Cardinal Film Lab in Allapattah: $10 Rolls and a Darkroom

Cardinal Film Lab develops a roll of 35mm color film with standard scans for $10, one of the lowest prices in Miami, and it does it at 1547 NW 28th St in Allapattah, Monday through Saturday from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sunday until 3:00 PM. The catch is chemistry: Cardinal runs color negative and black-and-white only. For a film lab near me search that just needs C-41 handled well and cheaply, it fits.

Cardinal's about page is two lines long: the lab opened its doors in 2020, signed by Jovanni. That timing says a lot. It started in the year film photography surged again among people who had time at home and old cameras in closets, and it has lasted long enough to sell a five-year anniversary tee in the online shop at $30. The red bird in the name shows up on the merch and around the space.

The location fits the brand. Allapattah is a working neighborhood of warehouses, produce wholesalers and Dominican bakeries just west of Wynwood, and the lab sits in that grid rather than on a gallery strip. Rent is lower, parking is easier, and the shop feels like a workshop. If you came expecting a boutique with lounge seating, you will be disappointed. If you want a lab run by people who print, this is it.

The develop-and-scan listing builds the price from film type, scan size and whether you want prints. A 35mm color roll with standard scans and no prints is $10. Add 4x6 prints and it becomes $24. Hi-res scans on that same 35mm color roll, without prints, are $17, and the top option, a hi-res TIFF set with prints, is $33. Black-and-white and 120 film are on the same menu, so pick your options in the online listing and see the total before dropping off.

The one firm limit is printed in capitals on the product page: no E-6 film at the moment. Slide shooters should take transparencies to a lab that runs E-6 instead of hoping for an exception. Cardinal's FAQ lists exactly four services: C-41 in 35mm and 120, and black-and-white in 35mm and 120. That narrow focus is part of why the price holds at $10 for a basic color roll.

Cardinal is one of the few Miami labs still making optical prints by hand. Hand prints are listed at $45 for a 10 by 12, contact sheets at $20, and a print scan at $8. The darkroom collection also sells Fuji DPII paper in 50-sheet boxes, starting at $65 for 8 by 10. For anyone who has only ever seen their negatives as phone files, a contact sheet is the cheapest way to see a whole roll as a physical object.

Cardinal also runs darkroom classes at $200 a seat. The most recent dates were weekend sessions in August, and the listing shows sold out, so new dates are worth watching on the site and the lab's Instagram. Skip the hand print for snapshots and casual rolls. At $45 it makes sense only for a frame you would frame. Get scans first, choose the best negative, then order the print.

The in-store film list is long for a small lab. 400 Tri-X in 35mm is $10, Ilford HP5 in 35mm is $12, CineStill 400D 35mm is $16, and a Portra 400 pro pack in 35mm is $85. There are Lomography color stocks, Kentmere Pan 100 for budget black-and-white, and Kodak Ektapan in both formats. A disposable camera is $20 if you forgot to bring anything to shoot with.

Buying film where you develop it has a practical upside: the staff can tell you which stocks they see come through clean and which need a gentle push. Ask before buying an expired or experimental roll. There is also a $12 photobooth picture listed in the shop, a small reminder that Cardinal treats photography as something to have fun with, not just a technical service.

Out-of-town shooters can mail rolls in. Place an order on the develop-and-scan page, then ship the film to the lab in any mailer you like. Return shipping at checkout covers sending your negatives back, listed at $6, and you can choose no return if you only want files. Include your name, email and order number with the rolls, and say whether you want the negatives cut or left uncut.

Standard prints are 4x6, with 5x7, 8x10 and 8x12 available. For anything custom, the FAQ points you to the lab phone. If you drop off in person, come on a weekday afternoon rather than Sunday, when the lab closes at 3:00 PM and the window for questions is short. Bring rolls sorted by process so the counter can log them quickly.

Allapattah rewards a slow walk with a roll of black-and-white. The Rubell Museum moved into a former industrial complex in the neighborhood, and the streets around it are lined with low warehouses, painted signage and loading docks that look good in hard Miami sun. Further west, the stretch of NW 17th Avenue known as Little Santo Domingo has bakeries, botanicas and barbershops with bright storefronts.

Use the walk to shoot a fresh roll of Tri-X bought at the counter, then circle back to drop it off before closing. On a weekday you have until 6:00 PM. Do not try to walk to Wynwood in midday heat with a full camera bag. It looks close on the map, but the route crosses wide roads with little shade. Drive or take a rideshare between the two neighborhoods instead.

Cardinal Film Lab, 1547 NW 28th St, Miami, FL 33142. Hours from the official site: Monday to Saturday 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Sunday 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Services: C-41 and black-and-white in 35mm and 120, scans, prints, hand prints and contact sheets. No E-6 at the moment.

Who it suits: budget-minded shooters with color rolls, anyone who wants an optical hand print or contact sheet, and photographers curious about darkroom classes. Who should look elsewhere: slide and cine film shooters. Ask the Karpo APP for a lunch stop on NW 17th Avenue and a route that strings Cardinal together with the Rubell Museum in one afternoon.