# Insane newbie to photography.



## monkeykoder (Jan 15, 2008)

Okay I figured this would be the place to post this.  Right now I'm sitting at home bored next semester I take a course in B&W photography... But you see I'm not exactly sane and I have like 5 rolls of color film that are probably already completely destroyed anyway.  So my idea (which after considerable research HAS been done before) is to develop the color negatives in  a COFFEE based developer.  I am completely aware that the most likely result is TOTAL FAILURE.  So to the point any tips as to how to go about this?  

Questions I have so far:

From what I hear this is going to take a LONG time (color in black&white chemicals takes longer black&white in coffee takes longer)  any ideas as to how to make this process faster (without using standard developers)?

This is my understanding of developing so far (correct me if I'm wrong)
Developer takes silver halide crystals that have been struck by a photon and turns them into a grain of silver

Stop bath just dilutes the developer enough to stop it from developing.

Fixer (not exactly sure maybe makes image more permanent?) 

I know this probably isn't the best way to experience developing film for the first time but it sounds like a fun project and it isn't like I'm expecting results.  So any comments  would be appreciated  criticisms  most likely ignored unless they make very good sense.


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## jstuedle (Jan 15, 2008)

The developer is a base, it also oxidizes with prolonged contact with air. Commercial developer must be stored in air tight and opaque containers to get max. life from it. (I don't think coffee cares.) The stop bath is a mild acid and instantly stops development. Water is often used but that only dilutes the developer to a point it drastically slows down development. A home brew stop can be made with household vinegar. About a cup to a gallon water if memory serves. (been a long time) The fixer removes all undeveloped silver halide remaining in the emulsion and removes the dye in the plastic back on film to make it transparent. Proper "fixing" is very important. It must be used for a time long enough to make the image permanent, and it must be washed totally out of the film/paper to prevent staining and oxidation of the image. Like I said, been a long time, but it was fun! There was a thread on coffee and other home brew (sorry for the pun, no, no I'm not really) developers in the past. More info there I'm sure.


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## JamesD (Feb 8, 2008)

Raising the temperature of the developer should help shorten the development time, but as this is not your regular dev stuff, it likely won't help too much.


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## windrivermaiden (Feb 9, 2008)

Boy! you are skipping the basics and going straight to the good stuff.:lmao:

Here is my experience with coffee development. *It takes a long time*...and you'll need to do more than one roll to dial it in...probably more than 5...maybe even 10. Use fresh film...using old film just adds one more variable and you are already walking a variable tightrope. Make copious notes...from the exact measurement of coffee ingredients and temperatures to the development times and film types you attempt. When you start, use just one film.

and be patient. Check out alternativephoto.com I think there might be some info there.


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