Discover the essential tools and materials you need for a darkroom and create stunning photos from your negatives.

BY MAX ROSSI, ARTCENTRON

Setting up a darkroom allows photographers to develop and print their photos in a personalized and intimate environment. However, to create high-quality prints, you need certain essential tools and materials. Understanding what these tools are and how to use them is crucial for anyone looking to establish their own darkroom.

What Materials Do You Need for a Darkroom?

Developing photos from film in a dark room is an art form emanating from a genuine interest and passion for the craft. For many photographers, the darkroom is a space that transforms a light-seized moment into a tangible memory. Whether you are a seasoned photographer looking to reconnect with the art of darkroom printing or a newcomer eager to explore this traditional photographic process, this guide will help you create a functional and inspiring darkroom space.

Here are some of the essential tools and materials you need for a darkroom to make things go smoothly for you.

Proper Lighting

The heart of the darkroom, paradoxically, is light. But it’s not just any light! You want to use a gentle yet precise illumination. Contrary to its name, the ‘dark’ in darkroom means excluding external light.

A safe light, usually red or amber, is the opening act, ensuring visibility without exposing sensitive papers or films. Photographers can use it while making prints to correct or enhance the photograph’s light exposure. The lighting in your darkroom is what allows you to create an atmosphere where you can fine-tune details like saturation and exposure.

Enlarger:  Darkroom Essential

When you’re looking at essential tools and materials that you need for a darkroom, you should immediately invest in a suitable enlarger. Once the light is right, the enigmatic enlarger can take center stage. This device might appear like a relic, with its bellows and dials, yet it yields control over a critical stage—scaling and focusing the image onto light-sensitive paper. The enlarger stands as the bridge between the photographer’s captured negative or slide and the tangible print.

Setting the scale and focus requires painstaking delicacy, as an inch can be the difference between clarity or a blurred shore where the heart of a landscape should be. The magnification factor is what bestows the print with its qualities!

Trays

Trays are essential in the film development process, serving as containers for the various chemicals needed to develop the film. Typically, these trays are made of materials that resist corrosion from the chemicals, such as plastic or stainless steel. Using separate trays for each chemical—developer, stop bath, and fixer—is crucial to prevent contamination and ensure the chemicals remain effective.

When working with trays, it’s important to handle them carefully to avoid spills or splashes of chemicals, which can be hazardous. Additionally, it is essential to  thoroughly trays between uses to prevent any residue from previous batches of chemicals from affecting the current development process.

Proper labeling of trays is also essential to avoid confusion and ensure that the correct chemicals are used at each step of the development process. This labeling should be clear and easy to read, indicating the contents of each tray.

Thermometer

A thermometer is a crucial tool in film development, ensuring that the chemicals are at the correct temperature for the process. Each type of chemical used in film development has its own specific temperature requirements, so it’s essential to monitor and adjust the temperature accordingly throughout the development process.

For example, the developer solution typically needs to be at a specific temperature range, often around 20–24 degrees Celsius (68–75 degrees Fahrenheit), to ensure proper development.

Using a thermometer helps maintain the consistency and quality of the development process, ensuring that the film is developed correctly. It’s important to use a thermometer designed for the specific chemicals and temperatures involved in film development, as using the wrong type of thermometer can lead to inaccurate readings and potentially ruin the film.

In addition to monitoring the temperature of the chemicals, it’s also important to consider the ambient temperature of the room where the development is taking place, as this can affect the temperature of the chemicals.

Timer

A timer is an essential tool in film processing, used to accurately control the duration of the development process. Different types of film and paper have varying development time requirements. Therefore, having a reliable timer is crucial for achieving consistent and optimal results.

When using a timer, it’s important to follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for the specific film or paper being used, as well as any adjustments needed for the chemicals or temperature conditions.

Timers can be mechanical or digital, with digital timers offering more precision and ease of use. Some timers also have features such as countdown alarms or multiple timing channels, which can be useful for managing multiple development processes simultaneously.

It’s important to set the timer accurately and monitor it closely during the development process. This will ensure that the film or paper is not overdeveloped or underdeveloped.

Necessary Chemicals

The chemical process is a vital part of the darkroom process that reverberates with the very essence of photography. Understanding how the photography industry uses sulfonic acids and other vital developing chemicals is crucial to getting crisp, clear photos that you can be proud of. Here, photographers develop the seeds planted in the film or negative into visual tales with depth and presence.

The developer, stop bath, fixer, and the occasional hypo-clearing agent come together to create the final image. The transformation from a latent image to the final, rich print is nothing short of alchemy, witnessed in the trays and under the subdued glow, where the dance of synthesis and dissolution takes place.

Photography Tongs

An often overlooked piece of darkroom equipment is your handy tongs, which will act as your hands in multiple ways. Because you use a lot of different chemicals during the development process, you don’t want to grab onto things with your bare hands. Not only can the chemicals irritate your skin, but your hands can irritate your developing photos. For this reasons, it’s strictly a finger-free experience.

A good photographer should have a set of four printing tongs. You can use one for the developer fluid, stop bath, fixer, and the final rinse. A helpful tip is to ensure that you label your tongs clearly. With proper labelling, there’s little to no risk of cross-contamination between them.

Finally on Darkroom Materials and Tools

The resurgence of film cameras has not only revived interest in traditional darkroom photography but has also inspired many photographers to set up their own darkrooms at home. By understanding the essential tools and materials needed for a darkroom, photographers can take full control of their creative process and produce stunning prints directly from their negatives. Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or a newcomer to the world of film photography, setting up a home darkroom can be a rewarding experience that allows you to explore the art of photography in a unique and personal way.