AP Kits Back In Stock

The dear old AP Darkroom kit is back in stock.

Everything the budding photographer needs for 35mm or 120 film development - and with a bit of imagination the 4 x 5 newbie can also develop sheet film.

The kit includes an AP tank with reels, graduated cylinder, thermometer, stirring rod, developing trays, tongs, and film-drying clips.

$ 130 is all it costs - you'll need to get a Paterson or Glanz dark bag for film loading if you're going to use the tank and if you want to do tray developing you'll need to go to Bunnings and get a room full of dark. You can get rooms full of dark from IKEA too, but you have to assemble them with little Allen keys and your fingers get tired half-way through.

Note we also have lots of Ilford chemistry now to develop black and white film and paper.

Pardon My Pack Shot

I just thought I would get in an pre-empt the secondhand photo market that will be running on Sunday in a couple of weeks. Oh, I'll be there myself, but not with this sort of gear.

Lots of kids and starters want to develop film and prints in the old-fashioned way. Some of them will be at the photo market looking for he gear to do it with, and to be fair, they will find it. But they will find such a crazy mis-matched lot of things from other people's darkrooms that they may well become discouraged. As well, all of the gear will be used and offered on a caveat emptor basis. Not a big deal when you are looking at a set of print tongs, but certainly a consideration on other things.

Here's an alternative - A-P make a complete set of film and print tools for just this sort of customer - brand new. Tank, tongs, wiper, thermometer,  2 graduate cylinders, mixer, film clips, and trays round the back for $ 115.

You'll be able to do 35mm, 120, and odder ex-Kodak sizes. We have the chemistry you need and the darkroom printing paper as well. By all means circulate around looking for an enlarger...likely you'll find one.

Best of all - there are no cracks in this tank...and no residue from past processes to muggle up your first development.

Uncle Dick

Advancing To Retro With A-P

Good news for those of you who are sick of losing your camera chargers in hotels overseas - and those unfortunates who discover they have a dirty sensor halfway through a holiday. And the people who have suffered the heartbreak of a corrupted memory card.

We have secured one of the new digital-free systems that allow you to take pictures without electricity. You are no longer tied to the mains circuits and waiting for the battery to charge up. all you need is a dark room and some water - the A-P kit contains the hardware you need to produce your images.

Now you will need a few other things - some Ilford Ilfosol 3, some stop bath, and some rapid fixer. One of the  black and white 35mm films from Fuji or Kodak would be a good idea in your 35mm camera, and of course you will need to have some sunshine to expose the film, but this sort of thing occurs regularly in Western Australia between 5:00 AM and 8:00 PM. Try to pick a day that isn't raining, or take a towel.

If you have a steady nerve and are not allergic to carcinogenic organic solvents, you can get kits from Tetenal to allow you to develop colour slides.

With this sort of thing coming onto the market there is no telling where photography will go to.