Edited by author 10-15-2009 05:15 AM
Thanks for the various suggestions about setting up a darkroom in the bathroom - I'll have to give it some thought. Though I would be a bit worried about dog hairs. The dogs are not allowed in there, but the hair gets everywhere! When I previously had a darkroom, no dogs lived in the house. Given a choice between dogs and a darkroom, I'd have to plump for the dogs. But to have both would be nice. We shall see! Meanwhile I could start by developing film again. I still have a changing bag but keeping solutions at the right temperature would be a problem, especially in Winter. I used to use a special heater for keeping developing dishes or solutions warm, but in the UK electrical points in bathrooms, other than shaver points, are a no-no.

Regarding polyester film, I've never developed any so I don't know how the curling would be. Although the coating and the base come from Agfa-Gevaert, I suspect the cutting and packaging may have been done in the Efke factory, as they are equipped to deal with 127 film, and the spools appear similar. Or maybe they just bought the spools from Efke. The Maco outfit, who are behind the Rollei films, seem to source stuff from all over the place, no doubt of necessity.

But when it comes to Efke's own emulsions, the trouble is that their machinery is now well over 50 years old, which may be why there is what sometimes appears to be a quality control problem. So that's why I'm hoping the Rollei film will prove more robust all round. Further down the line, there has been talk of a Rollei film in ISO 800 speed, but I'm not clear if this is colour or monochrome. But for many 127 cameras (Baby Rollei's and the like excepted) that would probably be too fast. A film around ISO 400 though, would be useful for the Winter months. Fingers crossed!