darkroom, part 1

A couple weeks ago, on a whim, Nick looked up darkroom equipment on craigslist. Two days and $150 later, my dining room was filled with tons of boxes, jugs, and this:

Lexi is posing there so you get a sense of scale. I had a few traumatic childhood experiences involving exposed rolls of film that were not completely wound up, and a pink plastic camera that I popped open in broad daylight– but since then, I hadn’t shot any film until I took a holga and a roll of 120 on my honeymoon a year ago. And what better way to spend your anniversary than sitting on the floor of your bathroom, in the dark, developing pictures of your honeymoon?

I really had no idea what went into developing pictures from film, and after investing several hours in only a few prints, I am even more appalled that so many schools are abandoning film photography, and handing out degrees to people with point-and-shoot cameras and a cursory knowledge of photoshop. It’s too bad, because creating a tangible image with nothing but some liquids, a carefully focused light, and a flimsy piece of plastic is pretty amazing.

There will definitely be more to come on the makeshift darkroom front, so stay tuned.