Developing C-41 color film at home is actually pretty easy

Follow along in this very chill video with bad audio and yes, there will be a part 2

[@TechnologyConnextras]

One extra note here: you may notice I didn't touch on what to do with the used chemicals. Yeah, that was on purpose. There's conflicting info, advice, and opinions out there and I don't feel qualified to make a suggestion one way or another. So, uh, I'll leave that up to you.

[@SupremeRuleroftheWorld]

a fun but TOTALLY unrelated fact: there is a sink right next to the setup....

[@TechnologyConnextras]

...and where those pipes happen to go is a _big_ part of the decision...

[@applegal3058]

Is there anything that is really toxic if flushed down with lots of water, and it's diluted some? My guess is lots if people flush it down the drain...but maybe there is a better option....maybe adding something to neutralize toxic chemicals?

[@DoktorFrankenstein]

If the MSDS from these chemicals* is any indication, then yes, it's harmful. But in a more general sense, it's mostly the used bleach/fixer/blix that's a cause for concern, due to their silver contents. * I use a different kit, from Flic Film instead of Arista, but the products are likely very similar.

[@applegal3058]

@@DoktorFrankenstein oh ok. Thanks for explaining. I wonder if Nile Red has a video on here explaining the chemistry? Not that I'd fully understand it lol

[@cristianomartelli6277]

A long time ago, when i worked in a industrial photo lab (40000 rolls by night), i prepared C41 chemicals by scratch from the components, and I remember the most of the formulation: for the developer: about 5 gr/l of CD4 (color developer 4 an aromatic ammine) about 20g/l of potassium carbonate about 5 g/l of potassium idroxide to form a buffer at ph 10-10.1 some anti calcium agent about 5 g/l of sodium sulfite (antioxidant) a little quantity of sodium bromide, less of a gram, and potassium iodide a few mg. for the bleach: if it is brown ferric ammonium EDTA if it is green ferric ammonium PDTA some bromidric acid and potassium bromide, fun fact is possible to reuse the bleach if you use a acetic acid stop bath and areate the bleach after use. The concentration of the bleach may vary depending on the immersion time prescribed, there was faster processing (minilabs) with 45 second bleach time or standard processing 3.15minutes. for the fixer: ammonium thiosulfate sodium sulfite some EDTA some sodium hydroxide to set ph about 6.5. Most of the chemicals degrade quikly when discarded in a normal biologic treatment waste water plant (we had one) or dont have any effect when diluted( at least in the quantity you use ). I saw a comment about silver toxycity, in a roll there is probably 0.2 grams or less but if you don't want to discard it put a little quantity of steel wool (not inox) in the container, the silver will precipitate in the bottom of the flask in few minutes as black silver sulphide.

[@KateIvyFriesen]

This is really cool info! Thanks for sharing :)

[@Graham_Rule]

I've never developed colour films but used to do some black and white stuff. My key hint when dealing with film is to not try to develop it after a day celebrating the birth of a niece followed by a late night party. Making the room dark before unspooling the film should be done by turning off the lights, not by closing your eyes. Yes, I did waste a film before I realised what I'd done. 😀

[@mrnmrn1]

That is hilarious.

[@c.augustin]

A changing bag would be my recommendation - closing it properly might be a challenge after what you described … 😂

[@CptJistuce]

@@lurch789 I mean, he closed his eyes so it would be dark...

[@DanielSultana]

​@@lurch789but he closed his eyes?

[@lexwithbub]

Lol omg, yes we were told, while practising how to load the film, NOT to practice by closing your eyes because you WILL create a habit and catch yourself out in the darkroom at some point 😂

[@marklewus5468]

Just a hint. The spotting that you’re getting from the photo-flo is most likely an artifact of not using distilled water. Hardness in the water crystallizes out and spots the film. When I tried development with tap water, it spotted like crazy. I started using distilled water and it got much better.

[@TechnologyConnextras]

Hmm. I haven't thought to try mixing the stabilizer with distilled water, but I honestly don't think that's the issue. I'm now leading more towards not mixing the solution up enough between final rinses - it seems the first couple of rolls I run are *perfect* and the later rolls get worse and worse with the residue. It was much better this time around but there were still a few spots in the end. Next developathon I'll try using distilled water with the stabilizer and see what happens!

[@eric_has_no_idea]

​@@TechnologyConnextras- I used to use filtered. (Brita pitcher) Tap water, especially here in Chicago post rain with high chlorine, will either give you spots like this, or areas of fuzzyness.

[@mattjames4126]

I skip the stabilizer they include and use 3-4 drops (at most) of photoflo in distilled water per tank of film - I found the included stabilizer too flaky.

[@lshanny]

@@mattjames4126as long as your scanning and don’t care about the longevity of the negatives that’s fine. The stabilizer isn’t photo flo for a reason. Protects against fungus, which c41 film is susceptible to.

[@c.augustin]

@@TechnologyConnextras Stabilizer should be fine with (modestly hard) tap water, but I found that results tend to be better when used with distilled (or rather demineralized) water.

[@tuckerjohn]

I worked at a 1 hour photo lab in the 90's, and this video brought me back to that smell. The machine we had would maintain the temps and do all these steps automatically, including drying it. Fun stuff.

[@kennixox262]

The smell of a freshly opened can of film is wonderful. The same with magnetic tape.

[@SnepperStepTV]

That's a job i'd actually love to have. Easy enough to do stoned, love the working environment, and employee discounts on film and processes. So I'm working on getting the 1 hour photo parking lot kiosk things near me to reopen. I love my usual place that does it in-house, but more options give the one guy that manages their whole development thing a break for those like me who prefer to keep it local.

[@b6983832]

If your minilab printed too (every minilab did in the 90´s), the EP-2 developer had the strongest smell. This was the smell I remember from the late 80´s - mid 90´s. RA-4 smells much less.

[@railfan670]

my lab leave the smell of the chemicals on the negatives

[@NatureOkie]

As a Navy Photographer, we used a plastic tub, 9 plastic bottles and an Aquarium -type immersion hearter to mix our C-41. the HARDEST part of color is Color Printing. Digital scanning of negs, eliminates this stumbling block! L❤VE your photo series!

[@stonent]

I saw this note on the SantaColor website about light leaks "we recommend you load the film indoors, and definitely not in direct sunlight as this might lead to light leaks on the first frames"

[@WorldInThe]

Yeah I was about to bring this up. I've heard people have issues with certain bases as they'll do something called light piping. The base can basically end up piping light similar to fiber optic cable. This is almost only ever a problem on specialty films like the santa color.

[@Texan_BoyKisser]

@@WorldInThe01:14:45

[@DeltaStormYT]

Does he look outside to you ???????????????

[@Willard_guy]

@@DeltaStormYT Load into the camera

[@XxShantilisxX]

I don't mind long format films because you always have very interesting things to say that I hadn't always heard. It's enjoyable to hear someone talking about something that they are passionate about. I wouldn't mind watching a similar video about scanning the film.

[@elangomattab]

Seeing that film picker was a big blast from the past for me. I worked in a 1 hour photo center for like 7 years back at the height of film photos. We had a faster tape based leader puller but sometimes it didn't work so we always kept a film picker around. Using a church key in the dark box was a last resort.

[@Christian-is-thriving]

I worked in both a commercial lab and a retail in-store one. I used all of those. The minute I saw that on screen I recognized it.

[@bartonstapleton54]

I think that Santa Color is one of the films that is prone to light piping due to no anti-halation layer. Loading the film into a camera in harsh light could be the cause of your problems.

[@DanielLopez-up6os]

also taking the film leader out in light aswell is not recomended (on the package) because the film being so thin and the cartridges felt being meant for normal film thiccness.

[@korhonenmikko]

Consumer still films don't have anti-halation backings.

[@ChristopherAmrich]

I'm excited that the siphon washers for film are cheaper than the pippette washers I was going to buy for our chem lab...

[@meatmanek]

I suspect the difference is just the color of the film. The Santacolor is nearly completely transparent, so any light leak in the middle will shine through more layers of film before being attenuated compared to a dark standard C41 base.

[@b6983832]

@@korhonenmikko No, they don´t have remjet, but they do have antihalation layers in the emulsion. Last film marketed for still photography by Kodak with remjet was Kodachrome. Because K-14 could be developed by a specialist labs only, remjet was not a problem in this film.

[@ravencrovax]

I remember doing B&W photography and development back almost 30 years ago with my old TLR camera. Those were like 2" x 2" negatives. Talk about high quality and resolution pictures. Those made some amazing prints. It was always fun getting to spend a weekend in the dark room.

[@johndododoe1411]

You mean 6x6 cm negatives?

[@ravencrovax]

@@johndododoe1411 Yeah, something like that. I couldn't remember the exact size off the top of my head. All I knew was they were massive and very detailed.

[@Saavik256]

That "old-fashioned can opener" that you mention is called a church key :) Also, I used to work in a photo lab years back as an assistant and I can still recall the smell of the chemicals. And the oldest casette of Kodak Gold III that I used expired in the late 90s, I used it in 2002 or so, turned out pretty wonky. If only I could remember where I put those prints...

[@neilbarnes3557]

Somewhere around the place I have some unexposed glass plates from the 1920s. One of these days I shall get round to discovering just how bad the fogging is after a century... fortunately I also have a quarter plate camera which fits the plates.

[@GoetiaTV]

I hope you do a part 2 with the scanning. This stuff is wizardry to me and someday I hope to develop some film myself. Great video!

[@nathanb9111]

Once you start, your life is forever changed! Started developing B&W myself a year ago, which gradually started at 35mm, then 120, and now up to 4x5in! This also led to me bulk spooling film so now I am more or less self sufficient and all I need to buy is the chemicals, the film itself, and water to dilute chems with! The perfect mix for a broke university student with a chronic film addiction! I scan with a 100mm f2.8 Canon macro lens which allows 1:1 magnification, which is super easy!

[@Kenjitsuka]

You realise a scanning part 2 is absolutely required, right? ;-) Also; long live the KZbin subscription feed!!!

[@minix07]

Wait, they got removed...

[@horizon319]

I was a literal photo lab manager (Noritsu Machines) for Kroger for 3 years right as digital cameras (think 2000 -2001) started becoming popular. This was a throw back for me. We used Safety-Kleen for the waste - they are still around. And bonus - if you would like some very old, unused 35mm color film as well as some more niche stuff (I think, haven't looked at them in a while), hit me up. I'd love for them to go to a good home like yours.

[@GeorgeVCohea]

Safety-Kleen is still around because it is an industrial scale general waste chemical disposal corporation. Petro based oils and chemicals, lead batteries and other environmentally concerning byproducts are their bread and butter though. Film processing, for better or worse, has most probably become more trouble than it is worth for them in most areas, but Walmart is likely tying their lucrative automotive disposal contract to it's photo lab waste needs.

[@NoName-zn1sb]

@@GeorgeVCohea its photo

[@jmacd8817]

I believe Safety Kleen was purchased by Clean Harbors. Clean Harbors is definitely still around. I have no idea if they have any facility for private individuals to deliver hazmat. I had to set up an account with them for my company's hazmat (fluoride and peroxide, primarily, we made oral care products) and it is non trivial. Some cities have provisions for household waste, mainly for old pesticides, herbicides and car chemicals, so these chemicals should be allowed.

[@GeorgeVCohea]

@@NoName-zn1sb What's photo?

[@GeorgeVCohea]

@@NoName-zn1sb Oh, I see. I was a victim of autocorrect. Apparently, _it_ does not understand that there is a difference between its and it‘s, but I do and never would have made such a mistake on my own.

[@JuneNafziger]

You mentioned being able to use a church key on film canisters but you can actually also use a bottle opener! The film lab at my college (I took a class in b&w film photography last fall and it was great!) had small little light sealed rooms where’d you go with the development tank and film roll which had wall mounted bottle openers so you could just do everything in the dark.

[@0013bluejay]

I really hope you do a part two, would love to see how these come out, especially the Santa color ones. Would be pretty cool to see what effects they would have

[@Markimark151]

I used to develop B&W film in school, it was kind of fun, even though I don’t develop color film because it’s too complicated and I rather take it to a one hour photo lab. This is cool video, since there’s lots of demand for color film in recent years, I went to Walmart and there’s Fujifilm products selling out! Even Fujifilm can’t meet the popular demand of 35mm film stocks!

[@malman1080]

I would argue color film is easier. Yeah there’s an extra step but you generally do one temperature for each kind of film so the process stays the same across all c-41 films.

[@Markimark151]

@@malman1080 color c-41 process is easier if you have the processor machine and the chemicals, because my cousin used to work at a drugstore and he developed multiple films in one hour!

[@VintageTechFan]

The 41 in C-41 is a running number, so it was the 41st process they tried. The predecessor was C-22. Color film is EXTREMELY complicated.

[@JamieStuff]

Old-school photog here; learned B&W from my grandfather back in the '70s using stainless steel tanks, and learned color in the early '80s. Those discolorations next to the sprocket holes are "surge marks", and they come from excessive agitation. Basically, the liquid flow brings too much fresh developer in to contact with the film, causing the film to overdevelop. FYI, if the discoloration was from a light leak, the discoloration would be black like the first few inches of the film, not cyan. Color shifts are due to errors in development.

[@mcb187]

Actually, the color shifts are from a phenomenon known as “light piping”, which is a well known issue with areal recon film due to the extremely clear base. Best way to prevent it is storing the film in a light tight container, and load/unload the camera in complete darkness/very dim light. If you can see the film at all, there is a light piping risk.

[@b6983832]

This is true with black & white, but it is practically impossible to cause this in C-41 by agitating too much. The process is originally made for continuous agitation.

[@sydneybiscuit]

FYI you can of course use a generic plastic storage tub for sous vide cookers as well (:

[@OmarKhanUK]

Never did much colour developing, but did a ton of B&W for years. Pulling the leader out under your lights will fog the film, at least the first few frames. I would extract the leader, trim to shape, but no more than that, before putting in changing bag and loading onto the reel. Even the trimming should be done in very low light. Try loading onto reel in the bag, rather than starting on the bench.. i think this will cure your isse re: first few frames. Fogging on one side of the negative is light-leak as you stated, having a strong overhead light with developing track open. Pro labs is IR night vision goggles, damaging to IR film off so that had to be clearly marked for processing. Edited for typos abs additional comments

[@illiteratebeef]

After your B&W processing video, I got back into it after doing it in college 15 years ago. Ended up getting a bulk loader on ebay with expired HP5 and tried color after my local shop wouldn't dev a roll that got a little wet. I'm loving that by doing it DIY I can shoot motion picture film, like MotiPix from Ultrafine. Cheap and interesting film (and very easily reloadable canisters). Very excited to see how SantaColor comes out too. These are absolutely the best DIY videos on youtube, really awesome of you to make this approachable.

[@_Turbocat777]

Thanks for bringing us along for this and showing us your process p.s. I mainly only use my subscription feed for videos and don't usually watch recommended vids unless I get too curious after the 45th time it shows me the same one and my curiosity gets too great.

[@_oe_o_e_]

Oh, you talked about cutting the leader to shape, there’s a tool out there that does that based on one fujifilm used to have for their bulkloading/press consumers called the Reszivot Monorail. Neat little tool, and handy if you buy film at 100ft rolls like i do

[@sasgeek888]

I highly enjoyed hanging out in your kitchen while you developed some film. Love this stuff.

[@burretploof]

I use the subscriptions feed! I honestly do not understand how anyone can use KZbin and *not* use the subscriptions feed. It's a million times better than just hoping that KZbin shows you the latest videos of the channels you like to watch. Oh, also, I didn't expect to enjoy a video showing analogue photo development. 😅

[@katiemorison7969]

Personally I just check mostly? Though I usually just wind up with it in recs

[@marklewus5468]

Love the video! Years ago I had a color darkroom in my basement. Temperature controlled baths for the chemicals and all. Developing the film is straightforward but there were no affordable scanners in those days so you had to print it on color paper. Getting the print color right is a black art. If you have an enlarger and you want to make yourself nuts for a few weeks, you might try it :)

[@TechnologyConnextras]

I am familiar _enough_ with the process of color darkroom printing to know I don't want to go down that road! It's fascinating and I'm sure it would be satisfying but... it's a _lot_

[@b6983832]

It can be hard at first, but when you learn not to confuse blue with magenta or cyan, you have already learned a lot. It will take some time, but it is no black magic. Yes, there are some negatives that refuse to print in acceptable colors, but these are often very badly exposed, or have issues in developing, or film ruined by some other factors such as light leaks, strong airport scanners, etc.

[@stamasd8500]

I used to process my own film and positive prints in high school, back in the 1980s. Never tried color back then because it was too expensive for me, so only B&W. Later, in the 1990s and 2000s I did some color film but I had it processed by a lab because I didn't have any of my old equipment anymore (moving from one continent to another meant that I had to leave my stuff behind). Then of course I changed to digital. The one thing I do still have though is my last film camera, and it's a very nice one - Canon EOS Elan 7NE. The one with the eye-tracking autofocus mechanism, which didn't work for a lot of people but worked great for me (and which Canon buried for about 20 years and I think only now is bringing back). This video maybe has inspired me to get back in the saddle on color film photography. :)

[@ceritat]

Thank you! Loved watching this and I feel encouraged to do my own C41. LOVE film developing, it's so much fun and feels very fruitful at the end, whether the results are good or bad.

[@jonmoore1614]

excellent! quality content as usual! Along with a taller pot, if its stainless steel with a heavy bottom it will retain heat better, especially if you wrap it in a towel. I actually use cotton insulation sheets that came with hello fresh attached via a couple thick rubber bands. I would recommend for most people to use at least filtered water because the minerals will bind to particulates/hardness (calcium/iron/magnesium, etc) and cause spotting.

[@cheddarbaby]

been doing film photography for well over a decade now and no one i've met has ever used that film lead retriever (not even my photo professors) and that is insane to me. I partially stopped shooting 35mm and moved to 120mm because 35mm is so fiddley and you had to wrench the canisters open then load them in the dark. The sheer amount of hours that would have saved me over the years is blowing my mind lol

[@WhatALoadOfTosca]

I loved how you said "irrational". I run a portrait studio and everything we do is digital. It would make zero time and economic sense to be using film in a modern portrait studio. I know some people advertise themselves online as "film wedding photographers" who shoot one or two rolls of film at a wedding in addition to digital images. The problem is most of the people advertising this dont know what they are doing and for the most part the images are terrible.. but their hipster clients dont know any different.

[@WhatALoadOfTosca]

@@lurch789 To be fair, I don't drive ;) i own a Tesla that the wife drives but I wouldn't even know how to start the thing lol

[@thetechsavvy01]

WHAT??? AN HOUR LONG VIDEO WITH ANOTHER PART??? Sounds like dedication to me! Kudos!

[@manueldi_77]

I was "only" trying out b/w film developing and printing in a dark room (my bathroom with a red led). Results were awesome for me and doing the processing was really a chilling and slow down experience for me.

[@JoeUrbanYYC]

For anyone watching in Canada, Thecamerastore in Calgary and Downtown Camera in Toronto sell various sized (0.5l to 5l) C41 kits from Unicolor, Flic Film, Cinestill etc. Other shops may also but those are the two I know of.

[@rodantkapoor9721]

Perfect timing! I'm about to develop some soon myself for the first time, and I really enjoy your humorous and informative videos!

[@aprilmeowmeow]

how did it go?

[@nto-steve]

I was told a tip somewhere and always do it now is to microwave the bottles of chemistry to nearly the working temperature, just keep checking the plain water, before putting in the water bath. Saves loads of time!

[@Dr_Mario2007]

I have done high school holograms, in general developing almost any films aren't hard. Doing it in the dark room is challenging however, especially when you are given a filtered incandescent flashlight (red and green LED flashlight can either be bought or DIY'd and honestly it's somewhat better but remember brightness and sensitivity to general wavelength matter too - it's important not to overdo the dark room illumination or you could accidentally expose the films, when in doubt, check your film box for what color of safe light to use).

[@speederbrad95]

With the film washing device. it probably requires that the input flow to be a bit lower than the flow of the drain in order to break the siphon and not continually drain itself

[@HoustonMarsh]

That was so thorough. Thanks! Looking forward to part 2.

[@christopherguy1217]

I used to do B & W development and printing when I was a teenager so all this looks familiar. I remember having film hangers that clipped on the sprocket holes, one had hooks for hanging the bottom was like the top except it had a weight. Also I had a tool designed to pop the film caps without bending them so they could be reused. I loaded bulk film and reusing the containers saved a few bucks. I'm inspired to try colour development now.

[@MazeFrame]

I remember doing black and white photo-stuff with large sheets of photo paper. The time in almost pitch black rooms with the faintest of red illumination preparing very DIY cameras cutting and loading the things was great. Developing came down to three baths and then running the paper through a speed-modded lamination machine to drive away the water before the paper takes too much of a liking to it. This here seems more chill in a weird manner.

[@gatts205]

TBH we use a sous vide cooker in one of my labs to do precise water baths. It's actually a lot better at maintaining a steady temp then our older laboratory style hot water bath.

[@jhamm15]

28:53 Tip: If you shoot with an EOS-1 series SLR, there is a custom function that will rewind film and leave the film leader out. Not sure about Nikon’s equivalent pro SLR cameras cuz I’ve always been a Canon shooter. 😊

[@minigpracing3068]

Even back to the Minolta Maxxum 9000 had a leader out function. Most of the pro cameras did this because people might need to change speeds mid roll. Was also really handy for developing.

[@b6983832]

@@minigpracing3068 I never understood why they made the point & shoot cameras to rewind the leader into the cartridge. We had to pull the leader out from each and every film in the minilab where I also helped as a teenager.

[@theantipope4354]

I'm a 100% digital photog these days, but I have a couple of decades worth of film neg's, & would love to see the process involved in scanning them.

[@BruceMFerry]

This reminds me of when I was processing color slides. Ektachrome E2/E3 process at first. The kit was $5 and did 16 (I think) 24 exposure rolls. Exciting times for a teenager! The process operated at 75 degrees F. Later E4 process was 85 degrees. There were 7 different chemicals all provided as powders.

[@chuckygobyebye]

I didn't even know you could process transparencies at home.

[@cutiepiecatloveallanimals6602]

Always wanted to take photography in highschool, never did but now feel like I have a decent understanding of it, thanks

[@xwingfighter999]

Santacolor (Kodak Aerocolor) has no anti-halation layer, absence of which promotes light piping when loading the film. I wouldn't expect even a floodlight above the tank to expose the film but if it's known to be leaky and stuff, maybe that doesn't help.

[@Nadia1989]

In the late 90's early 2000's the local photo lab sold the empty cartridges as keyrings. I have some made of Agfa and Kodak in my desk drawers. Who would've imagined some people would reuse them twenty years later.

[@b6983832]

We useddto take empty Konica film cartridges from the local minilab, because these were of that type which could be opened without destroying it. Kodak and Fuji can't be opened without destroying the cartridge. I don't remember how it was with Agfa cartridges.

[@SinKillerJ]

Thank you for being the one KZbinr to bring up the sub feed instead of a 5 minute rant about how your videos aren't showing up.

[@sarahjrandomnumbers]

A hour and 20 minutes to watch someone develop film?! SIGN ME UP! * gets comfy *

[@tonygroenewoud-powell53]

This was remarkably fascinating and sublimely calming to watch...

[@AshGCG]

36 years ago I did an after school class where we developed and processed photos to turn into an art project. I remember 3 trays, something that looked like a projector lamp and a gorgeous lass who seemed to know and grasp everything a good hour or so before me. When you opened that box and pulled out 7 bottles of chems' I realised I had spent far to much time "admiring" than learning.

[@lurkersmith810]

All I watch is the subscription feed, which is why I'm about 2 weeks behind on seeing this! I suppose maybe a lot of people don't subscribe to every channel they like, or maybe they spend more time keeping current than I do, but of course KZbin wants to keep you engaged for hours and hours. Anyway, I have to now go out into the real world for a bit. I seem to remember having done C41 processing back in the 1980s, having set up my apartment bathroom as a darkroom. I was confused by the "Blix", and thought I'd remembered a "bleach" process, so now I guess they've combined bleach and fixer. Color was more difficult than black and white back in the day, but I think I even made at least some color prints with my enlarger, and later discovered an easier print process called "Cibachrome" (going by memory alone). I remember the Cibachrome being very high contrast with very vibrant colors. It's also possible that was used to make prints from slides because I remember black borders on the prints. (Now where did I put all that stuff? I hope I don't discover bad chemicals deep in the bowels of my garage at some point in the future! Apologies to whoever discovers it after I pass on!)

[@MichaelBakula]

Films with clear backing can be prone to light-piping through the plastic. Loading the film into the camera in bright light can be a problem, and likewise when you preload onto the reels in bright light could be a cause.

[@JoeUrbanYYC]

Good call, the camera loading may have been done in subdued light but the preloading of the reels was definitely not. I've used a film called Flic Film Electra that I think is the same source and it warned about light piping as well.

[@LutzSchafer]

For that reason the back side of most films (Agfa Kodak) have a dark green dye that washes out during processing. It provides good suppression of diffuse light and internal reflection

[@markmarkofkane8167]

I've always wanted to process film and make prints, but never had the opportunity, funds, or room. Then once digital cameras came out, I figured it was an obsolete science. But if given a chance, I'd try it. If everything was supplied and I was given training. Btw, I used Polaroid 35 mm film a few times. The prints turned out better than Fuji or Kodak. Richer colors. I only used it a few times because of availability.

[@tortureborn]

You have all of the screws aligned on your switch and outlet covers. That's great. So is this video.

[@ThingOfSome]

The artifacts along the sprocket holes of the film looks like light piping, which is common (for b&w film, at least) with a clear (PET, for example) base.

[@ferozmovie]

I use my cinestill c-41 kit over a few months after mixing. Just add a bit more developing time than recommended when it’s getting older. Haven’t noticed much of an issue tbh. I usually get 20-24 rolls out of it before getting new chems!

[@curiosity2314]

Wish we had the sous vide idea in the 70's. Did C-41, slides and b&w at the time.

[@yoepvh9250]

Concerning the developer shelf life, I develop using Cinestill's C-41 kit, and mix up a new batch as soon as the old one is exhausted (usually around 15 rolls). Anecdotally, I see the shelf life of c-41 chemicals has more to do with number of rolls developed than time after Mixing. I keep everything in light and airtight bottle, in a dark closet. When the blix level gets lower, you can throw in marbles, so there is less oxygen in the bottles, as I suspect oxidation is the second largest factor in developer life. I might seek out some brown glass bottles, on which I can place a vacuum pump. Lastly, you can also get a powder kit, and mix up half, or even a quart of the kit for development to further improve shelf life.

[@aperson9495]

Retrieving the leader and getting it started in the spool is a really good idea that I never thought about. I first did developing 25ish years ago in high school, and have done some B&W developing since, but always loaded the film either in a real darkroom or in a changing bag. But getting it started where you can see it like that is a good idea, just need to make sure you don't accidentailly pull too much out. 😳

[@b6983832]

This is what al the minilabs did, and do even today. In these machines you tape the film into a leader card, which pulls the film through the process. This can be done in daylight, and to do this, the leader must be pulled out of the cartridge.

[@FranticPixel]

Your plethora of knowledge never ceases to amaze me! You’re so fricken cool!

[@edgeeffect]

The only way I've seen C41 done in the past is with a huge great enormous machine... how things are done "at home" is always very interesting. ... "brown coloured film".... I've always considered it Orange rather than Brown! ;)

[@LutzSchafer]

It's not "orange colored"! These are two positive masks to reduce the spectral overlapping. One is yellow and the other is magenta giving the apparant orange positive mask. This important invention made the color negative film marketable in the first place. Without it the gamut is greatly reduced due to wash out between neighboring dye absorption spectra

[@dangoldbach6570]

You're correct at 1:14:47. The light leaks are from the clear base stock. It pipes light like a fiber optic. That's why estar base filmstocks are brown. It probably happened from when the film was new and had the leader out of the can collecting light like a solar panel and piping it into the can

[@tibordanyi1992]

Funnily enough, I had the exact same blue-ish lightleak effect on the start and along sprockets with, Washi X film, which, as far as I know, is similiar if not the same surveillance film. Some sites do mention to load it in subdued light, probably because of this light pipey, whatever it may be, phenomenon. So yeah, probably the only way to prevent it is load it into the camera dark, take it also out in the dark afterwards, and also load it to the reel as such.

[@tomwilliam5118]

I used Fujifilm when I was younger also. Later on in life I learned that the older the film is before you use it the sharper the images are. I don't know why but a nature photographer told me about that trick.

[@mickeyfilmer5551]

As a kid in the 60's I had a 120 roll plastic camera, then a Kodak "Instamatic" in which I used Kodachrome to produce slides for use in a Projector- then I had a Praktika slr using 35mm but never got into deeveloping as the set up costs were very expensive here in the UK.

[@gabest4]

Tap build number seven times. You are now a developer!

[@cameronMbarrett]

Please do a video on how to properly scan photos. I have a ton of family photos I'd love to get digitised so that I can keep them and share with family

[@hiperalee]

I've seen people on the internet use DSLR on tripod + smartphone screen to great effect!

[@dspiffy]

It is neither exciting nor frustrating but it is educational, and learning is fundamental.

[@froggybangbang]

Oh, man. I used to develop b&w films in college, along with the actual photo developing. I still miss that chemical smell that clung to me (super good for you I'm sure), and that paet in total darkness when you open the bobin, roll it on the holder and pour the liquid is the most peaceful time ❤ Also hit damn i ised to get the film oht in a dark closet, and cut and try to spool them all in the dark! That tool looks way better

[@DoktorFrankenstein]

Some observations from someone who has water about as hard as your studio does: My C-41 perishes extremely quickly if I mix it with tap water; as in, it starts giving me pink negative / green print fog in my images within days. However, if I mix it with distilled water (and keep it in a dark bottle), I can keep it a couple of months just fine. Something to try, I suppose! YMMV, though, as I use a different kit (Flic Film instead of Arista). As far as equipment goes, the only extra piece I use for C-41 vs. BW is a mop bucket as a water bath and a meat thermometer to monitor it. I usually pour warm water in at around 110 and let it fall down to 102 and then start. By the time I'm done with dev it's at 99-100, and then it's within range for bleach and fix too.

[@evanduffy1015]

With Aerocolor (Santacolor) I think it has an ESTAR base which is susceptible to light piping! That might be why it was so affected by the floodlight where the Acetate base films were ok

[@EthelredHardrede-nz8yv]

Film retrieval. Never used that for developing, we opened the cans destructively BUT sometimes the film might have rolled in by accident before being used. A short strip of used but not wanted film, any kind that still has the gelatin will do. Dampen the gel slightly to make it sticky then insert that into the canister. That should stick to the film and draw it out. Its works about as well as film retrieval tools. I suppose a bit of double sided tape on film will work too.

[@mikegroberman247]

Perhaps different kits are different but I have working C41 solution that I used yesterday that's been sitting since Dec. 2022 and used occasionally since and it worked fine with stock temps and times, your mileage may vary but it's always been number of rolls processed for me that affects chemistry performance in both C-41 and E-6.

[@MrBrianms]

Brilliant. Memories of the photography course in 1996. Thanks.

[@PeskyPoet]

For the film washer, the flow isn't right to allow the wahser to complete. It's like a toilet (UK) filling at the same rate as it is emptying. It's likely the inlet is too much for the outlet to clear the water quick enough... Hope that helps 😅. Love the video 😊

[@lightdark00]

I use the subscriptions feed first. In fact it's the default that's open when I use the app. I fill up my watch later playlist with the subscriptions content I want to watch, then watch it until I whittled it down to ones I'm bot ready to watch, so I check the home page.

[@davehempstead9817]

I remember always cranking the stirrer only in the direction that would pull the chemicals from the outside to the center of reel. More consistent results. Kind of like a simple pump. Then chemistry flows over the top to the outside and through again.

[@davehempstead9817]

Also I would hold back fresh chemicals and add one new ounce per roll to help with more consistent results as you go along. In your case you might finish just using the single roll tank. Also used that same additional ounce when developing paper enlargements in open trays. Lost of profiled shots glasses lined up. Do six individual 8x10 sheets before turning the lights back on.

[@777syth]

The light leak is definitely light pipping caused by the clear film base acting similar to a fiber optic cable. Both Kodak aerocolor and adox CHS 100 II are noted to have this phenomenon among others I'm sure. The Adox canister has a label to the effect of, to keep in original package until loading and return to package upon unloading.

[@mgoddard23]

If you're shooting and developing color film often enough you might want to look into getting the actual Kodak Flexicolor chemistry. It's a bigger initial investment and you have to get everything separately instead of just buying a single kit but you get much more volume for your money. For example I think the two parts that make up the bleach is enough to mix 25 liters or something crazy like that, but I would just measure out enough to mix 1 liter of that and the fixer, which are separate steps as they should be. The developer comes in 3 parts and should be mixed in its entirety because while parts A and B are shelf stable after being opened, part C isn't, so you end up with 5 liters of that, but the nice thing about Flexicolor is that it's meant to be replenished as used, and Kodak has thorough documents describing exactly how much of the developer to replenish depending on how many rolls of film you just developed and what type/format/etc. they were. The amounts are measured in milliliters so theoretically you can stretch that developer out for dozens of rolls. In practice I found that you will start to notice odd color shifts eventually and at that point I would just dump out whatever was left in the bottle I was using as my working solution and start fresh with one of the other 4 liters I had left (minus whatever I had been using to replenish obviously). Still, you end up with enough fixer and bleach that it might as well be a lifetime supply, and the developer is actually the cheapest part of the kit (it was $11 when I started buying it, I think it's up to $14 now) so you could also just use all 5 liters as one-shot and it'd still be somewhat economical.

[@b6983832]

Kodak has had availability issues with their chemistry. There are news however, that the company producing much of their chemistry in the US would resume their operations. The best alternative is to use Fuji chemistry, which is also 100 percent as professional quality as Kodak chemistry is. I would suggest people to avoid "home kits" with combined bleach/fix, "blix".

[@EdWelsh]

Someone may have said this. I've done C-41 in my bathroom in the past and a single drop of dishwasher anti-spot fluid (the blue stuff) in the stabilizer will get rid of the spots. Doesn't take much, but fixes the hard water spotting issue.

[@allensmithphotography]

I'm a bit late to the party and I'm sure others have said this already. The sprocket holes shadowing looks like light piping. Where the light moves through the film base exposing the emulsion.

[@miketaggart3803]

Interesting. I developed b/w film in high school for yearbook and newspaper. The advisor had a bulk roller and reusable canisters. She would roll off like 39 or so exposures before we went on assignment. And we would develop it in the darkroom. We had the metal reels and tank. So it was more involved, but I never had an issue of the film touching each other. The room was total darkness so no bag. I did develop slide film. E-4 I think unless my inner navy is interfering with my memory. That was fun. I didn’t print it like I did the b/w. I took the slides to photomat (or something like that). But it was fun to see c41 developed. Would like to see how it is printed.

[@headwerkn]

Clear polyester base films without anti halation layers have a tendency to light pipe (aka the fibre optic effect) light from the leader end exposed from the canister, hence the whole ‘load in darkness’ spiel. Kodak HIE Infrared was notorious for it back in the day.

[@EthelredHardrede-nz8yv]

I recall that one of the chemicals is a thick alcohol, neither isopropyl or ethanol and THAT is what needs the most stirring. I have done C41 in multiple one hour labs and in my bathroom but its been a long time. I agree with others on using distilled or filtered water for the stabilizer. Someone said they don't like the stabilizer. Unless you have a better replacement do NOT skip stabilizer. The film will degrade a lot faster and color film does degrade over time. Normally its pretty slow but heat and humidity speeds that up.

[@b6983832]

You probably mix it with EP-2 developer, the process for C-type before RA-4 became the standard (mid-1990´s). It had benzyl alcohol in the developer, which is not very soluble in water.

[@EthelredHardrede-nz8yv]

@@b6983832 Thank you. So that was when I processed my Ecktachromes. Didn't remember having that issue with C-41. Never did any RA-4 as we didn't have a transparency processor at the photolabs. I think I last worked in a photo-lab about 2001. I have no desire to back to chemical photos, especially color which is way to limiting vs B and W where I can change the contrast. I don't have any of the old equipment anymore so it would be expensive beyond just a camera. I suppose a lot could be purchased used.

[@b6983832]

@@EthelredHardrede-nz8yv EP-2 was not the process for slide film, also called transparencies. This is E-6. EP.-2 and the modern RA-4 are (were) processes used for color paper, for printing from color negatives. EP-2 pretty much died in the mid 1990´s, as RA-4 substituted it. RA-4 is still the industry standard for C-type prints. If you have the equipment for black & white, you have already many of the things you need for color. If you want to print color in a darkroom setting though, there are some additional things you will need. The most obvious is an enlarger with a color head. Manually printing negatives is not the mainstream solution when people have their cellphones, but it still has soma characteristics that no digital method can produce. The question is not about having better or worse technical parameters, but the fact the pictures look different because of very different technology used to make them.

[@EthelredHardrede-nz8yv]

@@b6983832 Its been over 20 years since I did transparencies, AKA slides. Come to think of it, its been over 40 to 45 years. I don't have that equipment anymore. I don't need a color head as I know how use filters. They are a pain though. I would probably buy a color head anyway just for contrast control and to avoid using a condenser head with black and white. >but it still has soma characteristics that no digital method can produce. T Yes but you cannot adjust the contrast that way. Nor can you fix images that have crossed curves due heat or age. IF I wanted to go back to chemistry it would only be for black and white. Color is just too limited and Kodachrome is gone forever.

[@SprocketHoles]

I use the large 5L Fuji hunt kits for c41. Stored well it can last a year.

[@TrabberShir]

There are actually a few applications of film where it is still cheaper than the digital alternatives. Possibly best known is the engineering cameras for rocket engines. You need a fast simultaneous shutter with a ridiculous contrast ratio to resolve the cold bits and bobs of interest while the plume brighter than the sun takes up half the frame.

[@clarkrichardnelson]

First off, long time fan of your content, which is probably why i feel the need to comment/correct. as someone who has not thought about developing film in decades, the sous vide is genius. as for your wash issue, plugging the drain letting it fill from the bottom and overflow the top is probably just as effective as having it cycle, but would love to watch a 5 min short of you trying to fix the valve. My correction is your use of Latent Image. A latent image is on the film before Development or rather a Lenten Image is on the film after a picture is taken (exposed to light) until a developer starts to develop (bring) it out as a developed image. Also i am not sure how accurate it is to say that the developer brings out two images (b&w and color) during development. More accurately on each layer of color emulsion (so 3), a "b&w" images is developed, that then is "converted" (silver to dye) to that emulsion layers dye RGB (or cmy i cant remember) during the BLIX.

[@andyvan5692]

at 32:16 this is a great point for a dad joke, "what happens when the gold 200 retriever meets a can of film?- answer: he says 'take me to your leader' "

[@erwindegroot8760]

The Lomography specialty films like the Lomochrome Purple , Turquoise and Metropolis are made by the German InovisCoat company. Their color film is probably Kodak stock. I wonder, can the lightleak be caused by "light piping", light moving through the base and so reaching the inside of the cassette ? I had these light leaks with Rollei C200 film, also a color film with clear base.

[@fintux]

27:15 Suomi mainittu, torilla tavataan! 🇫🇮 (To explain to others, this sentence is a meme, that is written by Finns whenever they hear Finland being mentioned anywhere. Literally it translates to "Finland was mentioned, let's meet up at the market square!")

[@b6983832]

Vaikka muutin yli 30 vuotta sitten ulkomaille, en silti jaksa olla nauramatta tälle ilmiölle.

[@vocemais721]

I was thinking just about you making more photography stuff. Keep it up we love your videos about tech. Hope to see one about Slides someday❤❤❤

[@hpc4uandme]

Clever using the Suis Vide thingy to temper the chemicals. I use a rubbermaid tub with one of those inkbird temperature sensor PID loop things, an immersion heater, and an aquarium circulator to temper the chemicals. E-6 chemistry is even less stable than C-41 in my experience. I gotta order some chemicals (and film) soon, my Rolleiflex keeps screaming "feed me! feed me!"

[@JTCF]

The C component of blix can be described as "Deoxygenated blood". It's really incredible how much darker blood can get when deoxygenated.

[@HunterJE]

Always love hard to remove inner seals on bottles you will only ever be handling while wearing gloves that make them even harder to remove (my main experience with this is with leather dyes)

[@m1t2a1]

I use Ektachrome because I learned on Ektachrome in the 70s. It's what I had. Didn't notice it went missing and came back because I wanted to be digital. By the time I realized what was best for me, it was back on the market. I used Fotomat a lot too.

[@kelvin1316]

It's science time with Technology Connection/xtras!!