accidentally expose film

CMoore · Sep 15, 2016

You guys ever do this.?
Not rewind and open the camera back and see the film sitting there.?
What was the outcome after you developed the negs.?

And, if you are interested in details:
We do not have television, so people like to tell us about all the great stuff we are missing. While visiting my step-daughter and her new baby, her Father Says to me....."Hey Chip... you gotta see this Vice Squad Channel.!"
I was just pushing in the rewind button after the last exposure of 200 ASA B&W film. I look up at the television and there are a bunch of English COPs chasing young English Kids that are speeding through London or Blackpool in their little hot-rods.
I then look back down at my camera, completely lose track of the fact that i have not yet rewound the film, and open the camera back. I was stunned, for a few seconds, to be looking at film.
What could i do.? I closed the back and wound it back in.
Just curious what you guys have experienced. I will develop the negs and see what i get, but just wondering. Did you lose a few frames only, or were they all damaged in one way or another.?
Thanks

BrianShaw · Sep 15, 2016

Bummer. Last time I did that was so long ago I can't recall the results. Sorry for your distraction and in attention. I'll bet you won't do that again. Hope some of your images survive.

shutterfinger · Sep 15, 2016

The last frame will be damaged depending on how bright the room light was. There may be edge damage on the next 2 to 4 turns of the takeup in the camera depending on how bright the room light was. Now if you had been on the TV studio set under those lights 90% of the roll might have been ruined. What was the average exposure reading in the room? 1/15 f 4 or equivalent, little damage to the very end; 1/60 f4 maybe the last two frames.
By not having a TV you're missing a lot of commercials that insult ones intelligence or bore you and an occasional good uncut movie on the premium channels.

CMoore · Sep 15, 2016

The room was reading about 1/60 f/3.5

Kirks518 · Sep 15, 2016

The evils of television.

Gerald C Koch · Sep 15, 2016

Cameras a like guns. It is best to always assume that they are loaded and act accordingly.

Agulliver · Sep 15, 2016

A month ago I could have said that it's been years since I did this...

However....among my collection I have a rather basic "Vivitar Cruise Cam" underwater 35mm point and shoot. I was running some bulk loaded B&W film through it last month on holiday in Cornwall (South West coast of England) and found that the motor is so strong that it pulls the film right out of the cassette at the last exposure. I could only see this by opening the back, and since we are having a scorching summer it was blazing sunlight.

I had no dark room or changing bag to hand, so what I did was wait until night time...sit in the car with a dark duffel bag, with my hands and the camera inside, zipped up as tight as I could and a dark blanket over the top of this. I managed to re attach the film to the spindle and hand wind it back into the cassette for later processing.

The result was 3 ruined frames at the end, a further two mildly fogged but usable...and the rest were perfectly fine.

Generally the film has antihalation layers which will protect the film wound on the take-up spindle in the camera. If exposed to light for only a second, you should be OK apart from the directly exposed frames.

I have attached a couple of samples from this roll -long expired Tri-X from about 1999.

mooseontheloose · Sep 15, 2016

I've done exactly what just happened to you and lost 2 complete frames and had partial fogging on 2 or 3 others. The rest were fine.

benjiboy · Sep 15, 2016

Console yourself Chip with the thought that it could be a lot worse, it could be a wedding.

DWThomas · Sep 15, 2016

Like Agulliver, I popped a bulk loaded roll loose from the spool a year or two back. (It was in my Argus C3 on Argus day.) I didn't realize it had come loose, thought I had rewound it, and went to put another roll in. Opened the back and OOOPS! It was while leaning into the back end of a small SUV, so it didn't get full sun, but it was surely no darkroom. I lost about five frames plus there were some smears along the edges for a few more frames thanks to sprocket holes. It was only a 20 exposure load, but I salvaged enough for the purpose. If it had been some once in a lifetime event, it would have been a seriously bad day (but then I likely would not have been using 30 year old Panatomic-X in a C3!!!)

I have since rethought the way I tape the ends onto the spools! It was a super hot day which I think contributed to the problem.

Truzi · Sep 15, 2016

It's unfortunate that happened, but I'd not be too worried about it. Most of the roll is likely fine.

I had a camera shop "fix" my camera, but they put in the wrong size shaft for the rewind. It would occasionally slip off the spool when rewinding, causing me to think I'd reached the end. (I eventually fixed it myself.)

When this happened, upon seeing the film, I shut the back right away. I've never lost a complete frame - usually just two half-frames, with fogging on the rest of those frames. However, the partial images were identifiable.

The light leaked onto only one other frame at most - but that may be more to do with the design of the camera (you may get more fogged frames depending on your camera's design).

tedr1 · Sep 15, 2016

The section of film that was between the canister and the take-up-spool is toast. Depending on the construction of the take-up-spool there may be fogging of the edges of the film on the take up spool, if the spool has flanges there may be little or no fogging, if the spool is without flanges the fogging of the film edges may spread into the area of the exposed frames.

CMoore · Sep 15, 2016

Interesting to read others experiences.
I did not lose anything award winning or irreplaceable, though i might have fogged some street shots that i liked.
I was more disappointed in myself for making such a blundering error. I guess I AM human.

Did you ever, feverishly look for a Blue Screwdriver.?
Then realize it was right in front of you, but you did not see it because it was actually a Red Screwdriver.?
Amazing what happens when your mind has a preconceived Idea/Notion.

I think what happened was.....what always happens right after you push the rewind button.? You rewind the film. I am not sure if i have ever interrupted that chain before. In my head, in the time it took to look at television, i kind of thought i had already completed the task. When i looked back to the camera, i was thinking the film had been rewound. Kind of an automatic response.
It would seem that i am not exactly a multi-tasker.

elcabezagrande · Sep 15, 2016

I just did that with a Leica M4. I wanted to compare the pressure plate with the M3, and forgot that it had film in it.

canvassy · Sep 15, 2016

I've never done it with a camera, but I have a Watson bulk loader that I got used, and unbeknownst to me it had at least 50 feet of tri-x pan in it. Exposed all of it when I opened the bulk loader.

Dennis S · Sep 15, 2016

canvassy said:
I've never done it with a camera, but I have a Watson bulk loader that I got used, and unbeknownst to me it had at least 50 feet of tri-x pan in it. Exposed all of it when I opened the bulk loader.

That also happened to me but bulk film is so tightly wound the first 5-10 ft was exposed but the last of the big roll was completely useable.

TheRook · Sep 15, 2016

I don't believe I've ever forgotten to rewind. By habit, I rewind immediately after exposing the last frame, even if I choose not to remove the film from camera until later.

However, a few times I have opened a camera mid roll, falsely assuming there was no film in it. As I use several cameras regularly, it is easy to get confused which ones are loaded and which are not. Perhaps keeping a log book is what I should do.

MattKing · Sep 16, 2016

TheRook said:
However, a few times I have opened a camera mid roll, falsely assuming there was no film in it. As I use several cameras regularly, it is easy to get confused which ones are loaded and which are not. Perhaps keeping a log book is what I should do.

I try to use the film box top holder reminder on the back of my cameras (or a piece of painter's tape) to indicate what film I have loaded. When the camera is unloaded, I either reverse the film box top in the holder, or remove the tape, to indicate that the camera is empty.

Arklatexian · Sep 16, 2016

Gerald C Koch said:
Cameras a like guns. It is best to always assume that they are loaded and act accordingly.

Gerald, I have never heard this "rule" applied to photography before but it certainly makes sense. I would also add that when in doubt, take the camera into complete darkness, open the camera and examine it by "feel". Another good reason for photo darkrooms. Just be sure the darkroom doesn't "leak" light. It it does, all of the dark might leak out......Regards!

canvassy · Sep 16, 2016

TheRook said:
However, a few times I have opened a camera mid roll, falsely assuming there was no film in it. As I use several cameras regularly, it is easy to get confused which ones are loaded and which are not. Perhaps keeping a log book is what I should do.

If it's a 35mm camera, a few revolutions on the rewind lever will tell you. If there's film in it, it'll meet resistance, if not it will just spin freely.

TheRook · Sep 16, 2016

canvassy said:
If it's a 35mm camera, a few revolutions on the rewind lever will tell you. If there's film in it, it'll meet resistance, if not it will just spin freely.

With most 35mm cameras, this is certainly true. However, with some of the older 35mm cameras (my 1937 Argus AF, for example), the resistance is nearly the same with or without film. As these older camera models often lack a rewind lock mechanism, they need to be a little stiff to prevent accidental rewinding while handling the camera.

TheRook · Sep 16, 2016

MattKing said:
I try to use the film box top holder reminder on the back of my cameras (or a piece of painter's tape) to indicate what film I have loaded. When the camera is unloaded, I either reverse the film box top in the holder, or remove the tape, to indicate that the camera is empty.

Great idea with the tape. I think I'll affix it onto the camera's bottom plate - visually less intrusive.

kenj8246 · Sep 16, 2016

Here's a 4X5 that I already had in the Paterson tank in the changing bag ready for developing. A brainfart caused me to open the bag before I put the lid on the tank.

Lucky Dog Casa on the mesa at Taos NM. by Kenny Johnson, on Flickr

Kenny

Huss · Sep 16, 2016

MattKing said:
I try to use the film box top holder reminder on the back of my cameras (or a piece of painter's tape) to indicate what film I have loaded. When the camera is unloaded, I either reverse the film box top in the holder, or remove the tape, to indicate that the camera is empty.

I use filmtrackr.com which is handy if you have a lot of cameras..

Huss · Sep 16, 2016

TheRook said:
I don't believe I've ever forgotten to rewind. By habit, I rewind immediately after exposing the last frame, even if I choose not to remove the film from camera until later.

I do the exact same thing. Film finished, rewind there and then even if you are not taking it out. Zero downside.

accidentally expose film

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