What to do with old film

mark · Sep 22, 2017

About 6 years ago I went into a serious depression. Packed my cameras and film up and put them away. As far as film storage goes it was horrible. The desire has come back slowly and I find myself with 10 loaded 8x10 film holders. Each with delta 100. I am not in the experimental mood so what should I do with the film?

BrianShaw · Sep 22, 2017

If you don't want to shoot it you could consider donating it to someone who is in an experimental mood, or dispose of the film. If the film storage was really that bad I'll just pull it out and transfer it to a trash bin.

BrianShaw · Sep 22, 2017

P.s. I sure hope your depression is under control. Welcome back to photography.

mark · Sep 22, 2017

Thanks for the sentiment. It's been a long road the film was stored in the holders in an unairconditioned or heated room. So temps in the 90s and right around freezing.

bdial · Sep 22, 2017

It probably has an increased base fog level, but it's probably usable. Go shoot a couple of sheets and see what it's like.

Sirius Glass · Sep 22, 2017

Since you are not sure of the amount of fog on the film, it is time to experiment taking photographs that normally you would have never dared to do just to see what happens. This is you see enough potential work the concept with fresher film.

Svenedin · Sep 23, 2017

I'd suggest taking a few shots with the attitude "if these come out then great but if they don't I'm not the least bit worried". Maybe just take something at home that doesn't involve wasted effort if the film is trashed, something different. I've taken some of my most interesting shots by taking a much more relaxed attitude to what I'm doing.

Sorry to hear that you have been unwell and welcome back. Take it gently and don't be discouraged if you don't immediately get fantastic results. I found photography a great rehab when I was recovering from surgery. It got me out and about and looking at the world again. I think photography and "mindfulness" go together rather well.

railwayman3 · Sep 23, 2017

Svenedin said:
I'd suggest taking a few shots with the attitude "if these come out then great but if they don't I'm not the least bit worried". Maybe just take something at home that doesn't involve wasted effort if the film is trashed, something different. I've taken some of my most interesting shots by taking a much more relaxed attitude to what I'm doing.

Sorry to hear that you have been unwell and welcome back. Take it gently and don't be discouraged if you don't immediately get fantastic results. I found photography a great rehab when I was recovering from surgery. It got me out and about and looking at the world again. I think photography and "mindfulness" go together rather well.

I'd agree with Svenedin's thoughts. B&W film can sometimes be surprisingly resilient to poor storage, and you could try out a few sheets without worrying too much and without wasting unnecessary time....if it works, great, if not, no concerns and nothing lost. OTOH, if you don't want to bother, either write it off and bin it, or pass it on to someone who can try it, and make a new start yourself with fresh film. Don't feel bad, your health and wellbeing are more important than worrying about a few bits of old film !

( I also had a spell of bad depression about 12 years, and my counsellor guided me back to hobbies as a great way to finding new interest in life generally. Good luck ! )

WilmarcoImaging · Sep 23, 2017

mark, glad to hear you are not where you were. Just an idea, there is another site that is very focused on large format. You might ask around there, if someone is willing to shoot and process the film in your holders, then return the holders to you. If I was an 8x10 shooter I would be willing to work with you on this, but I shoot only 4x5.

removed account4 · Sep 23, 2017

hi mark
develop it in something like ansco130 or dektol and it will keep some of your fog under control
... try 1-6 for 6mins dektal @68º or ansco at 72º. you could always cut the film up into
little 1"x1" squares put them in 35mm canisters, use them and/or sell them as fixer test strips

good to read you are feeling better mark !
john

mark · Sep 24, 2017

Maybe I'll try it. Practice my developing.

MattKing · Sep 24, 2017

I would take one of the holders and remove a sheet from one side (I am assuming that they are double sided). Put that sheet into dark storage and mark it carefully. For the remaining sheet, I would clip a little of the corner off it and then put it back in the holder.
I would then buy some new Delta 100, and put one sheet into the now empty side of the holder.
I would then carefully meter a normal ("N") static scene with a good range of tones and contrast, set the exposure appropriately for the new film, and then expose both the old and the new film the exact same amount.
I would then develop both negatives normally.
And then compare the results. That should tell you a lot about speed, contrast and fog in the old film.

Huub · Sep 25, 2017

My guess is that you will be alright. I am currently shooting some Plus-X dated October 1984. It has increased fog, but when shooting it at 60 iso and adding about 10% to the development time is still very usable. Slow black and whiite film is very resilent to bad storage conditions and a couple of years out of date won't matter much for non-critical work.

What to do with old film

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