Our Turnaround Times

At Proper Photography Kernow we know how important it is to get your film processed quickly and with care. That’s why we offer a clear, reliable turnaround for both colour (C41) and black & white film whether you’re dropping it into the lab in person or posting it to us from anywhere in the UK.

Colour (C41) Film

In the lab (walk-in customers)

If you bring your colour film to us before 3:00pm, we’ll have it developed and scanned the very same day. Your scans are usually emailed to you around 5:00pm, ready to view, share, or print. If you’d also like prints, we can usually have them ready for you that same evening, or the following day depending on the volume of film being processed that day in the lab.

By post (UK-wide)

When your film arrives at our lab by post, we treat it with the same priority as our in-store customers. All colour rolls are developed and scanned on the same day they arrive, with scans sent straight to your inbox. If you’ve ordered prints, these are packed up carefully and returned to you via Royal Mail Next Day service, usually arriving back with you within

2–3 days of processing.

Black & White Film

In the lab (walk-in customers)

Our black & white processing is scheduled on a weekly basis to ensure consistency and quality. All B&W film is developed on Wednesday evenings, once the lab closes for the day. We then scan your negatives on Thursday, with your images sent to your email inbox that same afternoon, usually around 5:00pm. If you’ve ordered prints, these are either ready on Thursday evening or the following day for collection, depending on the workload in the lab.

By post (UK-wide)

Just like in-store customers, your B&W rolls join our Wednesday night processing batch. They are scanned on Thursday, and your scans are emailed to you that same day. If you’ve ordered prints, they are dispatched the following day using Royal Mail Next Day, with delivery to your address typically taking 2–3 days after processing.

Our Equipment Professional Standards for Every Roll

At Proper Photography Kernow, we believe your memories deserve the same care and attention as those handled by the world’s top professional photo labs. That’s why we continually invest in industry-leading equipment to ensure every step of the process from developing, to scanning, to printing is carried out to the highest standard.

Film Developing

For colour film, we use our Noritsu T15 and Noritsu V30 processors. These machines are trusted worldwide for their consistency, reliability, and precise chemical control, giving beautifully clean negatives every time.For black & white film, we rely on Jobo professional developing systems. These are widely recognised as the gold standard for traditional B&W processing, ensuring rich tones, excellent detail, and a finish that honours the timeless qualities of monochrome photography.

Film Scanning

Once developed, your negatives are digitised using our professional commercial Noritsu LS-600 and Noritsu HS-1800 film scanners. These scanners are the same models used by many of the best-known labs around the world, capable of extracting incredible detail, dynamic range, and colour accuracy. Whether you’re a professional photographer preparing images for exhibition, or an enthusiast wanting to preserve precious memories, these scanners ensure your film is represented exactly as it was shot.

We just wanted to make everyone aware that due to limited storage space in the lab, we can only hold onto negatives for a maximum of 4 months from the date they’re processed. We always do our best to keep everything safe and organised, but we’re starting to run out of room and simply can’t store older work any longer.

If you’ve had film developed with us, please make sure you collect your negatives within that 4 month window. After this time, any uncollected negatives will be securely disposed of. We don’t like having to do this, but with the volume of film coming through the lab it’s something we have to stay on top of.

If you’ve requested your negatives back and also ordered prints, we usually aim to send everything out the same day your order is completed, or the next working day. Where possible, your negatives will be returned in the original film pots, as this helps reduce waste and is a more environmentally friendly way of reusing them. But you can request them to be cut & sleeved in to 6’s on check out

We stock a wide range of film and digital cameras, all fully checked, tested, and ready to use.If you’re not happy with your purchase, you can return the camera within 14 days. The item must be returned in the same condition as it was sold.If a fault develops within the 14-day period, the camera can be returned, provided it has not been misused and remains in the same condition as when it left the shop.Unfortunately, returns and refunds cannot be accepted if the camera shows signs of misuse or damage after purchase.

After 14 days, we are unable to accept returns or offer refunds.

Why do my scans show a low DPI under 100?

Noritsu scanners work using pixel dimensions and scan resolution rather than traditional DPI values. Because of this, the DPI shown on some devices or software can appear low, even though the actual scan quality is very high.

For example, our Medium scans are equivalent to around 2400 DPI in terms of detail and print quality.

Different software can also display DPI differently. We’ve found that when scans are opened in Epson professional software, the DPI often shows much higher. DPI can also automatically change depending on the print size being selected.

The most important thing to look at is the pixel resolution and image quality, not the DPI number shown in file properties.