Another help me with my film problem thread. Apologies.

[scottwallick]

Film and developing gurus, I appeal to you. Help.

So this is the third roll of Fuji 400H I bought from B&H about eight months ago and that has refrigerated until the day I load it in my Zeiss Ikon to come back with this problem.

I have exposed three rolls of the 400H sequentially (so I don't have a different film developed to compare against).

The problem.
See the four attached images. Basically, the negative comes back, after developing, with pronounced wide 'scratches' on the negative. They aren't scratches like hairline scratches, but almost appear as if produced by an action similar to using an ice scrapper on a windshield (let me know if that makes sense).

These appear starting immediately with frame 00 and are most pronounced by frame 2 and gradually drop off frame by frame until 11, where they are completely gone.

The context.
I usually have my film processed by Dan's camera, who do a great job for me. Never a problem. But I'm leaving for Nepal for four weeks on Saturday so I ran some rolls through my Ikon with different lenses to see if everything is working as it should (!) and, therefore, have just been dropping off my film at the CVS on 52nd and Lexington for one-hour service. I have not used this CVS before.

The first two rolls were dropped off/picked up Tuesday and the third dropped off/picked up today. The staff of two have been the same.

Other rolls from the same batch of 400H have been developed without issue (all at Dan's), none of the scratching. My loading, shooting, rewinding procedures are the same. Habit.

Any conclusions.
My own is WTF.

Feedback appreciated.

 

[wontonny]

First off, don't ever use CVS. To me that looks like something is smudged on the negatives. Have you examined them under magnification?

 

[bmattock]

When the negative is scratched horizontally on a landscape-format 35mm negative, it could be any number of things, including a bur or bit of dust in your camera. I've had a number of cameras do just exactly that, scratch film as it is dragged across the film gate prior to being exposed. It can also happen if the felt gate on the 35mm film cassette has dust or dirt embedded in it (not likely, but it can happen).

It could also be the processor. Rough handling is not uncommon. If the marks are not horizontal, it is never (in my experience) the camera, but usually the processor.

The only way to be certain is to process one's own film. That's how I know that CVS (and Walgreens, Wal-Mart and etc) do a terrible job in general processing color print film. My B&W negatives never have the kind of scratches that my color film does (presuming that my camera is not to blame).

Given that you have not had the problem before using CVS, I'd tend to suspect their processing.

 

[ZeissFan]

That to me looks like dirty rollers in the processor.

But that's just an uneducated guess, as I don't know how these machines operate. But it reminds me of the stuff that I used to get on my Polaroids when I didn't clean the rollers.

CVS = good for pharmacy things, other stuff, not good for film processing

Dan's Camera City = good for film processing, not good for pharmacy items

 

[scottwallick]

I think I figured it out

I think I figured it out

Thanks for the theories and thoughts. I think I just need to isolate that this is something done on the developing end—and not my Ikon.

Of course I'll be taking care to get proper, professional developing with my 'keeper' rolls (as I usually do). So it goes.

That to me looks like dirty rollers in the processor.

I think you're right. Upon closer examination and 'analysis' . . . (see below)

When the negative is scratched horizontally on a landscape-format 35mm negative, it could be any number of things, including a bur or bit of dust in your camera.

It's too broad to be dust or such methinks. (It's like 2.5 mm across the neg.) I'll examine the pressure plate. What makes me think is must be something on the developing end is that the scratching, while light, is present on the leader of the film I feed initially in to the wind-up spool, which would exclude it from camera-based wear, wouldn't it? It must be something the CVS 'techs' did.

First off, don't ever use CVS.

Yep. 🙁

I wouldn't normally. I never have before. But because of time constraints, and availability to go here or there, I've been limited to the immediate area near my office and, thusly, this CVS. Camera Land is right there, but they are slow and unreliable, though their prints are good.