Making Your First Black & White Darkroom Print

There is nothing quite like the magic of seeing your first darkroom print appear in the tray. If you have always wanted to learn how to make a black and white print in the darkroom then this is the perfect video for you.

We show you the basic steps to get you started with making your first black and white darkroom print in this easy to follow 'How to' guide.

Part 1: What you will need 00:08
Part 2: Preparing the chemicals 01:28
Part 3: Choosing your negative 02:45
Part 4: Focusing your image 03:07
Part 5: Setting the aperture 03:33
Part 6: Making a test print 03:52
Part 7: Making the final print 05:26

[Ilfordphoto]

Our 'How to' series of videos is designed to give you the confidence to take the first steps in your black and white film photography journey. This video filmed in one of our darkrooms here at ILFORD Photo will hopefully help you to make your first darkroom print. We'd love to hear how you go on in the comments below:)

[GeminionRay]

I've always wondered how photos were print before the invention of digital cameras, and now that I've seen this, I can only appreciate the amount of work film photographers put in their photos. Thanks for the video!

[andyweb]

The man who invented photography must have shit his pants when he seen the first decent image pop out lol

[GreatGizmo]

15 years old and I just made my first print in my home darkroom with the help of this brilliant video! I don't think I can go back to digital, that first sight of the image appearing on the paper is just magical and it should never be a lost art.

[derekperkins]

Oh that brought back so many good memories of hours spent in the darkroom: alchemy, magic!

[davidpreneta]

This video along with developing black and white film are probably the best ones I've seen here. Excellent video production, well thought out, no obnoxious music, easy to follow along with the captions and just plain easy to watch.

[Nilly-tube]

I miss this! I took Photography in High School and we had a dark room. So fun. I think a year or two after I graduated, it became a digital photography class, sad.

[daviduuwastaken]

As someone thinking about taking the plunge into print making, this video comes at the perfect time! I really enjoy how comprehensive your instructional videos are.

[Splituk]

I wonder how many people in this day and age realise whats involved in making one print.
I'm maybe older school than this, and would have different grades of paper rather than multigrade.
Very well made video in less than ideal lighting I guess.

[TizioGen]

OMG!... I watched both development and printing videos. I remember that at school, back in the '90s, I took the optional photography course and we used ILFORD films, it's really a beautiful memory. I really enjoyed the whole process, from shooting the picture, to development, to the projector, to the chemical baths, up to the final result. Film is something magical, completly different to digital: no display, no histogram, no photoshop, no instant gratification; I feel lucky to have had that experience.

[ericpullen]

In the 90's I took Commercial photography in college. I then setup my own darkroom at home. I had so much fun processing my own film and prints. I jumped full force into the digital age buying my first digital camera in 1999, a whole megapixal. I went through several camera upgrades over the years, but have lost some of the satisfaction in digital that I once had using film. I would love to share this process again with my kids. I am getting back into film photography and will use Indie Film Lab for processing for the time being.

[Scutti]

I love this hobby. it's so.. relaxing .. (nice background song, it reflects my feeling when I'm in the darkroom.)

[hrushikeshvasista]

This is one the best made videos related to photography I have come across until now. Right from the start till end the presentation of the information was fantastic and explanation crystal clear. Thanks so much!

[offgrid-bound]

This made me so nostalgic… the same process that I first learned almost fifty years ago… still works, and creates images that last and don’t disappear into the cyberspace. Love it!

[fiorellovalsesia]

Congratulations on this video. What a memory!!! I spent hours and hours learning the art of negative development, and then the circulation... and the very good circulation was rare... But what a time...

[shannenmackenzie]

I loved being in the darkroom at college doing black and white prints, I’ve done colour too but nothing better than watching your print appear on the paper and see the final result, started to get back into it going to make my own little darkroom film will always be better than digital for me

[mrfirebird]

I'm just now getting into medium format film photography, and also just now learning about Ilford. I'm an instant fan. The amount of love you guys share for photography has made me even more excited and confident to get really into doing my own developing and printing!

[scollurio]

Wow - amazing how much work and care goes into analogue photography and how much work has been lifted off our shoulders with digital photography, at a cost of authenticity and style though. Nothing like analogue photos.

[mikehindley]

This finally makes sense to me! I found my dad's old enlarger in my grandparents' loft yesterday. Aside from knowing it was something to do with film photography, I had no idea what it was. Googling just confused me more, but everything clicked with this video. THANKS!

[markharris]

I really enjoy making my images, I wouldn’t dream of letting anyone else develop them, I always cut my own mounts and even have a passion for making top quality frames with a multitude of woods. But none of that compares to the magic of the darkroom. Adams, Weston, Penn and Koudelka are all primarily known for their work in the darkroom, unfortunately most people just see the image and miss the magic.

Great video, thank you.