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Underdog Film Lab
Preserving your film memories with expert development and scanning in Oakland.
4.4(5 reviews)
Business
$$
Preserving your film memories with expert development and scanning in Oakland.
Underdog Film Lab is a trusted film processing and scanning lab in Oakland, CA, specializing in 35mm and medium format film. We serve photographers of all levels with fast turnaround, high-quality development, and friendly, knowledgeable staff. While we strive for perfection, we're committed to addressing any issues promptly to ensure your film memories are preserved beautifully. Join our community of film enthusiasts for reliable service and expert advice.
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Professional development for 35mm and medium format film with careful handling to minimize dust and scratches.
Digital scanning services using Noritsu HS-1800 scanners for crisp, detailed images, with options for rescanning if needed.
Quality prints from your film negatives or digital files, available in various sizes and finishes.
Selection of film stocks for purchase, catering to both amateur and professional photographers.
Friendly guidance and tips from experienced staff to help improve your film photography skills.
It pains me to make this review, as I've been using Underdog for almost 5 years now. For over a year now, however, their scanning quality has gone down substantially. Please see the attached scans. Many of my scans come back with digital artifacts, horizontal lines, vertical lines, and/or copious amounts of dust. Imperfections and dust are to be expected with film, but this is to the point where it is distracting—and even ruins the photos. Additionally: some of the exposures are not cropped properly, and I often times see black bars on the edges of the scan (and sometimes even the previous exposure). This has happened between multiple 35mm cameras, from completely different manufacturers (Canon, Olympus and Nikon—fully manual and automatic). I don't know if there is something wrong with one of their Noritsu HS-1800 scanners, but It is extremely frustrating to have to email Underdog—every time I send film in—to rescan one or more rolls of film. Sometimes, there is damage on the positive/ negative itself. Like with a roll of Velvia a few months ago. The first few exposures had a horizontal line across them, even after Underdog scanned the roll twice. None of my other rolls (shot on the same camera) had damage on the first few exposures. One of my friends just got his roll of film back a few days ago—and it had so many scuffs on the roll, that my friend considered most of the photos to be ruined (I'll ask them for pictures, and attach them when I have them). A different professional film photographer friend stopped using Underdog a year or two ago, when a roll arrived back scraped up (I'll also ask for pictures, and attach them when I have them). Otherwise, I do appreciate how quickly and courteous Underdogs customer service is. I also haven't had any scanner-related issues with my medium format photos, strangely enough. When everything went well, the scans are the best I have ever seen, out of any lab I have ever used... But that—unfortunately—hasn't been the case for me, for the past year. It's honestly a shame. For the time being: I'm going to either start scanning my positives/negatives at home, or find a different lab. I hope that the scanning issues are resolved; and whatever is causing damage to my friends and I's rolls, is fixed.
Recently switched to getting my film developed here after having issues at a couple other film labs in the area (scratches, dust, lost rolls). The dev quality at Underdog is great! No scratches/dust/spots, film isn't as curly which makes scanning at home easier, fast turnaround, and friendly staff. Would recommend.
I've just recently gotten back into shooting film and Underdog has been a huge inspiration. The staff is amazing and provides great advice. They've gently steered me away from stupid stuff i've wanted to try and given me tons of suggestions to improve my photos. They're an indispensable institution in the community and I'm a loyal customer.
staff is always super friendly and helpful! the turn around time is also fast! here’s a few photos from my last roll
A to go place if you are looking to develop pictures from Vintage camera film rolls. They seem to specialize in film development and hanlding all sort of conventional roll cameras. They guy at the front desk was friendly and the price is affordable. I like their service.
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