#caffenol

So several months ago, Hello Fresh sent us a bunch of free samples of this Ryze "mushroom coffee", which is instant coffee with a bunch of powdered mushrooms in it. Nik and I aren't coffee drinkers, but Holly pronounced it nominally drinkable. I immediately wanted to develop film with it, but I didn't think we had enough to do so.

Then several months passed and I experimented a lot with Caffenol. It turns out I had more than enough of the mushroom coffee to develop a roll! I picked the "Rich & Robust" flavor because it had more caffeine. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it in fact seemed to create a more active developer than regular instant coffee; the film base was quite dark, and the negatives were strong and contrasty. I suspect the mushrooms have higher concentrations of phenols than the coffee beans? I'll transcribe the full ingredients list below my usual camera & film stats for the curious. I'm quite pleased with the results!

Camera: Pentax MX Lens: Magnicon Auto Zoom Macro 28-200mm f/3.8-5.6 (kinda difficult to focus, it turns out!) Film: Ilford HP5+ (bulk-rolled) Stand developed in Caffenol-CL (Ryze Mushroom Coffee "Rich & Robust"), 70min @ room temperature Digitized with Sony A7CII, 7artisans 60mm macro lens, Cinestill CS-Lite, and 3D printed film holder

Mushroom coffee ingredients: instant coffee, ryze super6 mushroom blend (cordyceps, reishi, king trumpet, shiitake, turkey tail, lion's mane), prebiotic blend (acacia fiber, inulin fiber, tapioca fiber).

film developed in coffee and washing soda. before and after editing.

Untitled Large Format Still Life with Botanicals (Dandelions) - analog photograph - paper negatives - 5 second exposures +/-, hand-built cardboard box camera, wollensak 127mm enlarger lens, caffenol developer, digital colorization - robert matejcek -2025

"A weed is but an unloved flower." - Ella Wheeler Wilcox