what went wrong?

Drew B.

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I dropped off some quite old Fujichrome 50 D sheet film for processing and it came back all red. The process lab person said it must have been the old film. The image was great...with clear and sharp details but just red.

I was wondering if maybe the film wasn't fujichrome but in a fujichrome box... After checking the notch on the returned film it was indeed the correct film. Did the process lab screw up or does the film do that with age? Could it just be washed again in water...?

drew
 

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Anscojohn

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Age, or heat, or both?
 
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Drew B.

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No filter on the lens...this time! It does convert to a nice b&w image...
 

Rudeofus

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Not trying to act as an expert on sheet film, but this reminds me of this thread (there was a url link here which no longer exists). Any chance you had the film in your camera backwards?
 

Photo Engineer

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What do the edges look like. Are they black or red.

If red, it is age or safelight fog. If black then the film was in the camera backwards.

PE
 

hrst

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If it was backwards, it is also overexposed a lot because the antihalation layer eats many stops and you should end up with very dark red image. Did you remember to stop down the lens?
 
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Drew B.

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I've shot film through this camera hundreds of times...and never loaded film backwards before! ...until now! How embarrassing this is! So I guess the film is ok.. Thanks for the help guys....
 

papagene

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Admit it Drew... you took a side trip to Mars and have just proven the existence of grass on that planet!

gene
 
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Drew B.

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No...this quote:

How can one say a camera will do all the work for the photographer? Need we not eyes to see, and a brain to think? But we most surely think and see on our own.

Yes that's what I have to do...see and think!

Gene...yes I have visions of '68 or '69....

To end this thread...let me say that I know I loaded more film properly early this morning...Thanks everyone.
 
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Drew B.

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new development (no pun here) on this topic....this next batch of film was definitely loaded correctly but came out red again. so the film must be bad...and maybe...just maybe the first film WAS loaded correctly! Well, the film is going in the trash...
 

hrst

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If your film really looks like the scan you posted, bright red, I won't believe it's aging... Because you seem to have a good black!

It's either shot backwards AND overexposed many stops, or shot through a red filter. That's what I think. I may be wrong however.... Check the edges like PE suggested.
 
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Drew B.

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just realized that the first sheets were put in backwards (black border)...and the second was put in correctly but has red edges, so the film has actually gone bad. Well the whole bunch is in the trash....time for more film.
 

Photo Engineer

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Drew;

If you got a black border at all, but red pix, then the film appears to have been good but backwards. The second set with red borders may have had red safelight fog. Can you post a few? I would guess that 2 different things happened here and that the film might still be good.

PE
 
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Drew B.

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Photo Engineer said:
Drew; Can you post a few? I would guess that 2 different things happened here and that the film might still be good.
PE
Click to expand...

I could, but honestly...the film is very old and I've never had this problem before! Sometimes its best to wash one's hands of things...
 
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