Film storage- FAQ vs experience ?

[srtiwari]

In my (perhaps unnecessary) concerns about the availability of 35mm/120 film, bought and stored quite a bit of B+W (and some Color print) film. I understand that keeping them in a freezer protects them from all but radiation damage.
For Color film, the Kodak FAQ -

( http://www.kodak.com/global/en/service/faqs/faq1631.shtml )

- suggests that 6 months is about all one can safely count on. They allude to keeping the film at -18 Degree C beyond that. (Don't know how many people have access to that kind of storage !) One person I know uses a Lead lined container.

And yet, I have kept film longer (sometimes not even in the fridge) and discovered it to be fine a few years later (T Max 100, 100ft. roll, in this case)

I am eager to know what others' opinions and method of storing are, and perhaps their personal experiences with long term storage.

 

[Dave Wilkinson]

A few years ago, I shot a lot of film on weddings, portraits etc., and kept quite a lot (some way out of date) in an ordinary refrigerator, without any problems. I still keep a small amount in the same way - but hesitate to add - that digital shooting has now made thoughts like this a thing of the past! 🙂
Dave.

 

[Ronald M]

Do what Double negative said and you will not have trouble. I just picked up two 100 foot rolls and they will be spooled and frozen. Kodak dated them 9/12, that is 2.6 years away. My shop is small and does not stock it so it becomes a special order straight from Kodak. It always comes fresh.

I always buy in late winter when the previous summer stock has been replenished and the delivery trucks are not hot ovens.

There will not be radiation damage to 100/400 speed films for 5/10 years, probably more.
I never had it happen. It will fog at some point but it is years away. I kept pro Kodachrome 5 years once. It was fine.

 

[srtiwari]

(I don't think you'll need to install a cryogenic tank in the garage. 😀)

Well, that IS a relief !😉

 

[coelacanth]

This shot was taken with 120 Tri-X expired 20 years ago (1990), AND pushed to 1600. The film was stored in freezer for who-knows-how-long, and the last 6 month or so in fridge after it came to me. You can difinitely see the roll is OLD if you see the negatives, but photo came out nonetheless. 😉

 

[Denis M.]

From what I understood about the way this stuff works, in order of better preserve your film you should keep it frozen if you're not planing on using it immediately. Generally speaking, slow speed films holds up better than high speed film. Black and white film holds up the best overall, then c-41 and finally E6 is the worst. The problem with color film (c41, e6) is that you get color shifts which are difficult to correct if you don't know color theory of adding colors (rather annoying, even in photoshop). In practical terms, I feel safe in buying color film at 100 and 200 iso that is past the expiration date by a year or two, but not 400 speed which shows grain and not 800 which looses sensitivity and has color shift (I have boxes of these in the freezer, should just bay'em).

One thing for sure, you can't keep film that's rated at 1600 or 3200 for long, it will start to go bad even if it's frozen. Though I'm praying my precious 1600 superia will not (I don't know why, I only used one roll of it).

What kodak is talking about probably has more to do with professional use of MOTION PICTURE FILM which doesn't have the same archiving qualities of still film. I could be wrong of course.

 

[Bob Michaels]

I found a roll of Tri-X that had been lost under the front seat of my van for at least 2 years, probably 3. Now it usually gets to be 130 F inside a car left in the summer sun here in FL. And I never parked in the garage. Quite a torture test.

Shot and developed normally, this roll had slightly higher base fog but was certainly printable. I quit worrying about babying b&w film after that.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

One thing for sure, you can't keep film that's rated at 1600 or 3200 for long, it will start to go bad even if it's frozen. Though I'm praying my precious 1600 superia will not (I don't know why, I only used one roll of it).

Very true on the fast films. I use a lot of Tmax 3200 and have for 15 yrs. It goes bad FAST after the expiry date.

 

[Doug]

"Use it or lose it" they say... I just tossed a dozen rolls of Kodak Ektapress Pro 100 after using one roll, and finding loss of sensitivity, green shadows, more base fog, and extra grain. Surprised, as I had kept it in the fridge.... er, for a while. Long outdated I'm sure. In fact I don't recall how I got it, maybe a gift, and it may have suffered some heated storage in the past.

On the other hand, rolls of Ilford XP1 bulk-rolled in 1986 were still fine after 20 years in cold storage.