Film’s resurgence has been one of the more heartening stories in photography over the past few years, but for anyone picking up a film camera today the practical sticking point is the same one that has dogged the format since the labs started closing: where do you actually get your rolls developed? AgfaPhoto Print reckons it has an answer, launching a new UK-wide film development, scanning and printing service aimed squarely at the growing band of analogue enthusiasts.

The pitch is refreshingly simple. You post your film in from anywhere in the UK and get your developed images back within four to seven working days, with free shipping. The service handles 24 or 36-exposure rolls, whether from a reloadable camera or a single-use disposable, in colour or black and white, with digitisation starting at £13.21 (returning your negatives costs a little more in shipping). Scanning and printing packages start at £26.42.

It’s worth being clear about what this is: a mail-in, digitisation-first service rather than a local lab. For film shooters outside the big cities — where a decent lab can mean a lengthy drive or a trip that simply isn’t practical — that’s precisely the gap being filled, and doing it by post at these prices is a genuinely useful proposition. Purists who want a hands-on relationship with their lab, or same-day turnaround, will still prefer their local where they’re lucky enough to have one, and it’s worth noting that getting your negatives back rather than just scans carries an extra cost.

AgfaPhoto Print frames the launch around the wider shift back towards physical images — the idea that after years of photos languishing unseen in phone galleries, people increasingly want prints they can keep, gift or hang. “This new service reflects our commitment to making analogue photography more accessible to everyone,” said Julien Lelarge, Marketing Director, pointing to the need for an easy, affordable option “without relying on labs that have become increasingly rare outside major cities.”

To tempt people in, there’s an introductory deal running for the first month: 50% off your first film development order with any purchase of an AgfaPhoto or Kodak film product, be that a film camera, a disposable or a few rolls of stock. The service is operated by GT Company, the licensee behind AgfaPhoto and Kodak-branded photographic products, which has been expanding steadily across Europe.

For a format that thrives on anticipation — the wait, the reveal, the small thrill of seeing how a frame actually turned out — a reliable, affordable postal lab is exactly the kind of infrastructure that keeps film shooting viable for a new audience. We’ll be interested to see how the scan quality and turnaround hold up in practice.

For more details check out https://www.agfaphoto-gtc.com/en/

AgfaPhoto Print: Service details

AgfaPhoto Print: Price and availability