Lakeside Darkroom

10/06/2026

Hello everyone again,

We wanted to show you the new memberships, which remain super competitive for London prices. With the cost of just two sessions in other darkrooms, you get unlimited time in our space.

We don't want to compete with other darkrooms. What we want is for people with fewer resources to have access to an analogue photographic space, so they can sustain their analogue creative work during a bridging period – allowing them to practise and improve their craft at an affordable price.

We want to be that space in time where experimentation, tests, and all the mistakes are included and celebrated as a time-space of creative growth. And where that time-space is not a financial burden, but instead a time of creative freedom, opening up horizons and new paths.

To have fun, debate, share resources and ideas, be a launchpad – where we can generate synergies and collaborations.

07/06/2026

So happy we made it.
Yesterday was a testing day.
Check the workflow, the enlargers, lights, everything.....WORKED!!

And we celebrated
Celebrations are needed
To give ourselves the care and gentleness and acknowledge, celebrate, embrace , lift that we made it happen!!

04/06/2026

02/06/2026

We have the pleasure
of introducing the best
membership to feel confident
and enjoy analogue photography
with no pressure and total freedom
in East London.
Where your voice,
your experience,
and your ideas matter.
Where the horizon is wide
open to any creative form,
and the only limit is your imagination.
JOIN US!

69 is the price of this membership.
It includes unlimited
black and white printing time,
so you can work on your prints
 in a relaxed way without
 that feeling of losing money
 by the minute.
You'll also have access
to our post-production area –
a space to select, look at,
and reevaluate your work,
and to share it (if you want)
with others.
We also have equipment
we can share, workshops,
 film and documentary screenings,
 talks, and other activities to make
your creative photographic journey
more enjoyable and collaborative
(if you want).
We're proposing
a shared space
where you can
create synergies,
with no pressure.

28/05/2026

Part 1 - What makes you feel confident?

22/05/2026

We don't have customers.
We have practitioners. Members. Humans with film and a shared love for the slow creative process.

So we wrote this manifesto.
Twenty lines. One heart. The same intention.

This is what Musings Darkroom is becoming.
A coop. A community. A place where we support each other, share responsibility (the nice kind), and leave productivity and competition at the door.

Swipe through. Read slowly.
And if it speaks to you – you're already part of it.

Welcome to Musings Darkroom.

17/05/2026

Help Musings Darkroom Move to West Ham

Why we're moving
To be closer to you – so we can support your creativity better. West Ham is that new home.

What we need money for

Paint & primer (members are volunteering to paint – we just need materials)

A van + one mover for all our gear (enlargers, benches, trays, cupboards, everything)

How you can help
Any amount. Every pound gets us closer to opening in West Ham.

A thank you
Follow us on Instagram, like our stories, and share every post about the move & this GoFundMe – and you'll get 6 months of free membership when we launch.

What this means
You're not just funding a move. You're helping build a warmer, closer space for your creativity.

With love,
Musings Darkroom (formerly Lakeside – same heart, new home)

16/05/2026

A darkroom doesn’t have to feel dark.
It can be luminous with safety, lit by care and trust.

Creative spaces are sacred.

Luminous and safe for everybody.

Making a safe space literally, but also emotionally and professionally.
Where everybody feels supported, understood, and safe.

Radical gentleness and openness.
Creative spaces are sacred and protected — including professional respect and emotional responsibility.

Give and receive.

🧡 Radical gentleness.
🧡 Openness without performance.
🧡 Emotional responsibility + professional respect.

12/05/2026

We have some news. And it comes with a lot of heart.

We are moving from Thamesmead to West Ham.
And we are changing our name.
Lakeside Darkroom becomes Musings Darkroom.

But this is not just a new postcode or a new sign on the door.
This is us levelling up – not in a loud way, but in a deep and quiet way.

We are building something different. A different kind of darkroom.

A place where radical tenderness is real. Where we hold space for each other and for the creative process with gentle hands and open hearts.

A place where there is radical responsible openness – honest, caring, aware of each other's journeys, and never careless.

A place where slow pace is not a weakness but a gift. Where you can breathe, take your time, and enjoy the creative journey without rush. No productivity pressure. No competition. No comparison.

Just photography. Just process. Just you.

And alongside all of that, a space that is shared, mutual, encouraging, and supportive. Where we grow together, not against each other.

This is what Musings Darkroom is becoming.
And we would love for you to be part of it.

Same love for film. Same care for your negatives.
Just a new home – and a much deeper intention.

See you soon in West Ham. 🖤
Bring your curiosity, your slowness, and your beautiful self.