We offer film development and scanning as a service to the community. While operating as a full-service lab isn’t our primary mission, providing this option at a suggested cost helps support our classes, workshops, and other programming. All film is processed by hand using Patterson tanks, and scans are made using flatbed scanners and our new Filmomat carrier with SmartConvert. Because of this hands-on approach, turnaround times are typically slower than most commercial labs. If you need expedited service, we’re happy to recommend other local labs. If you’re interested in learning to develop your own film, we’re always glad to help!

Tacoma Photo Center is open Thursday through Sunday from 1:00–8:00 PM.

The darkroom and the self development station hours are 1:00–7:00 PM. To ensure everyone has time to finish their work and for us to close on time, we ask that no new darkroom prints or film development should begin after 7:00 PM.

We follow a pay-what-you-can model. Our goal is to keep the space and our programs accessible and we never want cost to be a barrier to participation.

This model is made possible by the generosity of our supporters and donors, whose contributions help ensure that everyone can take part, regardless of financial circumstance.

If you have questions, need flexibility, or want to talk through options, please feel free to reach out. We’re always happy to help.

We’re always excited to meet folks who want to support Tacoma Photo Center. To get started, please fill out our volunteer application using the Jotform linked below. Submitting the form lets us learn more about your interests and availability, and we’ll follow up as opportunities open up.

Click the link below to apply:

https://form.jotform.com/243447557418162

You’re always welcome to stop by the shop during business hours, email us, or send us a DM on Instagram. We’re a volunteer-run organization and our email isn’t monitored outside of open hours, so we appreciate your patience and will get back to you as soon as we can.

Yes, we do accept physical donations. We just ask that you contact us in advance to schedule a drop-off or delivery. Because we’re unable to accept everything, we appreciate knowing what items you’re planning to donate and their condition ahead of time.

Items we are always happy to accept include:

• Working digital and film cameras (for our free community library and classes)

• Fresh and expired film (35mm, 120, and sheet film)

• Fresh and expired darkroom paper (all sizes and finishes)

• Fresh film development chemistry (C-41, D-76, E-6, ECN-2)

• Darkroom chemistry (B&W and RA-4) and other consumables

• Darkroom accessories and tools (developing tanks, reels, trays, graduates, tongs)

• Jobo or Paterson developing tanks and film reels (plastic or metal)

• Dark bags and changing tents

• Photography and art books

• Archival negative sleeves (35mm, 120, and sheet film)

When in doubt about an item, just reach out!

Not in the same way a traditional photo lab does. Commercial labs often use large printers to quickly produce small prints like 4×6s. While those systems are excellent, they require significant space and aren’t a fit for our shop. That said, our darkroom is always available for making traditional prints from negatives, and we currently offer very limited inkjet printing from scans. We hope to expand our printing options as space and capacity allow.

Most of our classes run during regular open hours over the course of a given week. We keep class sizes small and offer a flexible, drop-in format so participants can attend when it works best for them.

A typical one-week class includes approximately 6–8 hours of instruction. You’re welcome to attend more sessions if you’d like extra time, or fewer if you only need part of the material. We make participation intentionally flexible.

Workshops, on the other hand, follow a more structured schedule with set dates and times due to setup requirements and facilitator availability. If you register for a workshop, please plan to attend. If you need to cancel, we ask that you let us know as early as possible so we can offer the spot to another community member.

Not at all! While we encourage everyone to take a class or workshop, it’s not required. Many people come in with prior photography experience and just need a refresher in the darkroom or digital lab.

Our volunteers are always happy to help orient you to the space and walk through our processes when possible, depending on how busy the center is. We’re also glad to help answer photography related questions, so don’t hesitate to ask.

Despite the name, the Tacoma Photo Center is open to everyone! In addition to hosting life drawing nights and art markets, we love to work with artists of all kinds, and to practice any artistic medium you’re interested in in our space (provided we have the space and tools to help). Our founder’s background is in analog and digital photography, as well as analog and digital film production, which are the most substantial areas we can help. However, our community includes artists of all sorts of mediums, and we’re excited to see anything you’re working on!