ABOUT

A darkroom is the studio, workshop and space for hire run by Sydney-based photographer Sam Stephenson. With 20 years of shooting experience, Sam has taken what started in a home darkroom of his neighbour and revisited it 20 years later in a shared photographic studio space in Marrickville in 2024. Originally a space for Sam to set up his personal studio and spend time honing his distinctive style, he is now running half and full day introduction to 35mm black and white workshops with a focus on process, proofing and printing, as well as general 35mm darkroom hire.

 

A darkroom is all about the grain, there’s a texture and atmospheric element to processing film and printing it that is lost in the develop and digital scan process, it becomes something else. Sam runs on an anti-pixel policy, what you see is what you get. 

 

WORKSHOPS

 

A darkroom offers whole or half day workshops to people of all experience levels wanting to learn, explore or expand their knowledge. The 4 hour workshop will be completely facilitated by Sam Stephenson, a Sydney-based photographer with 20 years experience in shooting and dark room processes with artist representation with China Heights he specialises in 35mm black and white film.

 

Due to Sam’s practice, A darkroom is set up exclusively as a 35mm black and white darkroom, which is what he’d like to share. Though limited, what you’ll receive is deep and intimate knowledge of these processes from someone who has tried and tested it all so that you don’t have to. 

 

The workshop will focus on the following areas: 

​

• All functions of enlarger

• Processing of film

• Brief photogram in order to understand printing processes of light on to paper

• Aperture and timing

• Timestep test strips

• Chemistry and timing // chemical processes and how to 

• How to make a straight print and how to make a working print with dodging and burning techniques

• Wet prints - how to make analog wet prints

• Make index print “contact sheet” “proof sheet”

• Filing/archiving and looking after your negatives