How does everyone store their vintage negatives?

[Tobes]

Hi everyone. I'm really new to vintage film photography and just starting out with my first small collection of unmounted negatives & transparencies from the late '60s/early '70s. I have no idea how to store them so that is my main concern - to keep them in the same condition over a long period.

So I was just wondering how everyone stores and preserves their vintage film?

The ones that I have are 2 1/4" if that makes any sense. Thanks for any help!

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

The usual storage method is probably archival sleeves (clear plastic) in an archival box. How are they stored at present?

 

[Tobes]

The usual storage method is probably archival sleeves (clear plastic) in an archival box. How are they stored at present?

Thanks for your reply. They're in a storage box with a few other things to keep them away from dust/dirt. They're between a glassine sleeve at the moment, which is also inside a regular envelope (for a bit of added protection) and I put the envelope inside a regular plastic zip-lock bag.

I've heard Print File make great archival sleeves but I'm unsure of the right sized one to buy. They don't seem to have ones for 2 1/4" film (it's pretty small).

The archival box sound great and I will probably buy one if that's the best container to keep them in.

 

[Kevin Caulfield]

You should be able to find sleeves for 2 1/4". It's also called "120".

 

[MattKing]

Welcome to APUG.

Just as an aside, you may need to be careful around some of us here if you start referring to "negatives & transparencies from the late '60s/early '70s" as vintage.

With respect to the film size itself, it would be a good idea if you gave us the exact dimensions of a typical negative or transparency.

120 film is 2 1/4" in one dimension, but the negatives can be 1 5/8", 2 1/4", 2 3/4" 3 1/4" and a few other sizes in the other dimension, and that can affect which Printfile sleeves you need.

I still have a bunch of 135 black and white negatives stored in glassine sleeves since the 1970s. They need to be transferred.

 

[pbromaghin]

Welcome to APUG.

Just as an aside, you may need to be careful around some of us here if you start referring to "negatives & transparencies from the late '60s/early '70s" as vintage.

Yes, that was yesterday as far as I am concerned.

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I believe that the Library of Congress and other archivists recommend glassine sleeves rather than plastic ones. Outgassing from the plastic seems to be the problem. Any box should be made of acid free cardboard. There are several companies that sell these supplies but they are pricey.

 

[Chris Douglas]

Keep it simple

I used the plastic print file things until I noticed my negatives were getting scratched. Now I use 8 1/2 by 11 xerox paper folded in half, one negative to each sheet of paper. Just drop the negs in and put in a file folder or large envelope. The better quality paper says its acid free.

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I used the plastic print file things until I noticed my negatives were getting scratched. Now I use 8 1/2 by 11 xerox paper folded in half, one negative to each sheet of paper. Just drop the negs in and put in a file folder or large envelope. The better quality paper says its acid free.

The paper may say it is acid free but there is still the question of whether it meets archival standards. If you value your negatives then only use archival sleeves and boxes. Anything else is a false economy.

 

[Tim Boehm]

try climaxphoto.com
they have plastic sleeves, including some ULF sizes