How to Develop 120 B&W Film ~ Enhance Photography Skill

Photography has been a popular hobby for more than 100 years. While most people have switched to digital cameras or take their film to a retailer for processing, you can develop film yourself at home with supplies you can buy at a local camera shop. It might seem like a daunting task at first, but the more you do it, the easier it becomes.

Instructions

Rinse the developing tank and all of the parts that come with it in hot water and thoroughly dry it. Be sure you have removed all traces of chemicals.

Choose a room where you will transfer the film from the canister to the developing tank. This should be an interior room with no windows, and you'll have to stick a towel at the bottom of the door, and maybe use electrical tape around the edges of the door. The room needs to be completely without light, or you could ruin the film.

Before turning out the lights, lay out the equipment you'll use so that you can work with it in the dark. If you don't have a lot of experience doing this, you might want to simulate the process in the dark a few times before you actually try to load the film into the developing canister with an old roll of film.

Before turning out the lights, put the center column back into the canister. If the reel isn't already adjusted for 120 film (it will most likely be set for 35 mm), you'll need to set it. Twist the wheel past where it would normally stop, taking care not to break it. When you separate the two parts of the wheel, you'll see a long groove on one of the pieces, with three smaller grooves that intersect it; the outermost groove is for 120 film. Put the wheel back together by sliding the pieces together using that groove.

Turn out the lights and be sure the room is completely dark. Use the bottle opener to open the film canister.

Take the spool of film out of the canister, and unwind it until you feel a piece of tape. This tape holds the paper backing to the film. Slowly remove the tape and paper from the film. When handling the film, handle it by the edges.

Cut off the lead from the film so that the edge of the film is straight.

Take the end of the film, and feed it into the tabs on the reel. Slide the film a few centimeters into the reel, then twist the reel back-and-forth. This will load the film onto the reel. When you get to the end of the reel, cut the spindle off and load the last of the film onto the reel.

Put the reel into the canister by sliding it over the center column, then put the lid on the canister. Make sure the lid is on straight and that it's on tight. You can now put the lights back on.

Pre-soak the film by putting water in the canister. The best way to do this is to put the canister in the sink, and pour water in until it's overflowing (this will ensure that the entire roll will go through the pre-soak). Let it soak for five minutes.

Pour the water out. Don't worry if the water is discolored, as this is normal.

Determine how long you'll need to use the developer. If this information is not available on the packaging, you can look it up on the Massive Dev Chart on DigitalTruth.com, but it will usually be between seven and 12 minutes.

Now determine how much you'll have to dilute the developer. If the label says 1+9, you'll use one part developer to nine parts water; if it's 1+7, it will be one part developer to seven parts water, and so on.

Pour the developer mix into the tank, making sure you have enough to completely submerge the film. Start the timer and put the cap on the tank. Once a minute, agitate the tank for 10-second intervals by flipping the tank over several times.

When the time is up, take the cap off the tank and pour out the developer.

Even though the developer has been poured out of the tank, the developer still on the film's surface is active, so it needs to be removed. You could do this by using a chemical called stop bath. Pour the stop bath in so that the film is completely submerged, then shake the canister. Let it sit for one minute, then pour it out. You could also use water. Fill the tank with water, shake it up and pour it out. Do this two times.

The next step is to add the fixer. During this process, the images on the film will be set and will no longer be light-sensitive. Dilute the fixer the same way you diluted the developer (it's usually one part fixer plus four parts water, but check the package to make sure). Pour the fixer in the same way you added the developer and agitate it for 10 seconds (do this once every minute). Check the packaging for the length of time the fix needs to be used, but it's usually five to 10 minutes.

When the time is up, pour out the fixer. Fill the canister with water and agitate it, then dump out the water. Repeat this step twice. The film can now safely be exposed to light.

Take the lid off the tank and pull out the reel. Keep the film on the reel, but look at it to see if it developed properly. It's normal for the film to have a slight purple tint, but if it's dark purple, put it back in the fixer for another two or three minutes. If you need to do this, rinse off the fixer like you did in Step 9. If not, fill the tank about halfway with fresh water and put the reel back in. Screw the cap back on, shake the canister vigorously for about 30 seconds, and pour out the water. Do this for about 10 minutes.

After the film has been cleaned, empty the water out of the canister. Pour a little bit of wetting agent into the canister, then slowly fill up the canister with water until the reel is submerged. If it foams, tap the side of the canister to prevent any bubbles from sticking to your film. Let it sit for 30 seconds, then pour the wetting agent out of the canister and remove the reel. Do not wash the film.

Twist the reel apart and take off half of it. Without touching an exposure, grab one end of the film and unfurl it by lifting it off the reel. Don't let the wet film touch the ground or any other objects. Hang the film somewhere dust-free to dry. Use a clothespin to attach one end of the film to a clothes hanger, and another clothespin at the other end of the film to weigh it down (don't put the clothespin on one of your exposures). Leave the film hanging up to dry for four to eight hours.

Once the film is dry, take it down, and cut it into short strips so that it's more manageable, so you can print contact sheets and make prints. Just make sure you cut the film between the exposures.