Saving exposed film for long trip

[suanmein]

For now I've been shooting with my current film holders and bringing them over to the lab directly since I've been doing short hikes (which I have 11).

I'm planning on getting a changing tent and something to put my film so I can keep shooting while on the road but I'm not sure what to look for.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Donald Qualls]

One of the traditional ways is the boxes and inner bags that the film came in. If you've been shooting LF for a while, you likely have a couple of those boxes, and as long as you have one box for each emulsion or Zone development you'll want on the trip, you can load the exposed film back into those boxes. Your lab might also have some of those boxes, if you're short.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

B&H Photo has these plastic bags to keep film in after exposure.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/15808-REG/Delta_13510_Light_Tight_Safe_T_Bags_with.html/reviews

 

[suanmein]

One of the traditional ways is the boxes and inner bags that the film came in. If you've been shooting LF for a while, you likely have a couple of those boxes, and as long as you have one box for each emulsion or Zone development you'll want on the trip, you can load the exposed film back into those boxes. Your lab might also have some of those boxes, if you're short.

B&H Photo has these plastic bags to keep film in after exposure.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/15808-REG/Delta_13510_Light_Tight_Safe_T_Bags_with.html/reviews

I do have the boxes but I didn't keep any of the bags. I'll probably order some of those packs. Do you know if I can stack them? Would they scratch or something similar?

 

[Donald Qualls]

The film comes stacked in the original bags inside the boxes (BTW, putting those bags back into the boxes you still have makes them easier to pack and reduces the likelihood of a sheet corner poking a hole in the bag during handling). If you're careful in putting the film back in the bags, you should be fine. You might even want to explore developing your own -- it can be done in trays if you have or can improvise a darkroom, or there are various daylight tank solutions ranging from 4 to 12 sheets in a load.

 

[_T_]

I send off my film for development through the mail. I've sent exposed but undeveloped 4x5 sheets through the US Postal Service maybe 10 times so far, always in 3 part film boxes. I have never used the little plastic bag that the film comes in when shipping the film. Just the bare sheet film by itself in the inner box. So far no problems. I do however use tape on the the ends of the box and put a rubber band around the box as well. Belt and suspenders.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

I send off my film for development through the mail. I've sent exposed but undeveloped 4x5 sheets through the US Postal Service maybe 10 times so far, always in 3 part film boxes. I have never used the little plastic bag that the film comes in when shipping the film. Just the bare sheet film by itself in the inner box. So far no problems. I do however use tape on the the ends of the box and put a rubber band around the box as well. Belt and suspenders.

I do what you do and mail in one of those bubble-protected envelopes.

 

[Vaughn]

There is usually no problems, until there are, of course. Such as static discharges in humid conditions.

A tale of woe and warning. While bicycling for a half-year in New Zealand with my 4x5, I kept the exposed film in the bags in the film boxes. It can be wet in NZ, and back then the roads were much rougher. So on the extreme end of the possibility of this kind of damage happening.

While dampness does suppress static from building up, one can still get static discharges from the film moving against itself while riding bumpy roads in warm wet conditions. But instead of streaks of light, it is localize discharges. The longer the exposed film was sitting in the box exposed, the more likely were my chances of damage. Also, as more film was added to the boxes during the trip, the less the film could move around. The below image was taken early in the trip and this 16x20 takes about 4 hours of spotting to clean it up.

Prevention -- Pack something in the box to keep the film from moving around. If I had been using Ilford film back then (1986/7). I could have used the sheets of paper between each sheet of film, which might have helped.