Darkroom Setup Ideas for a Closet or Tiny Bathroom

You’re standing in a closet that smells like mothballs and old shoes, and you’re about to pull off a darkroom setup in a space smaller than your shower. I did exactly that a year ago, and it worked. Not perfectly, but well enough to print a dozen 8x10s that made me forget the money I didn’t have for a dedicated room. Here’s the thing: a darkroom setup only needs three things, darkness, a way to handle paper safely, and a surface that survives chemistry. This is not the setup you show off on Instagram, it’s the setup you actually use.