bathroom/darkroom.
Passed the Kodak safelight test with Ilford and Oriental VC papers.

 

[Leigh B]

Further on my recommendation of a yellow sodium-vapor safelight...

Please understand that yellow light from a sodium-vapor tube is VERY different from
yellow light coming from a filtered incandescent lamp.

Sodium-vapor light has two distinct yellow wavelengths, separated only very slightly.
It contains no red or green energy whatsoever.

The apparently yellow light from a filtered incandescent source has both red and green.
This is definitely NOT what you want.

- Leigh

 

[MarkL]

For me, the problem with lots of safe light, like the Thomas Duplex, is that it can overpower the dim image on the enlarger baseboard. When you go to dodge or burn you can barely see the image and your hand makes annoying shadows. I like safe lights placed around the ceiling with pull string on/off switches and just turn on light where it's needed. As I understand it, red is safe with everything, but amber isn't (although it's brighter to the human eye). So I usually just use my red safe lights.

 

[Ginette]

For me, the problem with lots of safe light, like the Thomas Duplex, is that it can overpower the dim image on the enlarger baseboard. When you go to dodge or burn you can barely see the image and your hand makes annoying shadows. I like safe lights placed around the ceiling with pull string on/off switches and just turn on light where it's needed.

The Thomas Duplex have a chain for opening or closing the vanes so you have only to put black caches over the vanes and it will be like you turn the lamp off.

 

[Ginette]

Safelights are pretty cheaps on eBay or similar selling spots. Just bought 2 or more safelights fixtures and put a Kodak 0C amber (or Ilford 902) and Kodak #1or #2 red on the other safelight but don't mix them! Follow papers recommendations, most papers are 0C but some European papers (ex. some FOMA) ask for red. So you open the one needed. 0C is brighter that #1 and #2 is really dark so use the brighter if the paper can take it.
Film, panchromatic and positive papers ask for others filters, so use what they recommand. Also bulb is 10, 15W or 25W depending of the size of the fixture (25W is for 10x12 safelight), not a 100W!

 

[Frank53]

I use 2 Heiland led-tubes (red). They switch on and off with the enlarger and can be switched to white when needed.
Regards,
Frank

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Strictly dark red for me, for over 55 years, and never a problem. Some of the newer VC papers can be used with OC filters, but I use ortho films and most of my older papers are Eastern European and require red. I wouldn't mix colors, you can try it and see what happens and report back with your findings.

+1 I only use dimmed dark red to be absolutely sure;nothing worse than safelight fog in highlights when printing.

 

[voceumana]

I bought an old Aristo Red safelight (gas discharge tube). It's been great. I had a Thomas safelight before, but it was too bright in my darkroom and tests showed it wasn't very safe for VC papers. No problems with the Aristo. If I were to do it today I'd probably investigate the RED LED rope light approach. I would espect the same results.

 

[john_s]

i use a DIY red LED setup. It's not the easiest colour of light in which to evaluate a print, so I made a simple hand held yellow/orange LED lamp. I use it briefly towards the end of print development and the yellow/orange is a revelation after having been in the red for a while. The brevityof its use and the fact that it's near the end of development make it safe. (But a whole darkroom safelight made of the same LEDs was definitely not safe with mainstream papers)

 

[tedr1]

This is what Ilford says about safelight for paper on their website:

"Amber/Orange or Red safelights may be used with our standard photographic papers as long as they stop light with wavelengths shorter than 680nm. The ILFORD Orange Safelight is called a 902 and the ILFORD Red Safelight is called a 906."

 

[jeffreyg]

My safelight is red and my enlarger timer automatically turns it off when the enlarger lamp is on.

http://www.jeffreyglasser.com/

 

[mrosenlof]

Amber OC for me. The safelight stays on when the enlarger is on.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Red and famous on APUG, comes from USA on-line store, mentioned many times here. I wasted time and money with amber, Kodak, but this one is great and bright.

 

[LAG]

What safe lights do you use? Does anyone have a mix of filters?

I use dark red indirect safelight (which I turn it off the moments I can handle in the dark) with a safety distance within a specific safety time. I always prepare my eyes at least 15 minutes before the session. I have never used LED and never will.

Regards!

 

[Doremus Scudder]

Man, it seems like a lot of you here like to work in a really dark darkroom! For me, give me as much safelight as I can get.

As for color. Some materials do fine with amber (Kodak OC/Ilford 902), some require red (Kodak 1/Ilford 906). Read the spec. sheet that comes with your enlarging papers and do a safelight test. Thomas safelights and other sodium vapor safelights give a lot of light in a portion of the spectrum to which the eye is very sensitive, but photo paper is blind. This makes for a nice bright darkroom. LEDs, if they emit the proper wavelengths, can be very safe. You need to do your homework about this, though, before you buy LEDs.

And, did I mention that you need to do a safelight test?

Best,

Doremus

 

[Paul Howell]

I have both OC and red, OC for Foma VC papers and Red for Salvich FB.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

i use a DIY red LED setup. It's not the easiest colour of light in which to evaluate a print, so I made a simple hand held yellow/orange LED lamp. I use it briefly towards the end of print development and the yellow/orange is a revelation after having been in the red for a while. The brevityof its use and the fact that it's near the end of development make it safe. (But a whole darkroom safelight made of the same LEDs was definitely not safe with mainstream papers)

a safelight is not to be used to evaluate a print;use white light for that.safelights are used during handling,exposure and processing to protect the paper

 

[Jim Jones]

A dimmer used with incandescent safelights is handy.

 

[john_s]

a safelight is not to be used to evaluate a print;use white light for that.safelights are used during handling,exposure and processing to protect the paper

Of course you are correct Ralph.

There are times, though, for me when a series of prints don't warrant the optimum that I can do. That is when I don't see white light for hours. Some slight adjustment is available afterwards when I do a "sparkle bath" (Tim Rudman's term for a very weak brief bleach that cleans up a print that might be a little bit dull).

Perhaps I shouldn't make such admissions in such august company!