The DarkroomReviews of thedarkroom.com

I thought Darkroom sounded like a higher quality way to get my film developed into pictures than CVS. The truth is that it the cost is insane and the results substandard. I bought two of their disposable cameras, figuring they would get better results with their own lab. The cameras were fine. All said and done, developing two rolls of film for a single set of prints cost me 85 dollars, over 110 if you include the price of the cameras. The results were faded, washed out, even the pictures taken in excellent outdoor light. All and all kinda just a hipstery scam. The turnaround time to process was fast, at least. Never again.

Awful!! Do not use.

The photo quality in Darkroom is abysmal when zoom. I reached out to customer support twice regarding this issue and was completely ignored—not a single response. This is far from a professional app; it’s total garbage and a complete waste of money. Avoid it.

Hello! My name is Nathan Hoover! I have used this lab for over 8 years! They have given me great results in the past! However, after my experience in January 2025 and learning more about them, I can no longer recommend you send your precious film memories to this lab! Here are some reasons why: 1. The website clearly advertises themselves as a "traditional dip and dunk film lab." However, I learned that they actually use a Noritsu mini-lab processor for 35mm color film. While they do use dip and dunk machines for black and white film and 120 film, stating that all film gets this premium, roller-free process is very misleading for standard 35mm color shooters. 2. All of the 35mm color images that I got had a disgusting, unnatural purplish hue that did not match the film stock's expected profile. If you look at their film index for film stocks like Kodak Gold 200, Kodak Colorplus 200, Kodak UltraMax 400, etc., you will get an idea of what the film stock should actually look like. When I brought up the possibility of exhausted chemistry, customer service dismissed the concern, stating that their chemistry goes through a replenishing process and rarely goes bad. Instead, they took to blame on my cameras and the films. I have also seen several recent posts from other photographers on Instagram showing this exact same purple color shift from this lab. 3. This year, the lab raised their prices to $14 a roll. I get that film labs have to increase their prices in this economy, but $14 a roll is on the higher end of the spectrum for film developing. When I asked a polite question regarding the increase, they completely dodged the question and told me that they are "still one of the most cost-competitive labs out there." If you look at other labs like Reformed Film Lab and Brooktree Film Lab, they only charge $12 a roll for developing and scanning. I also contacted customer service asking for a full refund of the order, but then they simply told me that they "are not seeing major issues." 4. They heavily promote being the "USA's #1 mail-in film lab," and even have a "voted best mail-in film lab" emblem on their website, but it's worth noting that this specific award was given to them back in 2012. 5. After my horrible experience, I decided to look into the company for some deep digging and found publlic discussion online from an alleged former employee describing unmaintained equipment and a workplace culture of blaming customers for poorly processed orders to avoid issuing compensation. Based on the lack of quality control and the deflection that I received from customer service, this unfortunately aligns completely with my experience. At $14 a roll, you would expect accountability and transparency when issues arise. However, since the lab was dismissive of the obvious quality control failures, I can no longer recommend TheDarkroom Lab for color 35mm film. If you want better quality images and a lab that actually cares about your film, one lab that I would recommend is Reformed Film Lab. Their images are very stunning compared to TheDarkroom Lab.

I sent in an old disposable camera to be developed. When I got the photos back I couldn't believe the quality of the photo paper, it was super thin and all the photos were warped. For $35 the quality should have been much better than that. I will use Walgreens or CVS next time, I've never gotten cheap photos developed there before.

Good service, responds quickly. Negatives return well packaged and secure. Scans are well done. I have started developing my own 35mm and 120 film but I'll continue using The Darkroom for 110 film.

super slow, takes for ever to get pictures. stay away

Very cordial staff via email. Very easy to use website ordering. Costs just under double what you'd pay at a drug store, however the turn around time is faster AND this wonderful company gives you the negatives instead of throwing them out like drug stores do!!! Also, there was only a day and a half turn around time from when they received my water proof disposable camera until they shipped my completed photos!!!! Cannot WAIT to see them. Took the pics at a dolphin encounter. SO filled with anticipation...will post a review for the photo quality and packaging once I receive them. Bonus: they provide free tracking with outgoing shipments!