Practical Problems Solved in the Darkroom

Discover ways to bring out the best in your photos! This demonstration is based on Professor Agar's previous video, Developing Your Film... Wrong!: • Developing Your Film..... . In this video, the professor shows you how to get more contrast from your "wrongly developed" black and white negatives.

[@markharris5771]

You must be a fantastic teacher, I can imagine you putting the metaphorical arm around your less confident students and getting your better students to reach their full potential. I like how you take all the pretentious stuff out of darkroom developing.

[@Trangent]

Thank you for your very kind words, Mark!!!! He is and does exactly that!! Glad he inspires you too! Thanks for watching!! :))

[@RittheBrit1]

I wish you would do more of these videos, they are so hard to find where everyone now does Photoshop and Lightroom. That doesn't help those of us in school who have to learn and become skilled at manual developing and printing. These videos help us to better understand the concepts.

[@Trangent]

Thank you Linda!! We glad our videos enhance what you are learning in class. Best of luck to you in school and in all you do! Thanks for watching :))

[@dari564]

awesome video ! i just printed my first photos in the darkroom, most of the stuff i figured out by myself, turned out well, but i have a photo where i figured i'd need to burn/dodge and wanted to see someone doing it, you're the man! well done

[@imseeingdots420]

I absolutely love your videos, thank you for posting them! Every time I watch one it helps strengthen my commitment to building my own dark room.

[@Trangent]

Thank you imseeingdots420!! I'm glad you love our videos! I have one thing to say to you-it's time!! Do it!! You will have so much fun!!! Thanks for watching :)) Keep us posted....

[@danfloresmusic]

“Heavy math, but it’s the truth” 😂 excellent teaching skills, thanks for sharing!

[@Trangent]

You're welcome! Sometimes it is hard to edit these because I'm laughing too much!! 🤣🤣🤣 Glad you enjoyed our video!!

[@dick91p]

Amazing teacher and production! I can't get enough of these videos.

[@Trangent]

Thank you from the both of us!!!

[@Iwanttoshootfilm]

I'm right there with you! I needed a handler myself but that was the 80's-90's.

[@drmoss_ca]

Keep on getting the prof up early in the morning, Laura! I've been mucking around in darkrooms nearly as long as he has, but I can still enjoy learning a bit more.

[@Trangent]

Awwe!! Thank you Christopher!! I tried to cut that part out but he wouldn't let me! Thank you for watching our video(s). We are glad you like them!!! Best of luck to you!! :))

[@praxis1138]

I love these. Thank you guys! I taught myself how to print and seeing these are great to either confirm that I'm doing things right, or help me correct something I didn't know I was doing wrong... thanks for this!!

[@Trangent]

Sounds like a win-win!! I hope it is more of a confirmation for you than a correction :)) Thanks for your kind words and for watching our videos!! Best of luck to you!

[@Md2802]

I just LOVE this guy! Thank you for teaching us, Professor Agar :)

[@Trangent]

Thanks Md2802!! Glad you learned something from your virtual instructor :)) Thanks for watching!

[@y34r]

People tends to think photography as instant gratification these days, while its true form is really the most patience arts human ever done. Learn alot from your videos ,thx you

[@Trangent]

Awesome!! Thank you! Glad you like our videos!!!

[@frederiquebouchard]

Thank you so much for this excellent course about darkroom printing! I'm in school for photography and have to do some film printing and I struggle i bit, but now I finally understand it better! Thank you so much! Very much appreciated! :)

[@Trangent]

Thank you Frédérique!! We're glad our videos help you with your photography class!! It's so enjoyable when you understand the technique and can come up with your own special way of printing. Have fun taking pictures! Hope you make fabulous prints!!

[@mysfiring]

This whole series/channel/overall vibe is so wholesome and full of heart. I hope to one day become as good as 1/10th (so would that be 1/20th each?) the teachers that The Prof. and Laura are. Without fail, every time I come back and revisit these darkroom instruction videos, I learn something new. So thank you. :)

[@Trangent]

OMGosh ❤️ Thank you from the bottom and the tops of our hearts for your kind words msfiring!!! Basically you would need to be 1/10th as good-as I am the vehicle and he is the brains. So that means you have to try harder I guess... :))

[@richardsimms251]

Great video. Educational. Thank you RS. Canada

[@ianbutler1983]

A pleasant, approachable and good-natured teacher.....something I have had too few of in my life. Thanks for your efforts, I learned a lot from your videos. You are a natural teacher.

[@Trangent]

Thank you Ian!! It's sad that more teachers don't teach with passion! I too have more encounters with people who only tolerate what they do than not. The most inspiring ideas and lasting memories are brought about by people who love what they do! I'm glad you learn a lot from our videos! They are very fun to make and we are thrilled that viewers enjoy them! Good luck to you!!

[@KaiPawlowski]

So nice and well explained. I love it because it reminded me how I worked in my darkroom years ago. Thank you for that and that you teach the original way photographers used to have to do their work.

[@KaiPawlowski]

P.S.: I thought, 42 is the answer to everything 😎 But it‘s not true, you have so many answers as well 😊

[@victordesabata]

Omg thanks KZbin for suggesting this channel, that's some serious photography lectures for free!

[@Trangent]

Thank you very much @victordesabata!! Glad you like our videos so much!!! Hope you make amazing prints!! :)

[@MegaYuyu2010]

You are really a great teacher ! thanks for the stunning Information.

[@fathiismail333fathiismail]

I'm so glad to hear, such a wonderful details that concerns different densities of the negative, and how to determine and adjust the correct exposure of every bit of the tonal gradations, really I enjoyed much about your precious explanations, thanks so much, have a continuation of a great success and time enjoyment.

[@Trangent]

Thank you Fathi!!!! 😍 You are so sweet! We are glad you enjoyed our video so much! Good luck in your photography and everything you do!!!

[@LinhTran-lb6jq]

Thank you sir, I’m very love your lesson and the way your talk , the way you do detail, hope we can learning more from you in darkroom.

[@Trangent]

Thank you Linh!! Glad you enjoyed our video!! Hope you have made some excellent prints! Best of luck to you!!

[@humbledtrader760]

I'm loving these videos. Thank you.

[@Trangent]

Thanks Emmanuel!!! Good luck to you! :)

[@garymclaughlin4457]

Many thanks . I'm just starting out on my darkroom journey and it's fabulous to have a resource as this to reference . Good charma your way .. Go raibh míle maith agat .

[@Trangent]

Tá fáilte romhat!! Thanks for watching! Good luck in your photography journey!! :))

[@janmyska7769]

Hello from Czech republic and thank you very much for this video. :-)

[@eego]

Thanks for these great videos that are really helpful. Really enjoy it!

[@Trangent]

Thank you Robin!!! Glad you like them! Thanks for watching :))

[@flam3srock]

These videos are an excellent resource, thankyou!

[@Trangent]

So glad our videos are a help to you!! Thanks for watching!! :)

[@tomaszx888]

One thumb up is not enough. Great video, great teacher!

[@Trangent]

Dziękuję Ci bardzo !! Tomaszx888 👍👍👍

[@jonathanbaxter4366]

Hi. I have just set up my darkroom and looking forward to applying all your techniques outlined on your videos, i now use the overexpose and under develop technique for all of my landscape shots and general photography, I find when using filters and polariser it works brilliantly by giving me all the detail i see through my camera lens in the scene and on my negative, i do do a bracket to be sure though. thanks for your teaching much appreciated!!

[@Trangent]

Awesome Jonathan!! Thank you so much for your kind words! How exciting that you are able to try out some of the Professor's techniques in your own darkroom!! :) Have you seen any of our newer videos? We're having a contest and encourage you to enter: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4HFhGqBZbygnNk, kzbin.info/www/bejne/h6vcl5qwZdOfZrM, and kzbin.info/www/bejne/nomtiniod5dljLs. Hurry-entries are due soon: Nov. 30. This is a perfect time to try out something you've learned or enter something you've shot during the quarantine! Good luck!! -L

[@adad-nerari4117]

Making strips is a good method, maybe the best,but tedious for me. I never found a video about metering the illuminances in different zones , that gives the gradation of the negative, so the filter to use and the time of illumination. I use this method that gives very good results at the first print and is faster than the trips-method (I have kilometers of old films to print) but, sometimes (about 5 - 10%) the positive isn't good, I don't know why. It's because I would like to see videos of photographers using this method. Thanks for this video and for sharing your experience.

[@amosk24]

yes, more darkroom vids. thank you!

[@Trangent]

:)) Yay!! We "shoot" to please! Thanks for watching! :))

[@klausphotobaer5754]

WOW, these are BY FAR the best and most interesting videos on darkroom techniques I encountered on KZbin ! I couldn't stop watching them until the early morning time not noticing how late it already had become. Thank You so much for sharing these videos. They make me want to grab my camera and set up my own darkroom immediately . Pleaaaase keep up the good work ! Wish I could take some classes with Prof. Agar. Sorry I can only give You ( for biological reasons ) two thumbs up ! Very curious about what comes next. Best wishes !

[@Trangent]

Thank you Klaus!!! What a nice review! I'm glad you like our videos and they inspire you to do more with your photography! It's probably good that you don't have any more thumbs! And sometimes I hear people complain about being all thumbs.... ;) We have a night photography video coming this month. Here is a preview: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aaPLhp2MgKekqLc. Thanks for watching! Good luck to you!!

[@klausphotobaer5754]

Trangent thank You for Your kind words. Pleasure reading them , thank You !

[@Trangent]

+Klaus Tiburski Thank YOU Klaus!!!!! :))

[@windiruliandi1221]

what great lesson for me as a beginner.. very excited.. thumbs up channel ..very educative .. keep up the great work..thnku for your time

[@Trangent]

You are welcome Windi!! And thank YOU!! Glad you like our videos! Best of luck to you :))

[@miladmahdevar7759]

thank you

[@JorisKoolen]

This was great, thank you!

[@Trangent]

Thank you Joris!! Glad you liked our video!! :)

[@islandbyfilm]

So informative. Thank you very much.

[@Trangent]

Thank you!! Glad you liked our video! Good luck!!

[@macvjo]

another great educational video. thank you. i wish it was possible for me to follow your classes for 1 or 2 semesters.

[@Trangent]

Awwe-thanks Mac!! In a way, you can! You are getting many of the lessons he teaches his "kids"! Can you believe they sometimes skip class? I know you wouldn't! :) Thanks for watching! Beste van geluk aan u !!

[@paulaalbarracin755]

Muy Bueno!!! Muchas gracias !!

[@Trangent]

¡¡De nada!! ¡¡Gracias por ver!!

[@jlaw8882]

Thanks for the great videos. I wonder if you could do one covering the types of photographic paper available for dark room printing/enlarging. I just ordered some and did not realise what a choice there was!

[@Trangent]

Great suggestion!! We are coming up with new short topic ideas and this is a good one. Thank you for your suggestion and for watching our video!! Hope you ordered great paper and come up with awesome prints!!

[@raymann330]

First thank you Professor, great videos! Tell me once you burn the negative into the print and you decide to adjust the contrast, as have been showing us, do you leave the negative in the enlarger while you are adjusting, or did you remove the negative? Thanks again!

[@albertoreyes9317]

very well, fantastic, very didactic, tanks teacher.

[@Trangent]

Thanks Alberto!! Glad you like the videos! Good luck to you! :))

[@helloquico]

I love this guy!!

[@Trangent]

Thanks Francisco!!!

[@pickandstring]

Thank you, I always wanted to know what is dodge and burn.

[@Trangent]

Glad you liked our video! Thanks for watching!!

[@cesarjaque]

i missed you man, great video

[@Trangent]

Gracias Cesar !! We missed you too :))

[@sandmanmato]

Great!

[@Trangent]

Ďakujem!!! :))

[@mika8770]

Hi, love your videos, they are very informative! One thing though, how do you make a copy of a negative? That is a negative to a negative. I've read some on the net that you can do it by contact printing two times on a film leaf (one to get a positive and then again to get a negative). It would be really nice to see a short episode on that technique, or if there is a better one. It's mostly for old films that are based on nitrate and acetate, to copy them to keep them safe. Kind regards,

[@Trangent]

Thank you Mika!! Professor Agar says "Most people scan their old negatives now. But for a darkroom technique previous to the digital age using Kodak Professional B/W Duping film SO-132 or an Ortho film by Arista (sold by Freestyle in LA), you can duplicate your old film by contact printing in the darkroom. The Ortho film allows the use of a red safelight so you can see what you're doing!" Hope this helps! Good luck to you!!

[@giannidigirolamo8868]

Great as always. I wait for the notification from your channel every day

[@Trangent]

Sei troppo dolce, Gianni! Grazie!!

[@giannidigirolamo8868]

Prego figurati. Al prossimo video ;)

[@Trangent]

Sì!! :))

[@giannidigirolamo8868]

Trangent ma sei italiana?

[@Trangent]

No sei Italiana... Google :))

[@SF-yr2td]

Best regards to Prof. Algar and You. One question: is it possible, to make a video about "split grade printing"? That would be fantastic and very helpful !

[@Trangent]

Thank you Sebastian!! I'll mention it to him!

[@johnjon1823]

Nice and useful.

[@Trangent]

Thanks John Jon!! Thank you for watching :))

[@lodesergius]

Muy Bueno !!!

[@Trangent]

¡¡Muchas gracias!!

[@paulleonardo8821]

Hi prof Agar, as always fab vid ! little question on under/over dev, do you have a rule of thumb to how much u over/under exp to N+/N- development or is it the usual go experiment have fun ?

[@Trangent]

Hi Paul! Professor Agar says, "It depends on the film. T-Max and Delta-type films respond more quickly to different development times. Traditional films also have a different response if they are fast (400) or slow (25-125). A starting point would be 20% either way. A 10-minute standard time would be 8 minutes for under-exposure and 12 minutes for N+. But, as everyone says, it depends on the camera, how you develop, what kind of film used, and a multitude of other variables! Good luck!" Thanks for watching :))

[@rolandrick]

Amazing like all of the other videos with Will and from Trangent 👍👍👍

[@Trangent]

Vielen Dank von uns beiden Roland !!!

[@rolandrick]

Bitte gerne :)

[@Trangent]

Mein Vergnügen :))

[@smokybear7511]

excellent

[@Trangent]

Thank you Smoky!! :))

[@PeopleMakePictures]

Are you pissed......never the less, your skills are brilliant.

[@Trangent]

Thanks for watching Joe!

[@jrmorganpetro]

What camera did you use for the 4x5 negs?

[@marknichols7861]

What were you scanning the photos with?

[@user-ko9em2ev3i]

3:17 The size of these negatives 9x12 centimeters, or 4x6 ?

[@Trangent]

Hi Сергей Тарасенко Thank you for watching our videos!! Professor Agar's negatives are 4x5 inches, made with a field camera. Good luck to you in your photography!!!

[@amandalee218]

What do you do if your negatives look good, but the photos look really gray? There's no black or white, just medium grays. ?

[@Trangent]

The Professor says, "You probably need to use contrast filters when printing-perhaps a #3, #4 or #5. Also make sure the developer is fresh and/or make sure the paper is not old. Also do a safelight test to make sure you are not fogging your paper." Thanks for watching, Amanda! Good luck to you!!

[@pepeg.luthier566]

Can you give Ms. Laura Sargent a bit more camera time? She really enlightens your videos, a real beauty.

[@Trangent]

Gracias por tus amables palabras Pepe!

[@wilwilson8146]

My dodging device makes the same sound..

[@Igaluit]

The problem I've found is it's very ddifficult to convert the test findings from RC onto Fibre.

[@Trangent]

Professor Agar says, "The only difference between RC and Fibre papers are the times needed to develop, stop, fix, and wash. Otherwise, when behind mat and glass on a wall, few can tell the difference-I've tested! Standard development time for RC papers, with continuous agitation, is 90 seconds developer, 10 seconds stop, and 1 to 3 minutes fix depending on if using rapid fixer (with no hardener) or regular fixer. You will find a lot of information on the interweb but standard development for Fibre paper is 2-3 minutes with agitation for developer, 30 seconds with agitation for stop, and 2 minutes with agitation in rapid fix with no hardener or 5 minutes in regular fix (always consult directions of product on this). Water bath-wait until end of printing session, 2-5 minutes on Hypo Clear (always consult directions of product on this), and wash 1 hour with water exchange. Air dry on screens and flatten in dry mount press between clean archival boards." Hope this helps you!! Thanks for watching! :)

[@Igaluit]

It's true that behind glass the allure of fiber disappears. What I meant was that many people say they do their tests on RC and then print a good copy on fiber. But, I find the exposure times are completely different, even when using the insert that talks about paper film speed.

[@Trangent]

I spoke to the professor and this is what he said: "Here is what you should do. Take a piece of fibre paper and a piece of RC paper. Place them adjacent in the easel and expose them to your usual test times. I like 2 1/2 second intervals but I tell students to use 3 second intervals as the timers at school work better that way. Develop both test strips and compare. Base future adjustments on this test, from the RC that processes quickly to the fibre that takes more time. I use Ilford Multigrade and the RC and Fibre are close." I hope this answers your question. Good luck to you!!

[@Igaluit]

Thanks a lot for the info. Wasn't expecting an answer this quickly.

[@Trangent]

You're welcome!! Sorry it took so long to get you the answer to begin with. Good luck printing!!

[@nickfanzo]

One day I’ll get a darkroom . Now it’s all digital

[@rainzkie24]

Nicholas Fanzo get now

[@Trangent]

Hope you've gotten your darkroom Nicholas! This quarantine is the perfect time to hone your printing skills!! :)

[@Trangent]

@@rainzkie24 He should! Thanks for watching JDS! Stay safe!

[@nickfanzo]

Trangent unfortunately since then we bought our first home and it has a septic system, so a darkroom is a no go. But I do develop my negatives at home and scan them.

[@christopherhowell3209]

Bla Bla Bla !

[@Trangent]

Oiw... Good luck to you with your photography!