LAB - Frequently Asked Questions

Film LAB
What types of film do you process?
We currently offer C41 colour film processing as well as Black and White in 35mm and 120 Medium formats. We plan to introduce E6 slide / transparency processing very soon. We don't offer ECN-2 vision 3 film at the moment.
Can I order roll of film at the same time as processing?

Yes, you can. Please note that if you order fresh film together with LAB services, we will usually ship everything together once your film has been processed.

Do you offer push / pull process?

We do offer push / pull service for Black & White film processing. Howerver we don't offer push / pull process for colour C-41 development.

Do you process souped film?

Unfortunately, we do not process souped film. Please do not send souped film to us.

Souped film needs to be processed separately by hand and cannot safely go through our processing machines. Residue from the film can contaminate the chemistry and may damage other customers’ films. It can also take our processor out of service while the chemistry is replaced and the machine is cleaned.

Thank you for understanding.

How long is your turnaround?

Our current turnaround times are displayed at the top of our website and are updated regularly. Turnaround begins from the day we receive your film, not from the day the order is placed. Express Service, where available, can be selected at checkout.

Please note that these turnaround times do not apply to XL scans. XL scans are significantly more time-consuming than our standard scans. For larger orders (more than 5 rolls), XL scanning can take up to 14 working days.

Sprocket scans also have a longer turnaround, as each frame must be scanned and adjusted individually by the operator rather than automatically. This process takes around 5 times longer than standard scanning, so the turnaround for sprocket scans can be up to 10 working days.

That said, we generally try to complete all orders as quickly as possible, and in many cases they are finished well before the maximum turnaround time.

Where do I send my film and how should I post it?

Once you place your order, we will email you instructions on how to send your film to us. This includes a link to create your free Royal Mail tracked shipping label. 

The email is usually sent shortly after ordering, although it may take a few hours during evenings or busy periods. Please check your spam or junk folder if you cannot see it.

You can also generate your FREE Royal Mail tracked shipping label here




Once label is created you can either drop your parcel at a Post Office or arrange a Royal Mail collection.

If you prefer to pay for your own postage, you can send your film directly to:

Stuck in Film Lab
Unit 11E
Capital Business Centre
22 Carlton Road
South Croydon
CR2 0BS

I placed a processing / scanning order but haven't received a "Free label" email from you, what now?
If you haven't received an email from us with the "how to post" instructions please feel free get in touch with us either via the online chat or email. However please check your Spam / Junk folder first as it is highly likely there.

You can also generate your FREE Royal Mail tracked shipping label here
Do you offer prints?

Yes, we offer prints in 6x4" size either on Glossy or Lustre papers. You can also add white borders around the photograph or choose "no borders".

Do you send my negatives back?

You can choose to have your negatives returned at checkout by selecting “Return Postage for Negatives / Prints.” If you don’t want your negatives returned, simply choose the appropriate option instead.

Please note that if you order prints but select “I don’t want my negatives / prints back” at checkout, we will need to add the return postage charge to your order after it has been placed. In that case, you will receive a separate email with a secure link to make the additional payment.


If you don't want us to send your film back please let us know and we will destroy your film according to GDPR requirements. 

How much is postage?

UK return postage for negatives and prints is £4.50.

When you place a LAB order, we also provide a free Royal Mail tracked label so you can send your film to us. Once your order is complete, we return your negatives and prints by post if you selected return postage at checkout.

Orders over £50 may qualify for free tracked shipping, depending on the items and services in your basket.

How do you send the digital images?

We send scanned images through FromSmash. Once your scans are ready, you will receive an email with a download link. Please check your spam or junk folder just in case.

Download links are active for 30 days, so please download your files within that period.



We also store scans locally for 6 months. If you contact us within that time, we can resend your link. After 6 months, scans are deleted securely.

What scanners do you use?

We mainly use Noritsu LS-600, Noritsu HS-1800, and Fujifilm Frontier SP3000 scanners.

If you would like your film scanned on a specific scanner, please leave a note in the order notes section at checkout. We will do our best to follow the request where possible.

We also use Nikon Coolscan 9000 scanners for selected XL JPEG, TIFF, and DNG RAW options.

What size are your scans?

Scanning options 35mm (half frame will produce half of the resolution):

Service Resolution in Pixels Size MB USE
Low Resolution JPEG 1512 x 1002 pixels Approx 2mb Quite small for todays standards. For preview only and small size use on the Web / instagram. 6x4 prints with no cropping. We would recommend to start with medium option.
Medium  Resolution JPEG 3024x2005 pixels Approx 7mb Best for Social Media and sharing. All you Instagrams, Tik Toks and regular emails and WhatsApps. Prints can go up to A4.
High  Resolution JPEG Noritsu: 6048 x 4011 pixels

Frontier: 5444 x 3649 pixels
Approx 26mb Great for archiving, cropping & printing larger print sizes over A4.
TIFF (8 bit) Noritsu: 6048 x 4011 pixels

Frontier: 5444 x 3649 pixels
Approx 72mb For people who do a lot of editing work on their  negatives. The files will have more latitude for editing and colour grading. Best for critical work
TIFF (16 bit) Noritsu 6048 x 4011 pixels

Frontier: 5444 x 3649 pixels
Approx 145mb Even larger files to work with. 145mb is no joke, the roll film at these file sizes will be over 5GB. But it is all worth it, as you know, we just can’t get enough quality out if our negatives as we worked hard for it. Best for critical work. 16bit per colour channel. Why do we do this? Because we can!

Scanning options 120 Medium Format:

Service

Resolution in Pixels

Size MB

USE

Low Resolution JPEG

1500×1200 pixels

Approx 1.5mb

Quite small for todays standards. For preview only and small size use on the Web / instagram. 6x4 prints with no cropping. We would recommend to start with medium option.

Medium Resolution JPEG

3000×2400 pixels

Approx 4mb

Best for Social Media and sharing. All you Instagrams, Tik Toks and regular emails and WhatsApps. Prints can go up to A4.

High Resolution JPEG

5000×4000 pixels

Approx 13mb

Great for archiving, cropping & printing larger print sizes over A4.

High Resolution TIFF

5000×4000 pixels

Approx 80mb

Best possible quality achievable with the scanners such as Noritsu HS-1800 & Fujifilm Frontier SP3000. 

Super High Res JPEG

6 x 4.5: 8800 x 6600 pixels

6 x 6: 8800 x 8000 pixels

6 x 7: 11000 x 8800 pixels

6 x 9: 13000 x 8800 pixels

Approx 25mb

For people who want to achieve the best possible quality out of their negatives. Scans are done with a Nikon Coolscan 9000 film scanner at the best possible settings. The images are scanned individually 1 by 1 and will take up to 2 hours to scan the whole roll of film. The JPEG option gives you Large file sizes but not as crazy as TIFF or RAW. Best for critical work and light on your PC/MAC. 

Super High Res TIFF

16bit

6 x 4.5: 8800 x 6600 pixels

6 x 6: 8800 x 8000 pixels

6 x 7: 11000 x 8800 pixels

6 x 9: 13000 x 8800 pixels

6 x 4.5: 350mb

6 x 6: 400mb

6 x 7: 500mb

6 x 9: 700 mb

For people who want to achieve the best possible quality out of their negatives. Scans are done with a Nikon Coolscan 9000 film scanner at the best possible settings. The images are scanned individually 1 by 1 and will take up to 2 hours to scan the whole roll of film. The files will have more latitude for editing and colour grading. Best for critical work. You will receive a 16bit per channel TIFF file.

DNG RAW

Raw Data from the scanner

6 x 4.5: 8800 x 6600 pixels

6 x 6: 8800 x 8000 pixels

6 x 7: 11000 x 8800 pixels

6 x 9: 13000 x 8800 pixels

6 x 4.5: 350mb

6 x 6: 430mb

6 x 7: 550mb

6 x 9: 700mb

For people who want to extract the best possible quality out of their negatives. They will convert and colour grade their photographs themselves. You will receive large 48 bit DNG RAW files which will be unconverted negatives themselves (raw data from the scanner) without the colour conversion. You will need to convert them in to positives yourself either in Adobe Photoshop or other editing software. A lot of users would import these files in to the Lightroom and then use Negative Lab Pro plug-in (or similar) to convert their images to positive and also colour grade. For advanced users only.

Do you offer APS and 110 film developing and scanning?

Yes, we process and scan APS and 110 film. You can place your order through our LAB page by selecting the correct film format and choosing the services you need.

Stuck in Film LAB

What happens if my film is blank?

If your film is blank, we will let you know by email. The film still has to be developed before we can confirm it is blank, but we will refund the scanning cost as store credit to your account.

We are also happy to offer advice where possible, especially if it looks like there may have been a camera, loading, exposure, or processing issue.

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