Hello, I'm new to B&W photography and would like to set up a darkroom in my house. I like taking pictures of landscapes, street scenes, and some portraits. I might move to a MF camera in the future and doing color is also a possibility. What I would like to know is what type of enlarger I should be looking for. Any comments or suggestions would be helpful. Thanks Tammy

-- Tammy Montgomery (jimandtammy1@home.com), October 13, 2001

Answers

Hi Tammy:

Have look at this webpage:

http://darkroomsource.com/

Most of your qustions will be answered.

-- Marc Leest (mmm@n2photography.com), October 14, 2001.

Which ever brand you decide upon and since you are considering moving into larger film formats in the future, I would recomend an enlarger that can handle up to 4x5. Just my 2 cents.

-- Jim (jimzpace@yahoo.com), October 14, 2001.

I agree with Jim, but be warned- any 4X5 enlarger will be very large and heavy. So you need to consider whether you will be moving it around a lot, like if you want to set up your darkroom in your bathroom and then break it down after a session.

As far as what brand to get, I hear that Beseler enlargers require occasional realignment, which would be a pain. But I can't tell you from firsthand experience, since I've never owned one. Perhaps someone who has firsthand experience could fill us in on that point?

-- Dave Terry (drtdave@pacbell.net), October 15, 2001.

Think about the biggest size print you would like to use, and get a larger that can do at least one or two print sizes larger. I always thought that 16x20 was huge, but now I find myself wanting to print 20x24. Fortunately, my enlarger setup can accomodate this.

Getting an enlarger that will print 4x5 negatives is very desireable, and gives you maximum flexibility, but as David said, these are generally massive units. I have an Omega D5XL with a color head, and I am very happy with it. But it is five feet tall, and quite enormous. I would recommend at least getting an enlarger that handles 6x7 medium format, as if you get into B&W photography you with a 35mm camera you will begin to want and appreciate the advantages of a larger film format (e.g., larger prints with less grain, etc.).

My suggestion would be to look on eBay. Be patient, and you can get some great deals. Research auctions that are completed so you can see the range of prices. Beseler and Omega are the most common enlarger in the US, with the most easily obtainable accessories. Enlargers like Durst and Saunders get rave reviews from people I have communicated with, but it can be harder to put a system together as there are few of these floating around. My experience is with Omega. I would recommend getting at least a C760 (comes with a color head), which can do 6x7 and 16x20 prints on the baseboard. (Make sure you get the light chambers to do both 35mm and 6x7.) A C700 can be picked up cheap (but sometimes a C760 package on eBay is a much better deal), but the C700 can only accomodate 11x14 prints on the baseboard (I have one of these that my kids use -- it looks like a toy beside the D5XL-- but I sometimes print on it and it works fine). The next step up is the D2 and D5 series. You are talking about at least double to four times the cost on eBay, but you get even more than you pay for.

The key, if cost is not an overriding factor, is to get more than you think you may ever use, and as long as you have room you will not regret it.

-- Jim Rock (jameswrock@aol.com), October 15, 2001.

I've invested most of my enlarger money on lenses. I've been using a relatively inexpensie Bessler 23 with a variable contrast head for a while for 35mm and medium format with up to 16x20 prints on the base board (head rotates 90 degrees for wall projection if you want larger). The enlarger works well and is easy to use but alignment is a bit of a problem. I have a Versatek (sp?)alignment gauge that makes alignment a bit easier. I bought a really fine 90mm lens for medium format and a good lens for 35mm and the difference in print quality is quite apparent. If you want to do color you will need a color head but heads are easy to change if you want to do so later...save the money for good lenses now.

I use a different enlarger for large format (up to 8x10) as it is big and it is just so much easier to use the smaller machine.

My bottom line is to spend money on lenses and just get a servicable enlarger.

Mike

-- Mike (watgo@aol.com), October 16, 2001.