As most people in the developed world must have heard by now, I've been enjoying film photography a lot lately. Specifically, I've been shooting expired 110 cartridge film. I am proud of my digital work, but at the same time the past couple years have made me realize I cannot abandon film for digital.

Lately I've been disappointed to see my photos languishing on my hard drive, and I haven't been feeling good about the change in “darkroom” environments, either. The darkroom easily ranked as my favorite place to work in college. I loved it for the solitude, the dark, the running water, the everyday magic of images conjured from silver and paper. Sitting in front of a computer screen offers no such meditative experience.

After giving it some thought and buying an ancient SLR on eBay, I am determined to bring black and white photography back into my life. Some Googling uncovered a public darkroom within walking distance of our house, but a conversation with the folks at the camera shop down the street taught me the place closed down in 2001. Baltimore now has no public darkroom space, which I find sad given all my praises of the city's amenities.

The lack of ready darkroom availability discourages me. However, if I'm going to keep experimenting, I need to shoot film. The tactile nature of the process is integral to continued discovery and critique. Hopefully enough photographers feel the same way that this won't become a lost art in coming years.

So the public darkroom is long gone and I'm not even close to being in school. What to do? Well, I'm going to build a darkroom in my basement. Honestly, it can't be that hard, can it? I already have a promising spare closet down there, and turning the basement into a photo work space was already in the plans. That I could get all the start-up supplies I need for a couple hundred dollars doesn't hurt, either, especially considering the price of negative scanning these days.

The more I think about it, the more a home darkroom seems like both a luxury and the most financially viable option I have to shoot film. I'm excited to see where this goes, and if any of my friends take sudden interest in sharing the space with me. Just because it's a little messier and a little less convenient doesn't mean we need to – or even should – give up the darkroom. Surely, there have to be be some sympathizers out there, and I'm determined to find them in coming months.

Darkroom photo via Kutztown University Fine Arts Department.