We recently finished up the series on developing black and white film, so I thought we could touch on color film to compare the process. Remember, with b/w we did a developer, stop bath, fix, wash, and dry. Now with C-41 (color negative), we’ll do a prewash, developer, blix (bleach+fix), wash, wash, stabilizer, dry. It’s very similar to black and white, the chemicals just smell a bit different.

Doing your own C-41 processing is quite simple and inexpensive. I’m showing the process with a rotary processor, but it can be done with hand inversion equipment too.

Equipment List

You’ll need to get your hands on some C-41 chemicals. Most kits available to hobbyists are called “press kits” and include a small amount of powder chemicals (usually enough to make 1 liter of each chemical). Some kits are 4-bath (bleach and fix are separated), but most are 3-bath and use a blix. These 1 liter kits are typically around $16-$20 and can develop 8-16 rolls of film. I went with the Jobo C-41 Press Kit mainly because they had it on hand at my local shop.

Most of the other stuff is just the same as black & white film developing equipment. Reels, tanks, measuring devices, timers, etc. The main difference would be a more precise thermometer and an optional…

Rotary Processor. A rotary processor, such as my Jobo CPE2, is a unit that has a temperature controlled water bath with a built in drum/tank agitator. I don’t know that I would buy one like this just for developing film (there are cheaper options), but I picked mine up to eventually do color prints too. If you don’t want to invest in a rotary processor, you can certainly develop with hand inversions as you would with b/w film — you’ll just need to keep a bath of warm water at your side.

Process Overview

The process is the same for both hand inversion and rotary processing. In addition, the C-41 kits provide detailed instructions specific to that kit — I’m just going by the Jobo kit that I used.

1. LOAD THE TANK
   Just as you would with black and white film, load the film on the reels and load the reels in the tank.
2. PREP THE CHEMICALS
   Mix your chemicals as per the instructions included with the kit. Powder chemicals are simply dissolved in the proper amount of water at about the right temperature.
3. GET YOUR BATH READY
   If you’re developing by hand, you’ll need to prepare a basin of water at the proper temperature (most kits require 38-40C). You’ll also need to keep an eye on the temperature and periodically warm it back up to temp. In the basin of water, you’ll want to place your wash water, developer, and blix. If you’re using a temperature controlled rotary processor, just fill it with water near the correct temperature, turn it on, and set the temperature control until the water stabilizes at the right temp.
4. PREWASH
   Pour working-temp water in the tank and agitate for the correct time. This gets the film ready for the developer and it appears to strip some kind of crap off the film (because it will pour out as a funky color).
5. DEVELOP
   Pour working-temp developer in the tank and agitate for the correct time. Allow time at the end to drain the developer and pour the blix — remember that it will continue to develop until the next chemical is poured. Keep the developer solution since it can be re-used.
6. BLIX
   Pour working-temp blix in the tank and agitate for the correct time. Remember to “burp” the tank after a few inversions and keep an eye on the lid after that — it produces CO2 and will blow the lid right off your tank. Keep the blix solution since it can be re-used.
7. WASH, WASH
   Pour working-temp water in the tank and agitate for the correct time. This will stop the blix reaction and clear out most of the residual chemicals. Do this twice.
8. STABILIZE
   Pour room-temp stabilizer in the tank and agitate for the correct time. I’m assuming this chemical stabilizes the dyes in the emulsion… or something along those lines. If you want to be careful about mineral deposits on your film, you could use distilled water to mix this chemical. As with the developer and blix, keep this chemical for re-use (within a short period of time).
9. DRY
   No washing after the stabilizer, just hang it to dry.

So really, C-41 isn’t much different from b/w. The chemicals are a bit different, the temperature is different, and the order of operation is different, but you’re still just pouring chemicals and following the instructions.

Final Thoughts

If you already have the equipment for b/w film developing and you have easy access to C-41 kits, I would encourage you to give it a shot. It’s easy to do and very cheap. The downside is that it takes quite a bit of time unless you’re doing 8 rolls at a time in a rotary processor. The other downside is that you have to save up quite a few rolls of film to make it financially worthwhile.

Of course, the major plus side of doing it yourself is quality control. I’m really impressed at how well the film turned out with this cheap press kit — very sharp, low grain, and colorful). Plus, I have better control over scratches and dust. AND — C-41 films can all be developed together, regardless of brand or ISO speed.

Here are a few samples from the batch of chemicals in the video (but a different run of film)… though all of these were an attempt at bleach-bypass too (a mostly failed attempt, but we’ll get into that later). Still, they look pretty close to non-bleach-bypass runs.

Anybody else out there want to share some tips or suggestions for C-41 developing?