Setting up a tiny darkroom in a one-room flat

Developing colour film at home is fiddly, but black and white is surprisingly approachable. You do not even need a dark room, only a changing bag.

Equipment

A changing bag, a two-reel developing tank, a thermometer, three measuring jugs, developer, stop bath (or plain water), fixer, and clips to hang the film in the shower.

The process

Load the film onto the reel inside the changing bag. This is the hardest part and took me four ruined rolls to learn. After that it is just timing and temperature: develop, stop, fix, wash, hang.

Results

The first successful roll was HP5 pushed one stop, shot on a grey afternoon. The grain is heavy but I love it. Scanning is the next problem to solve; a phone and a light pad work better than expected.