One of life's most magical moments and fascinating moments is watching an image you created gradually begin to appear in the developing tray of you own home darkroom. The feelings of fun, excitement and creativity are hard to equal.

It is only by making your own prints that you can gain full control of the process of making a photo your own. You decide what areas to include or leave out. You decide what should be lighter and what should be darker. The final print is YOUR picture! Home printing is a particularly important step in the visual development of young children.

Yet it is all surprisingly simple to set-up. You don't need a special room in the house and the equipment and materials represent a modest outlay. And learning the basic steps of the process is an easy matter of following a few printed instructions.

Your photo store will be able to help you select the essential materials you need: an enlarger, a few chemicals, a thermometer and a tray or tank for your processing solutions.

The equipment for a basic black and white darkroom set up would cost around $300. If you buy traded in equipment, your costs will be even less.

As for an actual darkroom, every house or flat has one. All you have to do is wait for the sun to set!

Whether you choose to work in colour or black and white, no one should pass through life without experiencing the creative thrill of taking total control over producing their own photos.

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