Spots on negative. Looking for clues....

fiddle · Nov 10, 2019

Im looking through some old contact sheets. 9 years ago maybe, and noticed all the negatives on the right hand side of ma print file sleeve has these spots. Only this one sleeve. Redish spots. Any ideas? Im guessing something after processing, since its only on frames 6, 12, etc...
Thanks for any info..

Andrew O'Neill · Nov 10, 2019

Are they only there and no where else? Are they on the emulsion side? Can you feel them with your fingers?

fiddle · Nov 10, 2019

Sorry, updated the post with more info, hit save by mistake, let me take a look to see if I can feel it..

fiddle · Nov 10, 2019

Hm.. I cannot feel any texture, not sure which side of the film its on. Looks the same on both.

tnp651 · Nov 10, 2019

I'm guessing fungus. Try immersing it briefly in isopropyl alcohol.
Tom

fiddle · Nov 10, 2019

I thought that too, although I've never seen what it looks like, and if its similar, but, its on the right most negative of each strip on a print file sheet. Thought it would be weird for the fungus to spread down across the individual slots as opposed to across the film to the frames to the left of it.

MattKing · Nov 10, 2019

It may have migrated from the container used to store the print file sheets.
Were they in a binder, and might it be rust?

fiddle · Nov 10, 2019

They are in one of them plastic archival locking binders , with another 100 or so sheets, this is the only sheet I can find that has this. Rust? hm. the rings on the binder are not rusting.
I will try the alcohol idea see how it goes. maybe some Pec-12, or something to that affect?
Thanks all..

koraks · Nov 11, 2019

Looks like insufficient fixing. Remaining silver halide will bind with atmospheric sulfer and possibly other species to form more visible silver sulfide. If this hypothesis is correct, you're out of luck; the spots will be more resistant to any kind of treatment than the silver image itself.

Neal · Nov 11, 2019

koraks said:
Looks like insufficient fixing. Remaining silver halide will bind with atmospheric sulfer and possibly other species to form more visible silver sulfide. If this hypothesis is correct, you're out of luck; the spots will be more resistant to any kind of treatment than the silver image itself.

+1

fiddle · Nov 11, 2019

Thank you very much for everyones thoughts on this. Appreciate the time, effort.
Im still not 100% sure about what it might be, because its only on the ends of the cut film, frames 6/12/18/24/30/36. I find it weird that I didn't wash the film correctly and that fixer stayed behind only on those frames? Not saying I have a perfect process, far from.Film is hanging, precut after washing until completely dry. I would think that the spots would be more spread than just these specific frames.

Either way, ill try and wash it some way, but im pretty sure these frames are lost. Nothing important really. Just wanted to get to the bottom of it to see if it was something I was doing wrong. Since this is the only sheet with this issue im going to not worry too much about my process...

Thanks again all.

koraks · Nov 11, 2019

The spots are only on the frames you mentioned because they are more in contact with air, being the outside frames of the cut strips, close to the edge of the sleeve. Don't worry though, the other frames will also develop these spots in due course.
You may want to try refixing these negatives if you want to keep them. It won't repair the lost images, but it will put a stop to degradation of the others.

fiddle · Nov 11, 2019

Ha.. ok, that makes more sense to me now in the reasoning why its only on the last frames on the sleeve. Thank you Koraks!!!
Not being hard headed, was just trying to make sense of it in my head.

kevs · Nov 11, 2019

It could also be caused by spots of chemicals landing on the film and reacting with the silver in storage. Perhaps some airborne chemical powder landed on the film or liquid splashed it after processing. Maybe some air bubbles formed on the film during fixing. You could sepia-tone the negs (re-fix and wash well first), or scan and/or print them if you want to save them for later use.

Sirius Glass · Nov 11, 2019

Fungus, mold

Sirius Glass · Nov 11, 2019

Fungus, mold

Spots on negative. Looking for clues....

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