Basic equipment required for BW film development

I contacted a bunch of vendors in Bangalore, Chennai and Mumbai to enquire about purchasing equipment for BW development. None of them replied positively. And so, I bought the equipment on Amazon, and had a friend bring them back.

Development tank and film loading reel
This is one of the crucial pieces in BW film development. Make sure you purchase something good that will last for a good time. I bought a Paterson tank from Amazon. The kit cost me $25 and comprised of a film development tank for one 35mm reel, and one film loading reel

Film is light sensitive. Until the image is 'fixed', all development procedures need to be done in the dark. The development tank is light tight. But the process of loading the film onto the reel, and loading the development tank, all needs to be done in the dark. Traditionally, all of this was done in a darkroom.

The darkroom
A darkroom is a 'light tight' room. If you have the luxury of devoting a room, all you need to do is to identify and plug all sources of light leaks - doors, windows and ventilation. Put off the lights when setting up your darkroom. As your eyes get acclimatized to the darkness, you will be able to identify smaller light leaks. Any sliver of light you can see, will affect your undeveloped film.

Your bed as a darkroom
If you have enough space beneath your bed, you could convert it into a darkroom too. Drape thick blankets on all sides of your bed. Like before, get your eyes acclimatized to the dark for a few minutes to verify that there are no small light leaks. You can increase the effectiveness of this method by turning off the lights in the room, drawing the curtains, and closing the door. This setup is useful for contact printing your negatives.

Changing bag

I went with the option of buying a changing bag. The changing bag is a double zippered light tight bag with two holes for your hands. The development tank, reels and associated loading equipment is placed within the bag. Once the bag is zipped up, it becomes a mini-darkroom. I bought a Bower 16x17 inch changing bag which cost me $12


Your jacket as a changing bag
One alternative to the changing bag, is to use a thick jacket. Place all development equipment into the body of the jacket and zip it up. Place a thick blanket over the open end of the jacket, and voila, you have a home made changing bag! I've not tried this myself, so, I cant comment on the effectiveness of this solution