Well, that's it done. It took a little longer than I'd anticipated but my darkroom is now complete. That's not to say that it's ready for printing - those are two quite separate conditions. The photographs you see here are the room just after I'd finished putting in the shelving and attaching all the kitchen units.
It didn't stay in this state for long as all the stuff that had cluttered up my old darkroom was sitting on the landing outside the new darkroom. Most of it is back in the darkroom now and the clutter is, once again, quite debilitating! Never mind, though, as I've started off-loading more gear on Ebay to clear some space. The demise of my MX5 Gleneagles (see previous post) also means that I won't be needing space for the car in our garage. I'm going to tidy the garage up so that I can store some of the clutter there instead.The pic above is the set-up for the Durst L1200. I left a space at the right hand side of the unit so I had somewhere to store the massive RR Beard easel I picked up for a tenner. I'm not sure if I'll ever need it but it's nice to have just in case. I've also got a box here that contains a wee studio background set-up - that was another of those hard-to-store things.
A couple of portfolio cases take up the remaining space. The whole Durst work station is very solid - you really can't move it at all no matter how hard you try. When I fix the top of the column to the wall, it will be bomb-proof. There's a reasonable amount of shelf space and there are two areas - one on either side of the room - where I can sit for spotting, etc. I have a wee stereo unit opposite the Durst so I can listen to my Mantovani and Richard Claydermann CD collections.*The Leitz V35 workstation is similarly robust. If I can't produce decent prints from this set-up I might as well pack it in! The only things remaining to be done are light proofing of the window and door. A window blind would be nice so I could let in some natural light but covering the glass with tin foil would be simpler and quicker. The door will need some draught excluder around the door frame and something to block light at the bottom. Remove the crap that's now in the darkroom and we're ready to go!
* A wee joke there, folks.
Your darkroom looks like a darkroom now. Well done.
ReplyDeleteStefan
Good stuff. Can't wait to see you printing again. Cheers, Omar
ReplyDeleteHi Bruce you're getting there. Just for info in case you're interested Firstcall sell Black out door foam for £6.62 per roll very good stuff this I use it for my darkroom door, they also sell white blackout material that is 1.37 mt wide and £6.62 per mt run I made a frame for my window double covered with this I can take it out and put it in as required very pleased with it. Look on their site under darkroom construction.
ReplyDeleteregards
Richard
Hi Bruce you're getting there.
ReplyDeleteThought you might find it interesting to look at Firstcall site as they sell darkroom door blackout foam £6.62 per roll more than enough for 2 doors and good stuff. Also white blackout material I used this to make a frame for my window I had enough to double cover so did, its very good and a reasonable price. Keep up the good work.
Regards
Richard
Beautiful Bruce - it puts my lowly cupboard to shame! WELL DONE (as they say around here)
ReplyDeletePhil
Thanks Phil. I just hope it's not the darkroom equivalent of a guy with an M6 and Summilux who only takes pictures of his cat.
ReplyDeleteLooking good! Good effort. im in the middle of converting a shed at the moment and its killing me not being able to print! Looking forward to seeing the results from your first session.
ReplyDeleteThe darkroom's looking great Bruce.
ReplyDeleteYour online darkroom blog is definitely one of the better ones on the net and I often cruise by.
It beats me how you find the time to do it all, certainly puts me to shame!
See you around on fadu, MartyNL
Hi Bruce,
ReplyDeleteI can't see neither water source nor sewage system. Is it somewhere there or in another room?
Hi Gracjan,
ReplyDeleteI thought about putting in a sink but there's a bathroom right next door. I've got an old Paterson print washer which I sit in the bath. The prints just rest in water in the darkroom until I'm finished and then they go into the print washer.
The chemicals are prepared in the bathroom as well and carried through. It works well and was a lot cheaper and less hassle than plumbing in water. I also keep my cameras and lenses in the darkroom and it's probably better for them that they are in a drier environment.