Bare negatives back from the lab?

runswithsizzers

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I had my local brick & morter camera store process a roll of Ektar this week. When I opened the envelope I was surprised to see the bare negatives had just been dropped in one of those white paper envelopes like I usually see for prints. In the past, my negatives were always in some kind of protective sleeve.

Is this now a standard practice?

I have not had a close look yet to see if dust and scratches are going to more of a problem, but it seems to me the negatives should be better protected?
 

Sirius Glass

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No, I have never experienced that nor have I heard of it. I would talk the the store owner before going further.
 

cmacd123

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some of the big mass labs used to do this, or stick all the negatives in a special envelope with a form to order reprints, (and a warning to remove negatives before writing on envelope) tradition probably goes back to roll film cameras with 8 shots per roll.
 

MattKing

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That is how negatives used to come back from Kodak colour print processing labs in Canada. Although there was usually a single cardboard sleeve (with openings on three sides) holding the negatives together, inside the envelope.
I also remember seeing the negatives in a single glassine envelope bag inside an outer envelope.
And I remember encountering lab envelopes with a single pouch at the front, where the negatives were held, while the prints were in the larger back section of the negative.
 

BradS

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have not seen it in a long time but it used to be common for the negatives to be cut in strips and all of the strips placed into a glassine envelope. Sometimes they'd be tucked into their own special flap in a larger envelop which contained the prints.
 

summicron1

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be glad you got them back at all. Walgren's and others -- walmart -- just scan the negs and trash them.

You want the negs back better find a lab that does so.
 

foc

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Sounds like the lab is trying to save on operating costs a little by not sleeving the negs.
Maybe in future ask any lab you deal with if they sleeve the negs before you give them the film for processing.

Having said that, colour negatives are fairly sturdy and won't get damaged unless abused or very badly handled.
Negatives are tougher than we often think.
 

MattKing

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I'd rather deal with a lab that handles negatives carefully and returns them un-sleeved than a lab that is careless with negatives but returns them sleeved.
I actually prefer to have my negatives/transparencies returned uncut and in one continuous sleeve.
 

radiant

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Kamerastore.com lab just rolls the film uncut into a minigrip bag. They also offer sleeving as extra cost.
 

Sirius Glass

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All film that I send out is ordered as "Do Not Cut" and comes back each in its own continuous sleeve and boxes. I recommend always asking before handing over film how the negatives [or slides] will be packaged on return.
 

Agulliver

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I used to get that commonly with large consumer labs in the UK in the 70s and 80s. And when I lived in Idaho in the late 90s. So it's not uncommon and doesn't seem to damage negatives.
 
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I use to have it done that way. But they curl and then it's problematic getting them to lie flat in the scanner. So cutting them into small strips and putting them in a plastic sheet keeps them better protected and flat.
 

Sirius Glass

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I use to have it done that way. But they curl and then it's problematic getting them to lie flat in the scanner. So cutting them into small strips and putting them in a plastic sheet keeps them better protected and flat.

Storing negatives is different from receiving them from the photo finishers. I use pages with strips of 6 for 35mm and they can only count to 4. I use pages with strips of four 6x6 negative and they can only count to three. Asking them to cut to a specified length is a waste of time, so for over a decade I request "Do Not Cut".
 

MattKing

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What Sirius said.
I cut and re-sleeve my own.
 

foc

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The main reason for 35mm negs in a strip of 4 is that how the sleeving machine is set. Commercial print/neg envelope/wallets are designed to take strips of 4.
Not all labs offer the full length of film sleeved. IIRC full length sleeving was a pro lab offering and the material is more expensive than the 4 strip sleeving. Also there is a knack to loading the film into the full length sleeve, a 36 exposure film is just over 1.5m long.
 

Sirius Glass

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I agree completely. And getting them to do anything other than there pattern just causes problems. So I request "Do Not Cut".
 
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runswithsizzers

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Update: I just realized, the reason this roll did not get sleeved was probably because I requested it be cut to 5-frame strips - and their sleeves are designed to hold 4 frames. So, in a way, it was my fault.

I use PrintFile pages at home, which I keep in 3-ring binders - so anything the lab provides just needs to be good enough to get the negatives home without damage. I will ask for uncut next time - 'though I do hate to cut negatives by hand. I have a hard time keeping my cut in the gap between frames.
 
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MattKing

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MattKing

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I'll try that. I usually cut the negs on a light table, but the scissors seem to block most of the light coming from below.
Are you by chance left-handed, and using right-handed scissors?
 
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