Nothing quite as cool as dropping what seemed like a blank piece of paper into some chemicals and watching it transition into an actual photograph.
The combination of digital photography and the ease of sharing really got me back into doing photography as a more routine thing. And the capabilities of modern digital gear are just so amazing. I still remember all the chemical manipulations I would go through to get decent results from B&W at ISO 1600 or maybe a little faster. Today, I can easily surpass that in color with the twist of a dial.
Indeed! I just recently bought a couple of old 35mm SLR bodies and lenses to get back into film photography. With film, photography is certainly more deliberate and slower-paced. I also enjoyed darkroom work (years ago) as much, if not more, than taking photos. The darkroom was a nice, quiet place that was very relaxing.
Oh, wow! Those words triggered an immediate visceral recall of that very smell from some 25 years ago. I'd forgotten about it, and wouldn't have thought of it until you brought it up.
Oddly, since I associate it with good times and fond memories, I don't find the smell offensive, but the accuracy with which your words triggered its recall is fascinating!
You can get this done for you relatively cheaply (about 25 cents per frame). I actually have a slide/neg scanner that's out on loan but I decided a while back to just send my scanning out. It was never going to all get done if I waited until I got around to it.
I really miss doing that it's been I get 20 years since I've developed any film it's amazing how time flies. Digital photography just doesn't have the soul of actual film photography it's missing the physical connection. Although I don't miss the stink of the fixer.
It's 120 rollfim too for medium a format camera which would give a nice image since it quite a bit larger and has more surface area than a 35mm negative.
For such old film I figured this would have been done in a lab not in a kitchen I'd be concerned with water temperature with such old film. Maybe even soak the film in water to let it hydrate a bit maybe since he indicate they rolls may stick they've been rolled up for so long.
I do wish I had a better method to scan my old negatives and skip the printing part I did try it without much success in the mid 1990s with my first flatbed scanner.
Interesting stuff! It makes me want to pick up the old cameras again.