On the UNCC campus
Back on November 23, 2009, I wrote this post talking about how many film shots I had taken to date. In that post, Earl made the following comment:
Paul, as i read your post I wondered if being in Charleston on your own each week with evening time to develop and scan has made your usage of film easier or more enjoyable? If you were home in Charlotte would finding time for film be harder to come by?
Though I could not remember when it was said nor what exactly was said, I did remember the theme of the comment. So, this morning I searched my blog for ‘time to develop’ and fortunately, those 3 words did follow each other and I was able to find the post and the comment once again. I am thankful for the ability to search.
Though this is only the beginning of my third week back, I am in full swing with the tasks of daily life. In a way, my life has not changed: I still get up every morning, do my 20 minutes of meditation, prepare my clothes for work, shower, get dressed, drive to work, etc. The evenings are where there is a difference. There are more things to do, wash dishes, take Hobbs for a walk, eek out a bit of time for photography, talk to Tony (if he is ever at home), talk to the wife, and on and on.
Physically, there are so many more windows in this house than I had in the apartment. Lots and lots of windows, which means that light, whether artificial or natural streams into the house. I wanted a lot of windows, so this is not a bad thing, unless you are trying to find a place to develop film. 
There is but one location suitable for loading film into developing tank, a downstairs bathroom which is one of two rooms in the house having no windows; the other room is the laundry room. The advantage of the bathroom is that it has a lock on the door. No one can accidentally open the door while I’m loading film.
As you probably know, doors are not exactly light tight. I’ll have to drape a blanket over the door to keep the extraneous light out. In the apartment I could turn off all of the lights and it would be quite dark in the bathroom. No need for blankets or anything; however, as there are other people in the house who rather prefer to have lights on, well … you get the idea. LOL!
Currently, I have one roll of film that I want to develop. Perhaps I’ll do it tonight. I know that tomorrow will not be an option. I’ll be busy, busy, busy tomorrow evening and probably won’t get home until about 10:00 PM. However, it will be plenty dark at that time.
So, Earl, now that I’m back here in Charlotte, I can see that developing film will be a challenge, but I intend to stick with it because I enjoy it; however, that said, I’ve made plans for other things that haven’t quite worked out the way that I planned! In looking through my film archives, I don’t have any photos of Charlotte anywhere. I need to fix that!
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Paul, time is a precious commodity and when we’re in a family environment our portions get divided into ever smaller segments — I would have been surprised if you had found it any other way.
Paul, there’s no need to use a closet to load your film tanks. Just get a light-tight “changing tent.” A company called Harrison makes a full line. I use their largest size to reload my large format film holders, right up to 12×20 inches, when I’m on the road. You could use a much smaller one to to load film onto reels. Let’s see, a quick search, and here’s their web site: http://www.cameraessentials.com/. The usual suspects like B&H carry them, too.
Calumet also used to sell similar tents, don’t know if they still do. I’d recommend against an old-fashioned cloth “changing bag.” These were dust nightmares. But the tents use high-tech materials that resist dust and the tent-style frame gives you a nice comfortable space for your hands to work. And they are really light-tight. I’ve reloaded holders out in full blazing sunlight in mine.
First off, the whole ‘turning all the lights off’ thing is exactly what I used to do in my apartment in Mesa. Who knew we were using the same trick? Second, I have a changing bag I could ship you if you want it. Free!
Thank for the offer, Chris; however, I have a blanket that covers the door nicely. Also, I like the freedom of movement that the room provides. I just now loaded and developed a roll of film while it was pretty bright outside … high noon. From the look of it, everything came out alright. I’ll be able to tell, fully, after the negatives finish their rinse/soak and then I hang them to dry. I remember your issues with dust and I think that it will be that way here. Lots of windows, lots of different air currents, lots of dust floating around. It will be a challenge to say the least.