Okay, I'd be willing to bet at least one or two of you weirdos (and I use that term affectionately) still shoot 35mm film. I recently dragged out a couple old cameras and shot a roll this week. I'll have another roll in a day or two. The lab I used locally for decades no longer processes C-41. There are a few places on the internet, but I don't want to mail my film to San Francisco. Who do you use, or do you process it yourself?
I used to work a photo counter. C-41 was almost 100% of our business.
B&H sent me their catalog a month ago, and it had a special section and articles on film.
I've been teetering on the edge of going back to film. There are a lot of used film cameras out there, and most anything not a Leica is cheap on eBay.
When my local shop closed up last year, I started trying out a few places. Dwayne's in Kansas does a good job and is fairly cheap; I'm less than thrilled with their scanning, however (I normally scan my own, but I tried the scanning service to see how it looked compared to mine). Precision Camera in Texas is more expensive, but their hi-res scanning is fantastic.
I do process all my own B&W at home, which is easy and cheap. It's no wonder I shoot about 95% B&W these days.
In reply to 02Pilot:
I haven't done any B&W since the mid-90's, but I did a lot back then. What film do you shoot? Is T-Max still a thing? What developer? Where do you buy chemicals? I used to do a lot with Adorama in NYC. Also B & H.
1988RedT2 wrote: In reply to 02Pilot: I haven't done any B&W since the mid-90's, but I did a lot back then. What film do you shoot? Is T-Max still a thing? What developer? Where do you buy chemicals? I used to do a lot with Adorama in NYC. Also B & H.
After much experimenting with different films I've settled on Ilford HP5+; I love Tri-X, but the bulk rolls are twice the price. T-Max is still out there, as well as Ilford's Delta range, and a bunch of other films as well. Yes, some classics are gone (Plus-X, for example), but there is still a fairly wide range to choose from.
I develop with home-brew Caffenol, which is basically instant coffee, vitamin C powder, and washing soda (with a little potassium bromide as a restrainer). I use Ilford Rapid Fix, sourced from B&H the last time I bought it. Most of the old standby developers are still around in one form or another.
I have an old enlarger, a Bessler 23C, is there still a market for these out there? I used to shoot a lot of B&W and printed a ton of pics with it. It's been kicking around my house for 25 or so years, the last 15 with no activity. A shame to let it sit.
I process C41 myself.
Don't send it to a lab, they'll berkeley it up. That's what started me processing film on my own.
It's not really as hard as the interwebs make it out to be. Keeping your chemicals in a medium sized cooler of correct-tempereature water will keep them warm while you run the process.
I use the Unicolor kits available on line.
In reply to 02Pilot:
Wow! I had no idea that you could develop with a homebrew based on coffee! That really blew my mind. I couldn't understand how that fact could have escaped my knowledge, but I found after a little research that the "discovery" dates to the mid-90's, which is exactly when I got away from photography. Cool! Does it work on both film and paper?
Yep, it's pretty cool. I initially decided to go that way because I'm on a septic and I didn't want to dump a bunch of chemicals into it, but what I've come to understand is that it's a very versatile developer. I use variants for both normal and stand development. It's a compensating developer, so it produces a very nice, broad tonal range. Here's a sample:
It does work with film and paper, though paper will end up with a tint from the developer; there's no such issue with film. My GF has used it with Ilford Direct Positive paper to create some interesting prints.
1988RedT2 wrote: In reply to 02Pilot: Wow! I had no idea that you could develop with a homebrew based on coffee! That really blew my mind. I couldn't understand how that fact could have escaped my knowledge, but I found after a little research that the "discovery" dates to the mid-90's, which is exactly when I got away from photography. Cool! Does it work on both film and paper?
In reply to 02Pilot:
Nice!
I'd guess the Caffenol would stain a fiber-based paper more than RC. What paper do you like?
1988RedT2 wrote: In reply to 02Pilot: Nice! I'd guess the Caffenol would stain a fiber-based paper more than RC. What paper do you like?
I'm not wet-printing at the moment: no space. I'm currently scanning with a Canon 8800F or PrimeFilm XA, and printing with a Canon 9000 MkII on Red River San Gabriel Baryta or Polar Matte, depending on the finish I'm looking for.
LOL. This Caffenol thing has me intrigued! I found my old stash of B&W paper and some unmixed fixer, along with some Dektol. I'm going to see about making a print here soon! Off to the store to buy instant coffee! 
1988RedT2 wrote: LOL. This Caffenol thing has me intrigued! I found my old stash of B&W paper and some unmixed fixer, along with some Dektol. I'm going to see about making a print here soon! Off to the store to buy instant coffee!
I don't know how much you read about Caffenol, but cheaper is better when it comes to the coffee. Pure Vitamin C powder is easily available, and there are several options for washing soda; I'm currently using PH Plus from the pool supply place, but others have reported good luck with Arm & Hammer Washing Soda. The thing with the washing soda is to make sure you get a type that doesn't have residual moisture in it, as this will throw off the balance in your chemistry.
Potassium bromide is the only dedicated photography chemical (as a restrainer to prevent bromide drag), but if you use slow film and/or agitate regularly and vigorously, you might get away without it. I tried using iodized salt, which worked OK, but you need a lot of it. Of course, this won't be an issue for a print developer.
Ha! Made a couple of photograms tonight with the kids and one exposure of an old color negative. One thing is for sure, my old paper is borked! I developed an unexposed sheet from one package and it pretty much came up black. Another batch of paper was fogged, but at least it could render a clearly visible image. But the Caffenol does indeed work (yes, I bought the cheapest store brand coffee I could find--packaged in Germany, even!) Nifty! Now to order some fresh Ilfobrom Galerie FB!
How old school are you willing to go?
My passed FIL had a Petri 2.8 color corrected super. It still works. My "problem" is that it's a long way away in MIL's home. But it would be nice to sell it to someone who would use it.
I wonder if Film will make a comeback like Albums are starting to?
Good job with the Caffenol. Once you get some new paper you'll find that you can tweak the formula to your liking, but keeping the mix consistent is the first priority right now.
pinchvalve wrote: I wonder if Film will make a comeback like Albums are starting to?
Yes: Time Magazine story
Haven't put a roll thru my Nikon F3HP in many years but I refuse to get rid of it. I believe someone bought the Polaroid biz and started experimenting making batches of chemical/paper to bring it back to a nitch market.
Jerry wrote: Haven't put a roll thru my Nikon F3HP in many years but I refuse to get rid of it. I believe someone bought the Polaroid biz and started experimenting making batches of chemical/paper to bring it back to a nitch market.
Funny you mention Polaroid. I was surprised when my eighth grader brought home a few small square instant prints of his friends and him taken by a Fuji instant camera. Now I see the Fuji Instax cameras are getting popular.
http://cameras.reviewed.com/best-right-now/best-instant-cameras
Jerry wrote: Haven't put a roll thru my Nikon F3HP in many years but I refuse to get rid of it. I believe someone bought the Polaroid biz and started experimenting making batches of chemical/paper to bring it back to a nitch market.
Here's the company that's producing film packs for old Polaroids: Impossible Project
Fuji's Instax is increasingly popular and generally quite good (well, the film is good; the cameras suck). Fuji also produced peel-apart pack film for older Polaroids up until recently - killing it off seemed utterly spiteful, reinforced by the fact that the guys from the Impossible Project tried to get Fuji to sell them the old equipment and Fuji refused to cooperate.
This is not a rabbit hole I need to go down again. Although I have another working film SLR...
Brian wrote: This is not a rabbit hole I need to go down again. Although I have another working film SLR...
Nonsense! I am thinking of sending my old Minolta X-700 out for repairs. Anybody use Garry's Camera Repair?
1988RedT2 wrote:Brian wrote: This is not a rabbit hole I need to go down again. Although I have another working film SLR...Nonsense! I am thinking of sending my old Minolta X-700 out for repairs. Anybody use Garry's Camera Repair?
I've used him a few times.
He's done my X-570, my X-700 and my XE-7.
Very happy with the work on all three and no surprises.
I may have to look up Garry's. While I have a Yashica from EvanR, my faithful AE-1 needs some work. It has an intermittent issue with the shutter.
alfadriver wrote: How old school are you willing to go? My passed FIL had a Petri 2.8 color corrected super. It still works. My "problem" is that it's a long way away in MIL's home. But it would be nice to sell it to someone who would use it.
Didn't mean to ignore this post. I had no idea what this item was. I now know that the Petri 2.8 color corrected super was a popular Japanese rangefinder camera made from 1958 to 1961. Decent examples seem to go for about 20 bucks on ebay.
I have a small camera collection, but I do not consider myself a collector. My working camera uses Minolta MD/MC lenses and if I was to acquire any new equipment it would be compatible. Can't say I'm interested in the Petri, but thanks for making me aware of its existence! 
Sent the X-700 to Garry's today. I'll post here again when I get it back.
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