Build Your Own Home Darkroom

Rating:
Summary: good reference book for starting a home darkroom
Review: There are plenty of illustrations in this book, but they are only sketches or drawings. This book has some ideas that may be outdated or simply not economical. For instance, making an entire darkroom sink, painting it, preparing it for sealing, and all that, not to mention the worrying about leaks, etc. Could be better suggested that an economical sink under 100.00 be purchased... Too much time and effort into something that "might" save you time and money isn't worth it for me.

Rating:
Summary: good reference book for starting a home darkroom
Review: There are plenty of illustrations in this book, but they are only sketches or drawings. This book has some ideas that may be outdated or simply not economical. For instance, making an entire darkroom sink, painting it, preparing it for sealing, and all that, not to mention the worrying about leaks, etc. Could be better suggested that an economical sink under 100.00 be purchased... Too much time and effort into something that "might" save you time and money isn't worth it for me.

Rating:
Summary: Building a sink isn't for everyone, but...
Review: This book is probably not practical for those who don't already own woodworking tools (i.e., sabre saw, circular saw, clamps, chisels, etc.). However, if you are looking for an excuse to buy some, here it is. I actually built the sink and I have to say that it works like a charm, I use it constantly and the whole process of building it was gratifying. The down side is that I wouldn't say this is the way to go to save time or money. The time and cost estimates provided in the book are not very realistic. For the big projects it would be wise to set aside a weekend or so to complete them. You could probably buy a fiberglass or stainless steel sink on an online auction and spend roughly the same amount of dough. I also built the basic table, which I like very much. Probably the most useful aspect is that you can tailor the designs for your darkroom. If you get a sense of satisfaction from building things and you can't find the right equipment to fit your space then this is the book for you.