How long will Velvia 50 last in the fridge?

[sdivot]

For all you film experts out there.
I have some Velvia 50 in my fridge that expired around the latter part of 2005. I don't shoot much color!
I am taking a trip to Vegas next week for poker tourneys, and plan to shoot at Red Rock Canyon and maybe the Neon Boneyard.
Question: Should I get new film just to be sure (it's a long trip), or is my film still ok? What about Ilford Pan F?
Thanks,
Steve

 

[Sirius Glass]

Velvia 50 is obviously made by Fuji, but the chemistry is not all that different from Kodak. I have been told that frozen Kodak film can be used at least up to 10 years.

Steve

 

[Pinholemaster]

Depends on how long your refrigerator lasts? Grin.

The Pan F should be fine, just as your seldom used Velvia on ice.

To be safe, shoot a test roll and process it before you leave on the trip. I'm sure you can buy fresh Velvia in Vegas.

 

[sdivot]

Thanks for the replies. But just to be clear,the Velvia is not frozen, just refrigerated. I was told recently that it will last a long time frozen, but refrigerated does not make much difference in the life of film.
True? False?
Thanks,
Steve

 

[tac]

The velvia is probably all right, but test a roll first- shoot a variety of brightness ranges and colors, including a white, a black and a gray card to check for color shifts and fog; also daylight, tungsten and flash.

For future reference, store film in the freezer, especially color. Keep only a few rolls in the fridge, what you expect to use in a shorter time frame. Let the refrigerated stuff come to room temperature for an hour or two before opening- the film is packed in zero humidity air so as to avoid condensation.

I have frozen C-41 film that is twenty years old, perfectly usable. I made a very large purchase of an emulsion I liked, and froze it the day I bought it in 1987. I just have to pull it out a day in advance of using it. They no longer manufacture that particular emulsion, I might add.

You might find this interesting:
I have some 120 FP4+ and HP5+ that expired in 1994, stored on my library shelf (eh, I goofed up); I expose it at 1/2 ISO (i.e., ISO 125 FP4+ at ISO64), add 0.3ml of a 1% benzotriazole in isopropyl alcohol solution per 16oz D-76 1:1, and process for 1.3x normal- they look great, print at my normal exposure and grade- can't tell it from fresh film. The emulsions are somewhat fragile though, so I have to treat them very gently while wet, but once they dry, they are fine.

I use a non-hardening fix, but maybe I should harden in the stop, might solve any fragility problems.

 

[Doyle Thomas]

I just used up 2 boxes of Velvia that had been in thr fridge (not frozen) since 1998. So long as the packaging is sealed I think you will be ok.

Doyle