Does anyone rewind partially exposed rolls in order to switch film?

Carterofmars · Mar 10, 2023

I'm very interested in experiences, opinions, and thoughts.

I just loaded this new addition with some expired Tri-x.

Jim Jones · Mar 10, 2023

Yes. Over many years I acquired enough camera bodies that they could be loaded with as many different films that were needed. This saved much time and a few mistakes.

Daniela · Mar 10, 2023

Yes, usually if I don't finish a roll when traveling and I'll be flying. Not long ago, I found out that the lead-lined bag I use to protect film is most likely doing nothing in that regard, so...
Not long ago, I forgot/didn't mark a 36-shot roll and when developed, I realized I had only 7 frames exposed
By the way, my camera loads/rewinds automatically, and I've never had a problem getting back to the frame number I needed by shooting up to the needed frame with the lens cap on.

koraks · Mar 10, 2023

Carterofmars said:
Does anyone rewind partially exposed rolls in order to switch film?

Nah. Odds that I mess up in one of several ways are too big. Just I just finish the roll and then move on.

Ways in which I'd see myself mess up:
1: Overlapping frames where one camera took over from the previous one
2: Forgetting about half-exposed rolls altogether
3: Forgetting that a roll is already half exposed, resulting in half a roll containing double exposures
4: Ruining (part of) the roll due to handling issues / fogging
Probably some more ways I didn't think of.

I've done it in a pinch, one or two times. I somehow skirted the problems above. I can't quite remember the last time I pulled it off, but I'm still shaking.

Anon Ymous · Mar 10, 2023

Eh, nope. I've thought about it in the past, but decided against it. I have plenty of cameras anyway and I can always load another body.

titrisol · Mar 10, 2023

yes, of course.
Just write the number of exposed frames in the leader and use the rest later or in another camera

BradS · Mar 10, 2023

Yes! I do it all the time but not to switch films. I do it to switch cameras.

If I want to use a different film, I just load up another camera.

madNbad · Mar 10, 2023

I did it for many years with varying results. Most were double exposed overlaps, the worst was stress marks at the end of the roll, Now I just use Tri-X, no reason to switch.

abruzzi · Mar 10, 2023

Yup. My Pentax MZ-S does this automatically. You set the rewind to leave the tongue out. Manually trigger the rewind. When you remove the film, use a small sharpie to mark the frame you were on on the tongue, and when you reload the film, dial in the number, and the camera fast forwards to that frame.

Originally, I always added 1 to the frame to ensure more overlap, but it was actually accurate enough that I didn’t need to. It’s almost (but not quite) as convenient as a medium format film back.

Pieter12 · Mar 10, 2023

I have done it in the past. I usually end up forgetting or not bothering to reload the film and it just sits there, a sorry handful of frames abandoned in a plastic canister. Impossible to do with medium format, thankfully I have changeable backs on most of my MF cameras.

pentaxuser · Mar 10, 2023

Carterofmars, I have done this occasionally in the past. Just out of curiosity. can I ask what your interest in our actions in this regard is?

Thanks

pentaxuser

grain elevator · Mar 10, 2023

Rarely. Film does stay in my lesser used cameras a long time, but that's ok. One is the small everyday carry camera, needs to have film, and then usually at least one more serious camera has film in it and often one more experimental one. I've pretty much only done it when I got really tired of the experimental camera or something broke.

Sirius Glass · Mar 10, 2023

Now I just change film backs.

I did it in the past with 35mm cameras and discovered that mistakes can be made putting it back in, it can get lost or forgotten. I have not done it since. Just buy another 35mm body and use that instead.

snusmumriken · Mar 10, 2023

Yes, quite often. I’d rather carry a sharpie than other camera.

Pieter12 · Mar 10, 2023

The risk of scratching the film is multiplied, especially with one of the new M6s.

guangong · Mar 10, 2023

Easier (and probably cheaper considering the ways one can screw up attempting to remove partially exposed film and then reload it) to buy another camera body of same make. Put new film in new body and switch lenses is wanted. Or, get a Hasselblad with interchangeable backs.

DWThomas · Mar 10, 2023

Enh, I've done it -- the number of occasions probably averages out to once every 12 to 15 years! On a few other occasions, since some 35mm emulsions only seem to come in 36 exposure rolls these days, I have opened the camera in the darkroom and cut off the exposed portion, loading it into a tank to be able to develop it quickly.

These days I shoot mostly medium format so the rolls are short enough for my limited attention span (especially at 8 shots per roll with 6x9!)

mrosenlof · Mar 10, 2023

I've done it, normally not to switch the film in camera A but to move (and finish) the roll of film from camera A to camera B. Mostly if I've been doing some sort of camera or lens testing. I allow for a couple of extra blank frames, works great.

MattKing · Mar 10, 2023

My Dad was Customer Service manager at a Kodak Canada Kodachrome lab between the 1960s and 1980s. He used to say that when customers did this it used to drive the operators of the semi-automatic slide mounting machines absolutely crazy!
They had a pre-printed form explaining why the film returned to the customer had at least one slide cut in pieces.
It was probably the same for a lot of mini-lab operators.

Huss · Mar 10, 2023

I've done it a bunch of times. It happens when I feel guilty that I haven't use a particular camera in a while, so load it up. After a couple of shots I realize that I hadn't used it in a while because I don't really enjoy using it, so I rewind and load it into a camera that I do want to use! Obviously paying attention to how many frames I shot, then add a blank one when loading into the new camera.
The ideal thing to do is then sell of that camera that I didn't enjoy using, something that I did for a while.

Philippe-Georges · Mar 11, 2023

Long time go, I did it with the Ilford's HP5 72 exp. film (on the Pentax LX which had an accurate and repeatable loading system (and counted back while rewinding the film)).
Later I bought some more (used-) camera body's, so I hadn't to do this anymore.

An other interesting trick was:
Add one more blank frame, wind and cock, take off the lens, open the shutter on B, carefully stick a small piece of tape on that (second-) blank frame, close the schutter and rewind the film leaving the leader out.
When developing, in the absolute dark: pull slowly the film out of the cassette till you feel the piece of tape, cut the film just before that point (to save a little bit of film), and develop that exposed end of film.
The remaining part of film which is still in the cassette (and is shorter), can be used later, the frame with that piece of tape is the leader now (sometimes it has to be trimmend).

Now, I am like a spoiled child with my Hasselblad...

eli griggs · Mar 11, 2023

Yes, I've done this and reloaded the same roll in the same camera a second time.

I usually waste three good frames by winding on past the stoping point but that's no bother most times.

A better way would be a taunt film, in a dark bag, and a piece of tape or sticker dot at the fresh film side of the roll, before rewinding the now shut camera, the reloading that roll in the darkroom or dark bag, opening the back when close to the same count number you stopped at, and feeling for your marker sticker or tape emerging from the roll and closing up and three more windings.

Everything sounds complicated to many camera users, but the only hard part is just doing the thing needed to allow good things to happen.

IMO.

RalphLambrecht · Mar 11, 2023

titrisol said:
yes, of course.
Just write the number of exposed frames in the leader and use the rest later or in another camera

good idea!

KitosLAB · Mar 11, 2023

Where the camera design permits, I prefer to use two cassettes. Now it is a half-frame camera Agat-18. It is especially convenient to use two cassettes in it, since this model very often fails the film rewind function.

Alan Edward Klein · Mar 11, 2023

My problem is I shoot a few shots then the film sits for months on end and then passes its expiration date.

Does anyone rewind partially exposed rolls in order to switch film?

Carterofmars

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Does anyone rewind partially exposed rolls in order to switch film?

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