What went wrong?
My prints are turning yellow or stained
Yellow or brown stains appear on prints, sometimes weeks or months later.
Check this first
Is it fibre or RC paper, and how long were the prints fixed and washed?
Likely causes
- 1.
Incomplete fixing
Common- How to tell
- Yellowing that develops over time, often uneven.
- Fix
- Use fresh fixer for the full time, and consider a second fixing bath for fibre paper.
- 2.
Inadequate washing
Common- How to tell
- Most common with fibre paper, which holds on to fixer.
- Fix
- Use a washing aid (hypo clear) and wash fibre prints for the full recommended time.
Avoiding it next time
- Follow archival fixing and washing for fibre prints.
Go deeper
Other darkroom prints problems
Last checked October 2026. Seen something different? Tell us.