When photographer Wayne Large purchased his dream vintage camera at an auction, he never expected to become the keeper of forgotten memories spanning five decades. Inside the iconic Rolleiflex camera he bought from Churchgate Auctions in Leicester, England, Large discovered a roll of expired film that would lead to an extraordinary reunion story involving an unconventional developing process using beer and vitamin C.
The Rolleiflex, described by Large as an "iconic" design that "every photographer wants," came with an unexpected bonus. The vintage camera contained film that Large believes could be 50 years old, dating back to a time when that particular type of film was "only available between the mid-60s and the early-70s." Large, a former regimental photographer with the Army who now works as a documentary photographer focusing on UK subcultures, faced a unique challenge: the film was so old that the standard process for developing it had become obsolete.
Determined to unlock the secrets hidden on the ancient film, Large turned to creative solutions involving household ingredients. After extensive online research, he discovered alternative developing methods that didn't require traditional chemicals. "There was one developer that you could mix up yourself with coffee, and then there was a really great recipe out of beer," Large explained.
The unconventional developing technique Large employed is known as the Beerenol or Beernol process. This method relies on the natural acidity of beer, combined with additional ingredients, to create a solution capable of revealing the latent images on photographic film. Large carefully mixed lager with washing soda and iodized salt, adding vitamin C powder last to prevent what he described as a "foam explosion."
The developing process required patience, as Large had to wait 20 minutes in his home laboratory while the beer-based solution worked its magic on the decades-old film. "I didn't expect anything, and then out came two photos of two gentlemen, and I was just amazed," Large recalled. "That film had sat in that camera from the 70s and never been touched."
The successfully developed photographs revealed two men, captured in what appeared to be a moment from the 1970s. Curious about the identity of the subjects and eager to return the photos to their rightful owners, Large took to social media to share his discovery. He also contacted the auctioneers who had sold him the camera, asking them to reach out to the original seller.
The response was swift and emotional. Within just one hour of his outreach efforts, Large received a phone call that would complete his unexpected journey. The caller was Nisha, who immediately recognized one of the men in the photographs as her father, Shusheel, who had since passed away. The other man in the photo was her uncle, Anil.
Nisha explained that her father and uncle frequently traveled abroad for business purposes, and she believed the photographs may have been taken during one of these professional trips, possibly somewhere in Africa. The camera itself had belonged to her great-uncle, and Nisha shared fond memories of playing with it as a child, never knowing it contained these precious undeveloped images.
"How amazing that you managed to develop the film," Nisha told Large. "I'm so happy it's gone to a new home where it will be looked after." Her uncle Anil, she mentioned, now lives in London.
For Large, the experience of reuniting the family with their forgotten photographs was deeply moving. "I'm the first person to have seen those images," he reflected. "Even the people that took them never saw them. It's a great responsibility with that to get them back to the family." The emotional weight of being the first person to witness these family moments, even before the photographers themselves had seen their work, wasn't lost on Large.
The Rolleiflex cameras, like the one Large purchased, are distinctive vintage instruments featuring two lenses and a viewfinder positioned on top. Unlike modern cameras, photographers using these devices look down into the viewfinder to compose their shots rather than holding the camera up to their eye level.
Large's discovery has inspired broader community involvement through his work with Leicester's Social Gallery, a community interest company dedicated to sharing untold stories and preserving social history for future generations. Large serves on the steering group of this organization, which sees significant potential in his beer-developing technique for uncovering more forgotten memories.
Joe Nixon, director of the Social Gallery, has issued a public appeal for people to search their homes for similar hidden treasures. "If they've got any old, long-lost cameras hidden away in the attic that might have some old films in them, send them in to us," Nixon encouraged. "We'd love to get Wayne or the rest of the team to develop them and see what can be discovered."
Nixon emphasized the historical and emotional value of these forgotten photographs, describing them as time capsules that need to be preserved. "It's a forgotten memory, it's a time capsule, and it's something that needs to be logged and captured and chronicled for future generations to learn from," he explained.
The Social Gallery has ambitious plans for future discoveries, hoping to transform recovered photographs into exhibitions, films, or festivals that can share these rediscovered stories with the broader community. The organization sees each undeveloped roll of film as a potential window into the past, offering glimpses of personal and social history that might otherwise be lost forever.
"There's something incredibly poignant about finding a film that's never been seen before, and then we're the first ones to see them, and then getting the family to identify them," Large observed, capturing the profound nature of his work in recovering these visual memories.
The success of Large's unconventional developing technique and the heartwarming reunion it facilitated demonstrates the power of photography to connect people across time and generations. His story serves as a reminder that forgotten treasures may be hiding in the most unexpected places, waiting for someone with the curiosity, creativity, and dedication to bring them back to light.
The beer and vitamin C developing process that made this reunion possible represents both scientific ingenuity and artistic passion, showing how traditional photographic techniques can be adapted and preserved even as technology advances. Large's work continues to inspire others to explore their own family histories and consider what forgotten memories might be waiting to be discovered in their own homes.
