Changing BagDarkroomSource

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Darkroom Accessories: Changing Bag

This is a little different than most of the projects in this on-line book. It is sewn together rather than screwed, glued, or nailed. Tools
Materials
Construction
Using the Changing bag
Making the bag tent supports
Tools
Materials
Construction
Using the tented changing bag

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Tools

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Materials

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Construction

  1. On one of the sweatshirts, overlap the fabric at the neck hole, and sew together
  2. Sew a zipper across the bottom of the sweatshirt so that you can zip open the bottom
  3. Cut the sleaves off at about half the distance from the shoulder to the opening
  4. Do the same three steps for the other sweatshirt
  5. Put one sweatshirt inside the other, with the zippers opening in opposite directions. Make sure the arms are inside each other too, so at each sleave opening there are two sleaves.
  6. Sew the sleave openings together, with the elastic between the sweatshirts, you still need to be able to put your hand inside the sleave, but the two should act as one sleave. Use the elastic thread here.

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Using the Changing bag

  1. Unzip both of the zippers, put your films and holders or cans inside the bag.
  2. Zip up both zippers.
  3. Insert your arms through the sleaves, and you can now work by touch, in total darkness.

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Making the bag tent supports

After you use this once or twice you'll notice the problem with changing bags. The fabric keeps touching everything, and gets in the way all the time. Here is a solution I came up with, I'm sure I'm not the only one to do this, but I've never seen it before.

It's an unsided box that fits inside the changing bag, made out of pvc pipe, and not glued so it can be assembled and disassembled for transport. (If you do decide to glue it, be sure to do that after it's inside the changing bag, because you might not get it through the opening otherwise)

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Tools

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Materials

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Construction

  1. The hard part here is figuring out how big to make the box. The larger you make the top and bottom, the smaller you have to make the sides. There is only so many cubic feet inside the changing bag. What I finally decided to do was put books inside the bag.
  2. Put the books in, arranging and re-arranging them until you get the shape and size of space that you want
  3. Take out the books and set them up as they were inside the bag
  4. Measure the dimensions to determine the dimensions of your cube
  5. Measure the outside dimensions of the PVC corner fittings, and measure the distance inside the fitting that a piece of PVC pipe will slide. The difference is the amount you have to allow for the corner fittings.
  6. Cut the PVC piping to the desired sizes, 4 pieces on top, 4 on the bottom, probably the same size as the top, and 4 for the sides.
  7. Put the corners onto the side pipes.
  8. Put all the PVC into the changing bag, and assemble the box

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Using the tented changing bag

This is the same as using a regular changing bag, except that you'll have all kinds of room inside the bag now!

Visitor Comments

The comments stated below are not necessarily the opinions of Andy Hughes or DarkroomSource

If you construct this, be sure to test sweatshirt thickness against a light source. I had to use 3 because 2 weren't thick enough. Also, unless you're good at sewing elastic, hire a seamstress for this part or modify the instructions presented. I sewed the three shirts together, then sewed an elastic band unstretched around the OUTSIDE of the three shirt sleaves. Works ok and much less fuss. Otherwise, good plans.
Contributed by   on 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Very insightful. Practical, yet shows a lot of ingenuity.
Contributed by   on 2000-07-06 00:00:00

You might want to consider using other fabrics which are less dusty and more opaque. I think using a couple of polyurethaned black windbreakers might be best.
Contributed by   on 2002-06-15 00:00:00

this is a very well thought out plan, but the cost of a changing bag around where i live (25 dollars) is half that of the materials you have listed. i might just try making one for the fun of it, though.
Contributed by   on 2005-01-25 15:53:46

Changing Bag ----
If all else fails --- get yourself a ball of string ---
Take off your suit coat -- button the front --tie the neck shut -- place all items like film film holders or canera to be worked on inside of suit coat -thwn tie shut botton of coat--- go to the darkest place you can find -- place your arms backwards into the armholes of the jacket and do what you have --- this has save my butt a few times--
Lee
Sauk Rapids, Mn
oldfart062@astound.net
Contributed by   on 2006-02-22 15:26:52

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