darkroom

American  

[dahrk-room, -room] / ˈdɑrkˌrum, -ˌrʊm /

noun

Photography.

1. a room in which film or the like is made, handled, or developed and from which the actinic rays of light are excluded.

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darkroom British  

/ ˈdɑːkˌruːm, -ˌrʊm /

noun

1. a room in which photographs are processed in darkness or safe light

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Etymology

Origin of darkroom

First recorded in 1835–45; dark + room

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Explanation

A darkroom is the room a film photographer uses to develop photographs. A typical darkroom is equipped with developing chemicals, an enlarger, and a red-tinted safelight that doesn't expose black-and-white film. There are so many options for photography these days that using a darkroom is less and less common — digital and Polaroid-style, instant photos don't require developing. Most darkrooms are kept by photographers who work with black-and-white film. In the darkroom, the enlarger projects an image from a negative onto photographic paper, which is then immersed in a developer chemical wash and a fixer wash, and hung to dry. This results in a finished product, a photograph.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

darkroom

Baer was fascinated by the human silhouette, and his detailed darkroom notes show the lengths he went to achieve the effects of light and shadow.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

He particularly appreciated his crewmate McDiarmid, who liked to play her saxophone in the ship’s theater, right next to his darkroom.

From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2025

Chemical Unbalance uses the chemistry of the darkroom and the menopausal body as a way of exploring the changes occurring, without and within.

From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2024

Buell implemented the transition from a chemical darkroom where film was developed to digital transmission and digital news cameras.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 30, 2024

Izzy, meanwhile, was at Mia’s in the darkroom, watching her pull a new print from the developer and hang it to dry.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

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