How safe is out of date film?

[tog2000]

Hi all..

I have a big bag of Ilford HP5, FP4 and some Fuji Neopan. I bought it around 2004/5 and seem to remember that it went out of date end 2007. Yes i know i should check a roll but im still waiting to get my film camera back..

Question.. anyone out there used out of date film and if yes what were your experiances? What exactly does a bad roll look like when dev'ed?

Thanks in advance..

 

[gdi]

I would see no problem, here is a thread on 2005 expiry film...
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?p=889952

 

[Ronald_H]

It will have lost some sensitivity but I guess you barely will notice. Just use and develop as normal. But to be on the safe side, keep it in the freezer.

Shot some film from the same 'vintage' a few months back, it was perfectly fine. And people developed much, MUCH older stuff than that with some degree of success. My record is a paltry 18 years expired (Tri-X). Pics were on the grainy side, but usable. Even got a few pics published of that roll.

 

[oftheherd]

I often purchased film from the Ritz expired film bin. I had good results always. They say they kept the film refrigerated until they put it out as expired. It would seem so. I always kept it in the freezer until ready to use it. I have done that with much film over the years. Keeping it frozen as soon as it was purchased.

 

[JonR]

Agree with the other comments.... I have used very old, expired, film many times and allmost allways had great results. I store my film in the refrigerator and never look at the "expire date"...
Jon

 

[Sjixxxy]

Much safer then milk or eggs of the same vintage.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Film is not a delicate substance. Quite the opposite. And it deteriorates very slowly.

However, I have learned to draw the line at 10-years old Kodachrome. In my experience, by then you might as well use it as if it were tungsten film because of the bluish cast it has. However, I've shot Kodachrome that was 8 years expired and had absolutely no problem with it.

With B&W... I've learned that only very fast film may show signs of trouble if it's about 4 or 5 years old. And I'm talking about ISO 1600 stuff. Otherwise, even if it's not frozen, as long as it's cool and dry, it'll do fine. Hence, shoot with confidence!

 

[Krosya]

A few weeks back i went to a local Secondhand shop and found a sealed! 3-pack of some unknown to me ISO 400 colour print film. Cost me 1USD. Exp. date on film was 1986! I thought I'd try it and here are the results:

 

[Pablito]

For amateurs it's one thing. For a professional who has a client paying for film, or who has a lot riding on the outcome, it's quite another. I never use it for important stuff even though it's probably fine. Why take a chance when film is cheap compared to the other expenses associated with a project or job?

Having said, that, DO NOT use out of date TMZ even if it's only a month or two out of date, even if it's been frozen. Anything else in the freezer lasts well beyond the date, especially B&W

 

[crawdiddy]

For amateurs it's one thing. For a professional who has a client paying for film, or who has a lot riding on the outcome, it's quite another. I never use it for important stuff even though it's probably fine. Why take a chance when film is cheap compared to the other expenses associated with a project or job?

Having said, that, DO NOT use out of date TMZ even if it's only a month or two out of date, even if it's been frozen. Anything else in the freezer lasts well beyond the date, especially B&W

Hola, Kodaquero!

Que es TMZ?

 

[crawdiddy]

Much safer then milk or eggs of the same vintage.

Dang! I was going to say Safe as Milk, but you scooped me.

 

[Gary E]

I am currently using the rest of my 40 or so rolls of Provia 400F and Astia 100F that expired back in 2005 (bought bulk at a good deal). They were kept in the fridge the first 2 years after expiration, now they're in the freezer. I haven't seen anything out of the ordinary till this day. The only thing I did notice was the sensitivity with the Astia, seems to underexpose a little. The colors seem fine, but I agree with some that if it is to be used to produce results professionally or for that one in a life time critical shot you won't have a chance to do over, you should use fresh film.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

What exactly does a bad roll look like when dev'ed

Expired film isn't necessarily "bad". It can still be exposed and developed properly years and years after its expiration date, provided that is stored properly (i.e. in a fridge). Also, "current" film isn't necessarily good, for it can go "bad" quickly if you leave it in a very hot place, process it cool, don't use the correct temperature during development, etc.

Also, it'll never ever explode, so you can consider it safe

 

[LeicaTom]

Much safer then milk or eggs of the same vintage.

Now that`s funny!

I`m currently shooting with expired Kodak Gold from 2000 and crossprocessing Kodak Slide from 2004 with no problems.....and really crazy I found forgotten film that was exposed back in 1999 in my freezer and they developed and look just fine

Goes to show if you keep it frozen it lasts almost forever!

Tom

 

[ClaremontPhoto]

I often use 1990's film, and never keep it in a refrigerator or freezer.

 

[venchka]

Use it. A little personal testing with any film, new or old, is always a safe thing to do.

The newest film I'm using expired before yours did.

 

[gb hill]

I shoot expired film all the time. Here is some Fuji super hq 100 thats never seen a refrigerator & expired in 2003. Shot with an Olympus Pen half frame camera.

 

[gb hill]

Here is some Kodak TMax 400 that expired in 2007. I shot this a few weeks ago & developed in D76 1+3 for 20 mins.

 

[Tom A]

Black and white film is generally insensitive to aging too fast. The exception being "super speed" films, NP 1600/TMZ/Delta 3200. They do fog quite quickly, even when frozen.
Tri X/HP5 and other common 400 are safe for at least 2-3 years after expiry date, if stored properly. I have used older than that Tri X - up to 25 year old. After 5 years you start seeing fog build up and if it is frozen maybe 8-10 years. It is still usable, but you have to add anti-fog, either tablets (Kodak) or 10 ml of 1% Benzotriazole/roll.
Slower films can last even longer, Panatomic X, after 20 years in a dark corner of my darkroom, worked fine in Beutler and Rodinal, with a 50 asa setting. Minute fog, but not even enough to have to correct for it while printing. I do have 300 ft of Ilford Pan F in the freezer. Shot 100 ft last year - looks fine, even after 15 years in the freezer.
However. I do have 5 rolls of Kodak Black and White with an expiry date of July 1931. I did some test from a small "clip" and it has gone down from its original "high speed" status of 32 asa in 1931 to approximately 1 asa today.
Definitely a film for a very sunny day at high noon! Looks like it would take Rodinal 1:25 for 10 minutes and at least 10 ml of Benzotriazole/roll to subdue the fog to an acceptable level. This is also Nitrite base film, so one has to treat it with respect. It is almost the same thing as "gun cotton" and is highly flammable.

 

[Pablito]

Black and white film is generally insensitive to aging too fast. The exception being "super speed" films, NP 1600/TMZ/Delta 3200. They do fog quite quickly, even when frozen.

Yeah, exactly.