Wineol: Developing Film Using Wine
A Boozy Way to Develop Film
“Checking Me Out” by Author; Rolleiflex 3.5A Type II Tessar 75mm f/3.5; Kodak TMAX 100; developed with wineol, 30 minutes/10-second agitation each
Photography has come a long way since the days of the camera obscura. And while digital technology may have taken over, film photography continues to be the chosen medium for those of us who like to keep things old school.
But let’s be honest, the cost of constantly developing film can add up faster than you can say “analog is the future.”
But wait, what’s this? A solution to all your financial woes?
Well, not really. But it’s fun, anyway.
Developing film with WINE. That’s right, folks: fermented grapes can bring your negatives to life.
Let us delve.
“Wreath for Hanging” by Author; Rolleiflex 3.5A Type II Tessar 75mm f/3.5; Kodak TMAX 100; developed with wineol, 30 minutes/10-second agitation each
Developing film with wine is known as “Wineol” and is a unique process that uses the organic acids, tannins, and other substances found in wine to bring your negatives to life.
However, the key ingredient in this process is caffeic acid, found in red wine (and coffee, hence, caffenol) and responsible for the distinctive look and feel of images developed with wine.
Wineol development is relatively simple and can be done with a few essential tools and supplies. Whether you’re a seasoned photographer or just starting out, developing film with wine is a fun and affordable way to add a unique twist to your photography.
“The Ladies Just Chilling’” by Author; Rolleiflex 3.5A Type II Tessar 75mm f/3.5; Kodak TMAX 100; developed with wineol, 30 minutes/10-second agitation each
Let’s collect the materials:
Film negatives (obviously)
500 ml red wine (preferably a cheap, low-quality wine—otherwise, it’s alcohol abuse)
30g Washing Soda
5g Vitamin C powder
Funnel
Graduated cylinder
Film processing canister
Film Fixer
And here’s what you do:
Pour 500 mL of the wine into a beaker or measuring glass. Mix in the washing soda and vitamin C powder. Let rest for 5 mins. The mixture should turn blueish and smell . . . ungodly.
Pour mix into film processing canister and agitate for the first 30 seconds.
Set the timer for 30 mins.
Each minute, agitate for 10 seconds.
Pour out mixture and rinse the film thoroughly with water.
Add fixer for 8 mins, agitating every 50 seconds for 10 seconds.
Dry and hang as usual, then enjoy the winery effects.
The final images will have a unique look and feel compared to traditional film development methods. The wine developer can produce a soft, dreamy, and almost surreal effect owing to its reduced contrast. It’s a great way to experiment with different film developing techniques and produce unique and exciting results.
In conclusion, developing film with wine is a cost-effective and simple alternative to traditional film development methods. It’s a fun and creative way to experiment with film photography, and the results can be truly stunning.
So next time you have a bottle of cheap red wine lying around—if there’s such a thing—why not try wineol and see what unique images you can create?
Quarantined With Fomapan
So. How has everyone been doing? Tired of this enforced isolation? I know I am.
It has allowed me to work on a few projects. I’ve been experimenting with some new film, the latest being Fomapan 100. I gotta say, I’m a fan! I’ve been shooting with Ilford’s Ortho Plus for so long I’ve forgotten what it was like shooting with a film that has access to a much wider spectrum.
“Quarantined”; Intrepid MKIV; Schneider 210mm; Fomapan 100; Ilfosol 3
“Companions”; Intrepid MKIV; Schneider 210mm; Fomapan 100; Ilfosol 3
Fomapan loves texture and detail! What striked me the most is the film’s ability to pick up a whole range of minute details owing to it’s extremely fine grain. Right off the bat I think it’s enough to rival Ilford’s Delta and even Ortho Plus! I rated each of these shots at 100iso, but I think Fomapan likes to be overexposed just slightly.
Looking forward to working more with my new favorite film!
Pulling Out the Texture
I shot this image a couple of days ago in the backyard. I had to work quickly because there was a storm a-brewing.
What I love about black and white film is that it has a natural ability to pull out the texture in a scene, particularly Ilford Ortho Plus film. The orthochromatic film doesn’t “see” red, so any warm tones tend to darken and cooler tones—like the sky—brighten.
Intrepid MkIV; Schneider Symmar-S 5.6/210; Ilford Ortho Plus; Ilford Ilfosol
Meet, Billy Blue
I hope everyone is faring well during this ridiculous COVID-19 scare and are staying healthy and fully supplied with TP. It’s the little things that matter the most these days.
So, I have big news! Some of you might already know about this, but I figured I’d spill the beans on here.
It’s a boy!! Meet Billy.
“Dude. You actually NAME your cameras?
Yes. Yes, I do. Let’s not make a case out of it, Karen.
Welcome to the family! Billy, (after the Billy Boy Blue poem) is a 4x5 Mark IV from The Intrepid Camera Company of the U.K. He was a long time in the making . . . literally.
Last Summer, I was very sore on my trusty Omega View 45 Monorail camera system. We fought a lot and it ended up with one of us—me, mostly—getting our fingers pinched. Omega is a hulk of a camera and not exactly in working order.
Lately I’ve been shooting a lot of LF (large format for the uninitiated), so the brute has been getting a workout and causing issues and many newly created curse words. None of the knobs completely work and it is heavy as . . . hell. So, not something I can easily take around with me to do epic portraits. I really wanted a smaller, field-style view camera that can fold up and be portable. Portability = More Exploring.
The issue I’ve found is most view cameras are hugely expensive. Their bodies alone can be more expensive than most digital cameras. An Ebony camera can run you $6K+, and don’t get me started on the lenses. I just can’t justify the expense at this point. So, I kept combing the interwebs for a suitable and cheap option, but not something so crappy that you will find me searching for something else in a year’s time.
They say film is dead. I’ve been hearing that for the past 20 years; at one point, I actually believed it. Yet, these days there are new film/camera companies popping up—seemingly monthly—and creating amazing film and cameras. Some fledgling companies are starting new industry trends, while the stalwarts are going by the wayside—hello, Ebony. Never thought I would say this, but thank God for hipsters, right? They can keep a dying Moose alive if it was deemed cool, or, “woke”?
There’s new company based out of the U.K. called, The Intrepid Camera Co. I’m a huge fan. They are indeed intrepid. I love their mission statement and what they are doing, which is to bring affordable LF cameras to the unclean masses. They have a 6-8 week turnaround for 4x5 cameras and an 8-10 week turnaround for 8x10’s because they hand-make everything to order. My camera took almost 15 weeks to arrive, hence the “long time in the making” comment. This is a good sign, however, because this means they are that busy! I love seeing that type of response to something that is supposedly dead! I felt like I gave birth when this bundle of joy arrived via Royal Mail.
Overall, I am really impressed with the camera. It’s about as bare-bones as you can get outside of pinhole cameras. The Intrepids are constructed with both wood and metal components. The aluminium base is new to the Mark IV, making it even more stable than its predecessors. The company is constantly growing and improving. Encouraging to see! They are now even offering new dark cloths made by an American company up in Oregon.
I love the compact-ness and the durability of the bellows. The knobs overall are pretty sturdy and I don’t see any issue when shooting on location of the camera moving too much when loading film
My only complaint is with the focussing knob. It’s not as smooth and solid as I would hope and there’s no locking mechanism. Of course focussing with my Omega 45 you’d need Popeye forearms to turn the damn thing, so maybe I’m just not used to how easy it is? I can do 1:1 shooting (which I do a lot), but I need to watch that my lens doesn’t fall off the end of the base. Maybe there should be a stop of some kind to prevent this? Just a thought. Or, I’m just an idiot and not doing it correctly? Feel free to call me an idiot.
Ok, one more complaint. The bubble leveler thingies aren’t that accurate. But, that’s ok. They’ll be useful in a pinch. I’m still using my stand-alone leveler because I’m getting old and my eyesight can’t deal with those tiny bubbles on the Mark IV. I like my big-ass leveler block a lot.
The rear element does not rise or fall, but that’s not something I’m going to miss. Billy is a field camera and that movement generally isn’t found on field cameras. The camera is so lightweight I practically hefted the thing through the ceiling when I first picked it up. Making adjustments with my tripod is not a chore; I actually have the middle column installed and have no issue using it since the camera is so light.
As soon the Four Horsemen call off the Apocalypse, I’m heading out and shooting some Ektar 100 color negative around Austin (supposedly there’s a plague doctor walking around—keep Austin weird!). I’ve been enjoying learning how to develop my own color film. At some point I’ll graduate to doing more E-6. It’s nothing like shooting digital—you actually have to think and make good choices. There’s no instant gratification and verification with film!
Below is a sampling of some things I’ve been shooting with Billy. Due to the whole ‘social distancing’ thing I haven’t done any portraits . . . . yet. For these below that I’ve shot during quarantine, I’ve kept the lighting dark and moody to reflect the dark and perilous times we are now living in (ha ha ha).
Here’s a little video Intrepid created as an overview of their Mark 4 system:
Keep up the great work, Intrepid! I’m seeing an 8x10 camera in my future.
Pinhole Fun
So, I’ve been shooting with Ilford’s HP5 film lately. The box comes with 25 sheets and I found I was left with just 1 sheet remaining in the box. What to shoot?
My poor little pinhole camera has not seen much action since we moved to Texas so I thought I would use up the last sheet in it and hopefully get back into the swing of shooting lens-less. It was 10 o’clock at night, so I loaded the film up and stuck the pinhole out on my back patio. The night was black as pitch, so I really wasn’t entirely sure if I had the thing aimed correctly.
Exposure was tricky and I told myself, “Self, you probably won’t have a usable image in the morning anyway, but what the hell? Let’s see what happens.” I opened up the shutter and left the camera sitting there until I woke up in the morning. Experience told me that an almost pitch black scene would take roughly 10 hours of exposure to get an image at iso 400. Problem is the sun would be well up by then and over-expose the film. So, I just had to make sure to close the shutter shortly after the sky started to really get bright at around 7 o’clock.
Presto! Not the most exciting of images, but fun nonetheless to make. I think I’ll be giving my trusty little pinhole camera a bit more shooting time in the future.
5” Pinhole, Ilford HP5+, 8 hours exposure, Caffenol C-L