Darkroom – Gary Chapman

My final darkroom, built within the garage space is 5.4 m long by 2.7 m wide with a ceiling height of 2.6 m. It’s a classic layout, dry one side and wet the other.

The wet side has a 4.2 m long by 0.9 m wide sink made of stainless steel that allows me to comfortably process prints up to 20 x 24 in trays. The sink also allows plenty of room for wet plate processing.

There are two Beseler enlargers: a 4×5 bought new more than 30 years ago, it has a condenser head and gel filters for contrast control and uses a 135 mm lens. The 8×10 enlarger I purchased from the USA has a cold light head. I use a 240 mm enlarging lens that allows me to print up to 20 x 24 prints on the baseboard.

The ultraviolet light box I built from an old pine table that had a suitable base. An electrician installed sixteen 900 mm BL tubes, the size that allows me to print 16 x 20 alternative process prints using contact frames. The alternative processes that interest me are: Palladium and Van Dyke Brown. A typical exposure for my work under this ultraviolet light box is 30 seconds to four minutes, depending on whether using glass or film negatives.

I find working in the darkroom and listening to music to be very relaxing in my personal space.

Gary Chapman’s The Photograph Considered can be seen here.

Gary Chapman and his 16 x 20 camera, a photo essay by Janet Naismith can be seen here.