A quality-led film lab
Professional film developing, scanning and printing built around quality as well as turnaround.
Noritsu HS-1800 scans
Our scan workflow is built around a professional Noritsu HS-1800 setup, chosen because scan quality matters. That means professional lab scans with the colour, tone and consistency people associate with a proper Noritsu workflow.
True 16-bit scan options
For photographers who care about tonal control, grading latitude and preserving the full look of the negative.
C-type wet-lab printing
Our prints are made on photographic paper in a true wet-lab C-type process, not by inkjet or dry-lab printing. That means a print workflow built around photographic quality, with daily colour control and proper lab output rather than convenience-led print systems.
Noritsu V30 black & white processing
Black and white deserves its own attention. Our Noritsu V30-based workflow brings machine-controlled consistency and accuracy to black and white film processing, with the rapid turnaround that makes one-hour black and white possible.
Noritsu is part of the
visual language
of a whole generation
of film photography.
If you’ve spent time browsing film photos online, there’s a good chance a lot of what you’ve loved, the smooth tones, the gentle colour, the classic lab-scan feel, was defined by a Noritsu. In that sense, Noritsu isn’t just a scanner brand, it’s part of the visual language of a whole generation of film photography.
We use an 'HS-1800', the last and greatest Noritsu scanner, for unbeatable images. This is the only lab scanner that can output real 16-bit files - essential to any professional work flow.
Image Resolution Guide
Approximate image dimensions and typical file sizes for our scan options. TIFF file sizes are approximate and may vary depending on image content.
What resolution are your images from 35mm film?
Choose the scan type that suits how you want to use your images.
Medium JPEG
A great everyday option for sharing online and general use. Medium scans are typically sufficient for prints up to 12 × 8 inches, depending on the image and how closely you view the print.
High JPEG
Extracts the maximum detail from 35mm film, with smoother tonal transitions and finer texture.
Medium 16-bit TIFF
The same pixel dimensions as Medium JPEG, but saved as a 16-bit TIFF for greater editing flexibility.
High 16-bit TIFF
Our highest-resolution TIFF option for 35mm, combining maximum detail with a 16-bit workflow.
35mm notes
- Medium JPEG is usually the best value everyday option.
- High JPEG is ideal when you want the fullest detail from 35mm film.
- * 16-bit TIFF keeps the same scan resolution as the matching JPEG size, but in a higher-bit-depth file format for editing and archiving.
What resolution are your images from 120 film?
Dimensions below are based on a 6 × 7 negative. Other 120 image sizes would be proportionally larger or smaller.
Medium JPEG
Ideal for web use and everyday sharing. Medium scans are typically sufficient for prints up to 12 × 10 inches.
High JPEG
Capture the full look of medium format with excellent detail and smooth tonal transitions.
Medium 16-bit TIFF
The same pixel dimensions as Medium JPEG, but saved as a 16-bit TIFF for greater editing flexibility.
High 16-bit TIFF
Our highest-resolution TIFF option for 120 film, retaining excellent detail with a 16-bit workflow.
120 notes
- These dimensions are based on 6 × 7 negatives.
- Other 120 formats such as 6 × 4.5, 6 × 6, 6 × 8 or 6 × 9 will be proportionally smaller or larger.
- * 16-bit TIFF keeps the same scan resolution as the matching JPEG size, but in a higher-bit-depth file format for editing and archiving.
16 Bit TIFF Scans
Colour (why 16-bit matters)
A true 16-bit-per-channel TIFF preserves vastly more discrete tonal and colour values than an 8-bit TIFF or JPEG file.
- A standard JPEG or an 8-Bit TIFF is 8-bit per channel → 256 levels per channel.
- A 16-bit TIFF is 16-bit per channel → 65,536 levels per channel.
That extra precision matters when you do real colour work: setting neutrals, refining skin tones, balancing highlights vs shadows, or making subtle HSL/curve adjustments.
In an 8-bit workflow the “steps” between colour/tonal values are much larger, so heavier edits can introduce banding, posterisation, or colour shifts. In 16-bit, the same edits remain smooth because you’re manipulating a set of colour and density values that contain 256 x more information.
Black & white (shadow / midtone control)
For black & white, the key benefit of 16-bit is tonal separation—especially in the low end. When you lift shadows, shape midtones with curves, dodge/burn, or push local contrast, 8-bit files can break apart: blocked shadows, harsh transitions, banding, and “muddy” tonal areas.
A 16-bit TIFF won’t invent detail that isn’t on the negative, but it preserves far more of the scanner’s captured tonal information, so deep tones can be opened up more cleanly—often closer to the feel of working a real negative in the darkroom.
Archival (master files vs deliverables)
A 16-bit TIFF is best thought of as an archival master. It’s the version you keep if you want maximum flexibility for future printing, re-grading, or different looks as your taste/software changes. JPEG is an excellent delivery format for most people, but it’s already tone-mapped and compressed, and it gives you less margin for major reinterpretation later. Keeping a 16-bit master is the digital equivalent of keeping the negative: it’s the file you return to when you want the most faithful and flexible starting point.
Noritsu HS-1800 vs other scanners (why “TIFF” is not always the same)
Many labs offer “TIFF” simply as an 8-bit, uncompressed alternative to JPEG. That can be useful (it avoids JPEG compression artefacts), but it’s not the same as a true high-bit workflow—editing headroom is still limited by 8-bit precision.
With the Noritsu HS-1800 workflow, the advantage is larger: we can output true 16-bit TIFF files, retaining far more tonal and colour precision. In other words, on many systems TIFF mainly reduces compression artefacts; on a true 16-bit Noritsu workflow the TIFF option is about substantially greater tonal/colour latitude for serious grading and printing.
Why it matters (film look = colour + tone)
Film photography is defined by colour rendition and tonal behaviour—how a stock handles highlights, how shadows roll off, how midtones separate, how skin looks, how colour layers interact under different light.
Those qualities aren’t just “resolution”; they’re about how tones are mapped and how colour is held together. A true 16-bit workflow preserves that nuance so you can refine highlight/midtone/shadow relationships and colour balance without the file collapsing. If you care about the exact character of a film stock, 16-bit TIFF is the format that best preserves the negative’s subtlety for interpretation, grading, and printmaking.