Darkroom Induction and Workshop

Using the darkroom on the upper 4th floor, I learned the process of developing images on photographic paper. It was a very simple process; provided you have all the different sorts of chemicals necessary for developing the paper! Once we had switched the lights off and turned the red lights on (as red light doesn't react with the light-sensitive paper) we followed this process. There is also a way to create a negative by placing another on either side.

Method

1. Take the photographic paper and place it below a white light source in the darkened room. In the darkroom we used these machines shown on the right which could also control exposure as well as the contrast (the number on the left indicates the level of contrast, the right indicates the level of exposure)

2. Place objects between light source and photographic paper

3. Turn on the light source

4. Dip the photographic paper into each of the 3 trays of chemicals and gently agitate the tray and paper. Don't let your skin come in contact with the chemicals as they are irritants (gloves or prongs essential).

5. Finally leave the print in warm water to wash off the chemicals.

The video below shows the process of developing the photographic paper with the chemicals. I gently rocked the tray from side to side so that the areas which weren't exposed as much to the light were covered by the solution.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/c3a0a6_1c0f3dd3d8764c0f98422c6a1af1679c/1080p/mp4/file.mp4

Below are a contact sheet of images showing the process.

The final prints that were developed turned out quite well in some places however the contrast wasn't perfect. I used mainly bottles and a few other objects that would look interesting when playing with the light source and using different materials that affected how much light went through. I also experimented with some hand expressions that didn't come out too well, probably because our hands weren't flat on the paper so the light mixed in a bit with the shadows.