Well, it’s about time…after all these years of playing with film cameras and home development, I have finally tried dun dun durrrrhhhhh Caffenol. AND, I sucked at it.

The first recipe I tried was the C-H version from this website. I used an expired roll of HP5 and the results I got were not great.

The negatives were very thin, these were the best of the bunch. As it was my first time, I wasn’t so shocked that they didn’t come out. My friends were surprised, “but it is so easy”, and “I can do it” were common comments

So I tried again, this time the C-L version which was a stand development. I used a fresh roll of FP4 and the mju panoramic which I knew worked well. The results were better, but again, the film was quite thin. Most of the shots were underexposed, they sort of suit the Yorkshire Sculpture Park location though.

Though I do like some of these results, I was still disappointed…what was I doing wrong? I reached out to some friends. One sent me another recipe to try, so a third attempt was undertaken. That one didn’t work at all 🙁

I gave up, caffenol was not for me.

But then came Analogue Spotlight and at that event was Leicester Lo-Fi who had a stand teaching caffenol. It was meant to be.

I arrived with a finished film that was in a camera that I had been carrying around for a while. I went to the stand and listened carefully to the instructions. They were using the same ingredients that I had, even the same brand of washing soda. They didn’t have the potassium bromide, in fact, they didn’t use salt at all.

While mixing the washing soda, my instructor pointed out this…

It says “decahydrate” – deca meaning 10, hydrate meaning water -so ten molecules of water. I had missed it completely as I was looking for the word water, durhhhhhh. As soon as he pointed it out I knew exactly what it meant, but in my initial excitement, I just missed it. Plus the original website I referred to didn’t use that word but said “water-free” or “anhydrous” and said to cook it out. The new instructions I had said to multiply the amount by 2.4 if the washing soda was decahydrate.

So the recipe this time was:
Part 1
27g washing soda (multiplied by 2.4 for decahydrate versions and 1.2 for monohydrate)
8g Vitamin C
250ml water at 20 ^oC
Mix the soda first and make sure it is fully dissolved before adding the vitamin C

Part 2
20g Coffee
250ml water at 20 ^oC
Dissolve the coffee in the water and then mix with part 1
Let it sit for a few minutes to allow the bubbles to settle and the last remaining crystals to dissolve.

Then pour the mixture into the development tank, agitate for a full minute and then again every minute for 15 seconds. Develop for 15 minutes in total.
After development, rinse until the water runs clear.
Fix the normal way, wash and dry…voila!

I have posted the results on a camera review here, but for ease here are some of them.

Yatta!!!! Finally, I did it, but could I do it without a guide right there with me?

I loaded a new-to-me camera, which I have yet to review, with a roll of expired Jesspos R100 and shot it around my garden and house. Then developed it as I was shown…

Yatta!!! Perfect, I can finally do it. I’m not sure when I will do it again, but now I know I can.

As a note, I have to say I love the results of caffenol. The shots developed at Spotlight have some terrific clouds on them. I am certain they didn’t look that moody when I shot them. If these are true examples of caffenol, then the results are just my cup of tea so to speak.

N.B. This will be my last experience or review post for this year. For the remainder of December, any posts will be reflections of this year or plans for the future.

For Roger in the comments: this was on the instructions I received…