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How a Glasgow darkroom shares four enlargers between 90 members
A volunteer-run darkroom in Glasgow swapped its whiteboard for bookable enlargers and opened up to newcomers.
One of our smallest customers is also one of our favourites: a community darkroom in Glasgow with four enlarger stations, a film processing corner and around 90 members.
The darkroom is volunteer-run and open in the evenings and at weekends. Before Tidewell, members booked enlargers by writing their names on a whiteboard by the door, which meant you had to travel in just to find out the room was full.
How they use Tidewell
- Each enlarger is bookable in two-hour blocks, with a maximum of two blocks per member per week
- New members complete a chemistry safety induction before they can book
- Chemistry is mixed on a volunteer rota, and the app reminds whoever is on duty
The weekly limit was their idea, not ours. It stopped a handful of regulars from booking every Saturday and made the space feel open to newcomers again. Membership grew by about a third within six months.
They also told us what they missed from the whiteboard: seeing who else would be in the room. We're now testing an optional "who's in tonight" view for venues that want it.