Located in Brighton's North Laine area, Picture This is an independent Film Lab and Camera Shop devoted to keeping the craft of analogue photography alive. We believe in film as an antidote to transient, over-processed pixels, a chance to savour moments outdoors with friends, to connect the present with both past and future.

When you visit us, you enter a world of film developing. We operate two film processors all day every day - one for C41 colour and the other for black and white.

We offer friendly guidance on everything from film stock to exposure techniques. Step into our shop and browse a curated wall of vintage cameras: iconic instruments built to be handled and enjoyed. Whether you walk out with a camera or simply fresh inspiration, we hope you’ll join us in keeping this beautiful craft thriving.

We scan film using a Noritsu HS-1800 scanner, carefully operated by a trained photographer.

Why the Noritsu HS-1800 is So Good

1. True Optical Scanning (Not DSLR Copying):

The Noritsu scans natively at high resolution, up to 6700px wide for 35mm, with 24 or 48-bit color depth - producing clean, sharp files without digital artifacts.

2. Excellent Color Science:

Unlike DIY or flatbed options, Noritsu machines are built with film-specific profiles and tonal curves, giving natural skin tones and rich but realistic colors.

3. Consistent, Automated Dust Reduction:

With infrared channel support, it can remove dust and scratches (for color negative film) more effectively than many other scanners.

4. Noritsu “Look”:

Many photographers prefer the Noritsu rendering over Frontier or DSLR scans. It has a clean, punchy yet neutral character — not over-sharpened or overly contrasty.

For real world samples - see images stating "NORITSU-KOKI" as the scanner on Flickr.

We print your images using the C-Type process.

These are real photographic prints (colour or black and white) created by exposing light-sensitive paper to a light source, just as in a darkroom, creating a latent image.

The paper is then developed using a series of chemical baths, transforming the latent image into a visible photograph.

Unlike prints created by inkjets, C-type prints present a continuous tone image. This results in smooth gradations and a distinct luminescence, qualities that cannot be achieved by any other process.

We use the wonderful Noritsu QSS-3502+. This machine contains all the chemistry to develop, bleach, fix and wash your prints, and self-calibrates for colour and density at the start each day.