Hello,
My apologies if this has been asked a million times, but I couldn’t find a way to search that gave me results, so… . I recently acquired my second “vintage” 35mm film camera, and as part of determining whether the bodies still work, I figured I would shoot a roll or two of film to see what results I get. And I get to scan the results later!
I am disinclined to develop my own. Did that (mumble) years ago when I was young, and it was fun and exciting then, but I have other things to entertain me now, so I am wondering if the community has had positive experiences with any particular commercial labs. B&W first, color perhaps later. Also any recommendations for particular films? I am thinking Tri-X, as that is what I used to use, but I am open to all suggestions.
Comments in the Internet might not be the best, but they can give you an idea…
Also, if you buy film in a local store, they can tell you where to have them developed.
Look for Commercial Photo Labs if you want high quality work. Some labs will do a “develop and proof scan” (low resolution scanning) for one price. Others will do film processing and sleeving.
It’s great if the film is sleeved as a whole roll, especially if you have something like the Essential Film Holder that was made for scanning a whole roll in one pass. Cut strips are annoying if they have fewer than six 35mm frames per strip, or shorter than an 8-inch strip of other sizes. Few amateur labs (drugstore or big box store labs) will keep film in rolls, and some don’t even return negatives after processing! They only provide scans. So ask…
Great experiences with all of these over the years. But I typically have given business to two other more local labs with which I have a working relationship with and that do not have robust online ordering systems (if any). Check locally. If that doesn’t pan out any of the above are excellent.