Come on! Let’s Do the Color Process!

Since I got into analogue photography, I´ve only developed one roll in the lab: they took one day to develop and scan it, and then I found out they hadn’t scanned the sprocket holes… I really needed a scanner and knowledge on processing/developing!!

Since I got into analogue photography, I´ve only developed one roll in the lab: they took one day to develop and scan it, and then I found out they hadn’t scanned the sprocket holes… I really needed a scanner and knowledge on processing/developing!

I bought a scanner, Epson V500! Perfect! I scanned that first roll, with sprockets!!!
The next step would be processing. I started with black and white, and later, color film.
Let’s see how I do it and what I need to process color film (pretty much the same stuff I use in b&w processing):

• a developing tank,
• plastic reels,
• measuring cups (1 liter each),
• a large plastic container,
• a thermometer,
• rubber gloves,
• a timer,
• some film clips to hang the film to dry,
• 4 plastic bottles for the chemistries (I use 500 ml bottles, to fit my plastic container)
• a pair of scissors (to cut the film)
• a changing bag (to load the film into the developing tank)

Got the C41 developing kit, first, a Nova Prospeed 41 Kit and later the Tetenal Colortec C41 kit. I just had to read the instructions to know how to mix the chemicals (easy) and the processing times and temperatures.
And this is how I do it:

• I go to the bathroom and fill the plastic container with hot water from the shower (mine is always around 40/42 degrees Celsius). Ideal temperature is 38 degrees Celsius.

• Then I put the bottles containing the chemistries in the hot water and I go to the living room where I load the film into the plastic reels, and place them in the developing tank (this is done inside the changing bag). Sometimes loading the film into the reels can be hard, but it improves with time!

Let me show you what happens inside the changing bag.

• Back in the bathroom! I place the developing tank also in hot water along with the plastic bottles (containing the chemistries). I measure the temperature; between 38 to 42 degrees Celsius seems to be ok.

• Put on the rubber gloves, set 3:15 minutes on the timer, and start pouring the developer into the tank. Rotate the tank, left-right, right-left! Rotate it, invert it, keep it warm in the water! By the time you hear the chronometer, pour the developer out into a measuring cup, then into the bottle again (re-use it until it doesn’t work anymore!!).

• 4:00 minutes for bleach fix on the timer, pour it into the tank! Same thing, rotate, invert! Four minutes have passed; pour it out, into the bottle!

• Time to rinse! I fill the tank with tap water, invert the tank 5 times, pout it out, fill, invert 10 times, pour it out, invert 20 times, pour it out!

• Finally,the Stabilizer. I pour into a measuring cup and leave the film there for 1 minute (just the film, not the reels) .

• Hang the film to dry for 2 hour minimum.

Believe me, if I can do it, everybody can do it!

Here are some results, color negatives and cross process! The majority of my photos are home developed and I think they’ve turned out just fine!

I hope this article can encourage all the community to try to process color film at home!
Have fun!!

written by pepper-b on 2011-02-02 #gear #tutorials #film #diy #developing #negative #lab #color #home #lab-rat #tipster #development #chemistry #processing #homeprocessing #film-processing #top-tipster-techniques