25 March, 2026
The Next Ascent
The season of ennui arrives quietly, coasting in months after my 41st birthday. I am halfway there. The climb toward the apex of existence has been tumultuous. I can almost make...
4 March, 2026
Lab-Box – A Developing Story in Which a Photographer Tries to Avoid Loading a Paterson Reel But Ends Up Doing it Anyway
It seems like I have always taken photos, starting with a 126 instamatic as soon as I could handle one. Then in the late 1970’s when I wanted to take some proper photographs (wi...
7 March, 2025
Bergger PMK Pyro B&W developer Review
Pyrogallol (pyro): white crystals which oxidise quickly turning brown. Cautions for using the raw powder are extensive – I used to handle raw chemicals but now, for some reason,...
29 January, 2025
AGO Film Processor – Renewing old skills and Developing Film for the first time in 35 years
Like many of my generation (boomers) I got my start in photography in High School shooting for the yearbook, though my interest in photography started much earlier. My first tim...
1 October, 2024
Just like riding a bike
This article will sort of be all over the place however the main gist of it will be the fact that after 52 years I haven’t forgotten how to develop film. I realize that th...
Ibraar Hussain recently posted a review of a Chinon CE-4 and his experiences with it which I found very interesting. So interesting that a few days later a house-clearance, unte...
23 July, 2024
Agfa Copex Rapid – Development Tests
The EU seems to produce a rich array of unusual (“speciality”) films – from Adox, Rollei, Spur and others (many of which are rebranded Agfa-Gaevert films). Trying to get any of ...
19 July, 2024
Rodinal Tests – Temperature, Grain and Contrast
Rodinal is a high acutance (sharpness) developer. High acutance means grain as well as the image is more clearly defined. So if I develop at different temperatures either the gr...