Why would you buy expired 35mm film?

[henryvk]

It was a figure of speech, friend.

 

[albireo]

Gee. Expired film police. You buy what you want for your reasons and I'll do the same.

Amen, bro!

 

[Helios 1984]

I used to buy expired films on eBay because it was less expensive but nowadays prices have skyrocketed to a point where I’m better off purchasing fresh stuff. Now, I go to the brick-and-mortar store whenever I need a few rolls. Although, I still buy films at the thriftstore, on the rare occasions something decent shows up on the shelves at a good price.

 

[Xylo]

Now, I go to the brick-and-mortar store whenever I need a few rolls.

Do you remember when Maxi and Super-C grocery stores and Pharmaprix drugstores decided to dump all their film for pennies on the dollar? I still have some in my freezer!
As for mystery stored in the desert film from church bazaars, the best price I paid was 10¢ a roll of Konica. I still need to try it out.

 

[Helios 1984]

Do you remember when Maxi and Super-C grocery stores and Pharmaprix drugstores decided to dump all their film for pennies on the dollar? I still have some in my freezer!
As for mystery stored in the desert film from church bazaars, the best price I paid was 10¢ a roll of Konica. I still need to try it out.

Was it around 2018? I remember buying 12x 24 exp of Superia X-Tra 400 at Pharmaprix for 6$ per 3-pack. The cashier said to me "Nobody uses these anymore, it's for antiques"... I waited for the 36 rolls to be on discount but it never happened.

As for thrift store find, I haven't been lucky in a long while. My last find was a 400ft Kodak Vision2 16mm that expired somewhen in 2010, I got this one for 10 bucks. I have no idea what I'll do with this stuff, maybe get a Minolta-16? The stuff will go south long before I can finish the whole reel lol

 

[ant!]

Some time around 2010 the German drugstores blew out Ektar films for 1€, I am still having some of those. A bit later was the last batch of real Agfa apx100 in the drugstores, not crazy reduces but cheap enough and yeah, the last batch before it became the relabeled kentmere (?).

 

[Xylo]

Was it around 2018?

No, it was more around 2006.
I was really happy to be able to get some film for so little. The cheapest I got at the time was a few 8 roll packs of Gold 200 for 1$ at Super-C.
But the sad thing is that since they were dismantling the photo lab at Maxi, I couldn't get the girls to run special orders on their machines.

 

[Axelwik]

I'll sometimes try expired film if someone gives it to me, or if it's not too old take a chance on it at a greatly reduced price.

Recently someone gave me a box of 100 sheets of 4x5 Plus-X that expired in 1986. Slapped some into film holders and took some pictures in the back yard and they turned out great! Soup it in some homebrew D-23 and it's a dirt-cheap combination.

For 8x10 I sometimes use medical X-ray film to play around (not expired). Per exposure it's just as cheap per exposure as 35mm.

For important projects or costly travel however, I always bring fresh film.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I usually only buy expired films that are no longer produced...Like Plus-X, Verichrome Pan, Panatomic-X, and HIE, if I can find it. I will purchase expired LF film that is still in production. For example, I Recently purchased a bunch of expired 4x5 TMY-2 as the price was much better than if I had bought it new.

 

[OrientPoint]

I reflexively buy Panatomic X and Verichrome if it's in front of me. but I really can't say why. Pulled TMAX looks the same as Panatomic and is a whole lot cheaper (these days). I guess it's the thrill of film as old as I am still working that makes it worthwhile.

 

[eli griggs]

Yes, it only lowered the contrast.

Did you use a anti-fog chemical?

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

I reflexively buy Panatomic X and Verichrome if it's in front of me. but I really can't say why. Pulled TMAX looks the same as Panatomic and is a whole lot cheaper (these days). I guess it's the thrill of film as old as I am still working that makes it worthwhile.

If you are referring to TMAX 100, then I would have to agree. I tested them and found that they have a similar look, with TMAX showing much better resolution. TMAX rendered blues ever so slightly darker. I look at TMAX 100 as a modern, faster, T-Grain version of Panatomic-X.

 

[JPD]

Did you use a anti-fog chemical?

No, it was over thirty years ago, before I knew those existed.

 

[MCB18]

I've seen adverts for expired 35mm film with expiry dates of 2001, 2004, etc. The price doesn't appear to be much different from fresh 35mm film from what I can tell, maybe a tiny bit cheaper.

There must be a market for it, and I'm intrigued as to the various reasons one might purchase expired film.

It’s cheap, if you know where to look anyway. I buy Aviphot 200 for pennies on the dollar. Been cold stored since new, good results. Just bought a bulk roll of TMax 100 for $70, well under MSRP, minimal fogging, looks perfectly usable, so I pulled the trigger.

 

[kfed1984]

I have some 1996 expired Ektachrome 100 in 8x10 that would be a challenge to discern from fresh. In some cases the color shifts arguably improve the film.

Any advice on how to expose/process long expired Ektachrome? I have dozens of rolls from 2000, 1983, 1970's.

 

[OrientPoint]

I shoot at box speed and develop normally. The oldest transparency (E6 process) I've bothered to shoot and process was 27 years expired, and it turned out very nicely in terms of exposure and color. An example is attached. It's a cell phone shot of the 8x10 on a light table, so it's not flat and there are reflections, but it should provide a general idea of what you might get with old stock. The film expired in 1996 and was shot earlier this year. Exposure was at ISO 100 (box speed) and developed using standard times in a Tetanal E6 kit.

I've also shot stock that was less expired but had major color shifts (like entirely green). It depends upon the stock and how it was stored, of course, but the one thing that has always been constant is exposure and processing. Even when the colors turned out crazy, I always got well exposed images with transparency stocks using box speed and the standard E6 developing process.

In my experience adding a stop a decade for expired film (the common internet wisdom) is a terrible idea when using transparency films.

I've never tried shooting anything older than this, so I can't speak to your 1983 or 70's vintage stock, but I'd expect it would be kind of toasty at this point.

 

[kfed1984]

I shoot at box speed and develop normally. The oldest transparency (E6 process) I've bothered to shoot and process was 27 years expired, and it turned out very nicely in terms of exposure and color.

thanks, I will probably try developing a single frame first from 35mm film, at box speed, then compensate until its right. I have a box of 18 rolls from 2003, and a few others from 80's and 70's.

 

[kfed1984]

thanks, I will probably try developing one frame at a time first from 35mm film, at box speed, then compensate until its right. Will have to trim the film manually, I've done this before with an old Leica iiif, which allows easy positioning of a trimmed piece of film. I have a box of 18 rolls from 2003, and a few others from 80's and 70's. Don't want to waste them.

 

[Don_ih]

Any advice on how to expose/process long expired Ektachrome? I have dozens of rolls from 2000, 1983, 1970's.

Fog is the big enemy for processing it reversal. If you only get muddy transparencies developing it as reversal, you can try cross processing it in C41 to get negatives and then enlarge as b&w (or convert). There's no weird mask on Ektachrome, so it would enlarge well as b&w. (I've done it, actually.)

 

[eli griggs]

Use a warming skylight filter and have fun.

 

[kfed1984]

Fog is the big enemy for processing it reversal. If you only get muddy transparencies developing it as reversal, you can try cross processing it in C41 to get negatives and then enlarge as b&w (or convert). There's no weird mask on Ektachrome, so it would enlarge well as b&w. (I've done it, actually.)

Well I want to develop expired ektachrome as a positive for actual slide projection/ viewing, not for printing.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Use a warming skylight filter and have fun.

+1

 

[kfed1984]

Use a warming skylight filter and have fun.

on what, on expired ektachrome? or is this a personal-guidance/life-advice phrase ? hard to tell by reading alone. I could use that phrase as a signature under every entry I place here.

"Use a warming skylight filter and have fun."

 

[eli griggs]

You're welcome to it, but don't pretend you are confused as to what I meant.

Cheers

 

[Don_ih]

Well I want to develop expired ektachrome as a positive for actual slide projection/ viewing

Well, that's why I said fog would be the big problem. What do you get when you reverse fog?

Maybe your film isn't too badly age fogged. Who knows.