our tools, our process.
communication
The essential first step. At Lazarus, we don’t want the lab to just be a service - we want a relationship with you and your work. With a little information and some direction, we can adjust our processing to suit whatever look you envision. References are always welcome.
developing
Quality developing produces quality scans. We closely monitor our chemistry with regular densitometer readings, ensuring accurate colour profiles and negatives that can be archived for many years to come. Colour (C41) processing is done with Kodak chemistry through our Noritsu V30, and B&W is lovingly done by hand using Ilford chemistry.
scanning
We are proud to offer two scanner options - the Fujifilm Frontier SP3000 and the Noritsu LS-600. These two scanners are the cornerstone of professional labs around the world. Each image is optimised in-scanner and can be manipulated to fit any brief. For complete creative control in the editing suite, ask for flat scans.
As a general rule, we use Noritsu for B&W and the Frontier for colour, but be sure to let us know on the order form if you have a preference.
To see the difference between the two scanners, click here, and if you’re not sure, you can always let us choose.
post production
Our approach to post production is simply to remove anything that isn’t supposed to be there. Both colour and B&W rolls always receive meticulous dust removal. Minor tweaks are sometimes made to correct colour casts created by the film scanners. 120 film is more susceptible to colour casts, so they often get a little extra love in Lightroom.
By keeping post production minimal, this opens the floor for the photographer to create a signature look or simply celebrate the images as they were shot - without potential lab subjectivity.
negative storage
Negatives are the tangible byproducts of your film images. Those that elect to keep their negatives will have their film sleeved to protect it from dust and the elements for years to come. We keep negatives on hand for 4 weeks. After this they move to deep storage, and if not collected within 3 months will be disposed of.
We can post your negatives back to you either individually or in bulk for $12 with tracking.
If nothing is ticked on the order form, the negatives will be automatically disposed of after scanning. This saves some plastic, some time, and the draw you’d keep them in.
after care
Film is fickle, there’s no two ways about it. Blank rolls, blank frames, overlapping frames, scratched negatives, perforated negatives, light leaks, moisture marked film, X-ray damage are just a few of the issues we see daily. We’ve nearly seen it all at this point, but surely there’s more to come.
If there’s ever any issue with your film, we’ll do our best to explain it without nerding out and you getting lost in translation. With a little extra education, we can prevent these issues from happening in the future. Communication is key.