The Darkroom

Curt did an amazing job with my pictures ! I had to contact him kinda last minute but he was still able to take me in and do amazing prints with my photos ! I’ve already referred him to two of my friends and many more soon! Thank you curt and your whole team ! I’ll be back soon !

I was going to this lab when they were on Reseda Blvd. in Northridge and was really sad that they had to close that location, it was so close to my house. I still now drive the extra 20 minutes to still get my work done at the Woodland Hills Camera drop off location. I also like that they still kept the drop off box because I can’t always get there during business hours with my work schedule.
I never thought about writing a review for this place till now because in a desperate situation I had to use a lab close to my work to get same day service which is something the Darkroom can’t offer at the new location. I miss that too. After getting my prints back from this other lab I realized how much I appreciated the Darkroom.
The prints just did not look like what they normally do, no contrast and the colors were just not there. I use this color film called Rollei CN200 and I have taken this to some other labs and they get freaked out a little because the film looks different because it does not have the orange layer. This is why I love this film and I will say the Darkroom lab seems to be the only place that knows to scan and print this stuff.
I also discovered something because I normally give the Darkroom a negative to order my prints, not scans. I had a print done by the Darkroom and I had to submit a scan of the image for a gallery. I then realized that I just could not capture the image the same way the print was by scanning the negative. Even with the print there in front of me, I could not scan and adjust this image to look like the print, they just do it so much better. I ended up scanning the print itself because it was just so much more true to the color.
I also appreciate this place because you have managed to still keep your prices on film developing and prints affordable and for someone still using film it is well appreciated because I would hate to see it get to expensive to the point I would not be able to print.
Please stick around Darkroom, I love the work you do.

I love these guys! They are so helpful when I get my headshots printed. The quality is definitely the best I’ve seen. I heard about them through a pro photographer I was working with. He gets all his prints from them and I know why. I decided to go to them directly to save a little dough and I’m sold for life. They added my name and a border to my headshots without an additional fee. The turnaround time is always really fast too. Their service is polite and friendly. I only wish they were closer. Northridge is far for me, but they are worth the drive! I realize this even more after trying a printer in Hollywood that left me dissatisfied.

I very much approve of this place. I buy/​develop all my film from here. Compared to other places I have been to for film in the valley, I’ve discovered these guys have a lower price on their film. Getting it developed, I’ve had no problems whatsoever with them. They develop it and get it back to me very quickly and the results have always come out beyond satisfactory. In terms of their knowledge, they know their stuff. I bought my Holga 120N from them and they always have an answer to my questions about it. On top of all that, they have all the materials you need for your photography class (at csun.) I highly recommend them!

This has taken me some time to finally review this place. Based on review alone, I was hesitant to go here.
In my experience, the negative reviews could not have been more off. For my B/​W photo class, I did my final project a bit last minute. I needed prints and I needed them quickly. In reviewing my images, I realized that I had made the mistake of having my aspect ratio on 16:9. I had to shrink this down to a 5×7 without clipping any portion of the image off. In display it had to match my other photo which was shot in the correct ratio. I also needed the pictures done in 1.5 hours.
Quite the task, I know. Not only did they sit with me and troubleshoot my issue – stretching it so that you wouldn’t even know. But they charged me no extra for this service. They had the images printed and ready to be picked up in an hour. Bear in mind this is during finals week. The last day of most photo classes for CSUN.
Excellent service, moderate pricing, good selection (from what I briefly saw), and conveniently located close enough to school for those «last minute photo emergencies». Oh and not to mention an amazingly accommodating staff.
Will definitely return.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. In my frantic search to find a place that could do this for me, I also had a friend who lives a few towns over take my images with him to be printed at an officemax, just in case my place fell through. Though I was aware that there would be a difference in the quality of image produced from either party, I can honestly say that it was like night and day. The difference in paper quality, ink, density, clarity etc was so extreme that when people in the lab were watching me mount them and saw the comparison, they were all asking me where I got them printed and writing down the address.

Very nice selection of holgas and film. Places like this are such a disappearing breed, I was happy to discover this place today.

Wow. I’m surprised we’re talking about the same place.
This lab has always delivered high quality prints and has always made their prices clear upfront. They are not the cheapest, but they are a real photo lab and will take care of your film and prints. I have been going here for years, and they have never damaged a roll or messed up a set. Plus, they can process and print E-​6. That’s becoming VERY rare.
The old motto, «you get what you pay for» definitely applies here. Yes, you can go to CostCo and save some money, but your pictures will be manhandled and the quality is just not the same. If quality is important, go with the Darkroom.
But sometimes you will definitely get some attitude. I don’t appreciate this, but it’s very hard to find a good lab these days.

First, I should say that I’ve just started to mess around with photography, and unfortunately I’m not very good. I took my 35 mm film to be developed by the Darkroom and payed about $ 11 for a single set of 24. Since my photos are not very good, I cannot say much about the quality of the prints, but they seemed alright. Due to the cost, this place is not for the amateur photographer. Take them to Costco and pay half the price.
On a different day, I went to have them develop a roll of what I mistakenly thought was slide film (oops!). I was working on documenting my paintings in order to apply for grad school, and I wanted to DIY it. When the manager became aware of my mistake, he took the opportunity to explain why It would be a good idea for me to have the Darkroom photograph my work. He informed me that I would also be able to have decent prints made from the slides they would take. The guy was kind of pompous and pretentious but he seemed to know what he was talking about. I ended up paying almost $ 100 to have 5 of my paintings photographed.
The slides seemed to turn out well (though I don’t have a projector) and I was relatively happy with the results. I figured It was a pretty good investment until I went to have prints made of the slides (for $ 35). The detail was wonderful but the colors were horribly off, not just desaturated, but yellowish. When I called to complain, I was informed that prints made from slides will be slightly darker. Why was this not mentioned earlier? I would have had digital images taken instead and had slides, prints, and a cd made, all at the same time. It would have cost more, but In the long run it would have been a better investment. I no longer trust the darkroom for my important projects, and will not be returning.
Actually, I suddenly feel motivated to improve my photography skills!

«HORRRIBLE!
I came to this place for years to develop film.
One day I took my camera in for repairs and left them the body and lens (I didn’t have a body cap on me, so they told me to just leave the lens on). I got a call saying my camera was ready to be picked up about a month later and listen to this…
I arrive to pick up my camera and they can’t find it. What’s worse is they claim I never left it there and they have no recolection of who I am (funny, since they had called me to pick it up). They claim they won’t deal with me until I show the work order reciept (which the new guy had never given to me!). I was furious. I went into the store every week to find out what happened to my camera that they had „no paperwork“ on.
They offered to replace it with a camera of lesser value (as if I would accept any kind of replacement camera). I told them I wanted the SAME MODEL camera. No where in this conversation did I mention that my lens was attached to the camera (which isn’t normal on a body repair), however, what they were offering me was a camera body and lens. Now, how would they know that if they really lost my paperwork?
I finally got a camera replacement with a lousy 30 day return policy and it was a used camera. I will NEVER give this place my business again. The „manager“ (some kid with a really poor attitude) was incredibly rude and tried to make me believe that it was MY fault they lost my camera.
Come to find out, this place has a horrible reputation at the nearby university as being the WORST place to go in the LA valley. And they are not trying to fix their bad rep at all.»