Processing Film

You now have your film on a spool in the hand tank and need to process the film

You need to be methodical and work through the process step by step

Use chart to look up your film type (ASA/ISO) to check for processing time – 400 ISO is 10 minutes, 125 ISO is 8 minutes, 50 ISO is 5 minutes.

Prepare a large beaker of water at 21oC ± 0.5oC

Assemble your three smaller beakers in front of the three chemical containers.  On your left the developer, in the middle, the stop and on your right, the fix.

Take a small measuring jug (very small) and measure out 30ml of developer.  Pour this into your larger beaker and using your 21oC water refill your small beaker (to rinse out any remaining developer) and pour into larger beaker.  Make up to 300ml with this water. Wash up small beaker and put to drain in wet draining area. N.B. Developer is the only chemical that is not re-used – put down the plug hole when you have used it – both the others go back into the chemical canisters and are re-used

Put approximately 450-500ml of undiluted stop into the next beaker and 450-500ml of fix into the last beaker.  Keep them all in front of their chemical canisters because they are easy to confuse (similar opacity/viscosity).

Once you have assembled all of the chemicals you are ready to begin – make sure you have someone with you to do the timing.

Take off the waterproof lid – as light travels in straight lines your film is still protected in the hand bath.

Pour in the developer and start the timer

Put on the lid – turn the hand tank over – agitate for half minute and then thump down on the worktop (make sure you are on the ‘wet’ side of the room) – the thump gets rid of any bubbles which may be in the hand tank or spiral

After 1 minute remember to mark on white board

Each minute agitate and turn the hand tank for 10 seconds and thump on worktop. On the 9th minute agitate for first ten second and last thirty seconds

After 10 minutes – open the lid and pour the developer carefully down the plug hole.

Add the Stop and leave it in the hand tank for 30 seconds – agitate for this 30 seconds.  Use a funnel to return the Stop to its chemical container and pour in the fix.

Leave the Fix for 5 minutes – agitate for first minute and leave for 4 – new chemicals will fix much quicker than old – later in the term you may have to leave the film to fix for longer

Before pouring the Fix back into its chemical container, check that the film is not milky – if it is return it to the fix for a couple more minutes. 

When the film is no longer milky, rinse for at least 10 minutes in the water bath

Finally put film through the Wetting Agent and hang to dry (or use hand dryer)