Thirty-three year old film...

[Damian]

I was in an antique store about a month ago, and asked if they had any cameras. The proprietor brought a laundry basket up from the basement, which was full of mostly garbage - transistor radios, a folding brownie (with a $115 sticker on it, lol), some flashbulbs, and giant plastic Polaroid Big Shot, and one roll of Kodak 620 verichrome pan asa 125 film with a develop before date of 1973. They gave me the whole basket to sell on ebay. I stand to make tens of dollars.

This film should have been developed before I was born, but I want to throw it in my late grandmother's Duaflex IV and see if anything comes out. Any ideas on what I should do to develop it? I've currently got Xtol at home, and the data sheet shows 6 minutes using it straight. This is kind of a darkroom thread, but I'm sure a lot of you have experience with doing something like this, and could offer a tip or two?

 

[George S.]

The expert to check with is a fellow over on photo net- Gene M. Go over there and search "found film" or the posts made by Gene M. He's always finding film in old cameras that he buys and he's gotten good at developing these films, some that I've seen posted have been inside the cameras since the early 1950s.

 

[Damian]

Wow! I really just want the 620 spool, but it hurts me to rip off the film and chuck it. I'll see what I can find over at pnet too!

 

[ch1]

There was a thread posted by a member from Holland a few month ago. She shot a roll of film from the late '60's and had decent results. You might want to search here for that thread.

 

[r-brian]

You can go to nelsonfoto.com and find Gene easier.

Sounds like the film you have has not been exposed yet. Chances are it will need extra exposure after that long. Rate it a half the ASA (back then it was still ASA) and develop it normally. Chances are you will get something but not a 'fine art' print, unless you consider something Holga-like 'fine art'.

Try it and see, you've got nothing to lose.

Brian

 

[Damian]

You can go to nelsonfoto.com and find Gene easier.

Sounds like the film you have has not been exposed yet. Chances are it will need extra exposure after that long. Rate it a half the ASA (back then it was still ASA) and develop it normally. Chances are you will get something but not a 'fine art' print, unless you consider something Holga-like 'fine art'.

Try it and see, you've got nothing to lose.

Brian

Thanks Brian. It's good advice, but I don't have a camera that I can rate it in at all. I'm gonna throw it in the Duaflex box camera, which has two shutter speeds - 'instant' and 'long', which is bulb. The film is still in the box, which has been in a basement for a good long time. I've read a lot of threads on people's experience with old film. Some have developed for longer times, others for shorter, and results don't seem to be consistent of course. I might just shoot it and process it straight with Xtol, since Xtol is a speed enhancing developer. Given where the film has been - who knows? I'm not looking for fine art prints. Just viable images I guess, to show my family, from a camera they haven't seen used in many decades.
Many of the photos in my family's old photo albums are contact prints made from this camera well before they emigrated from Italy. Plus, I want that spool to re-roll 120 film onto. 🙂

 

[lynn]

There was a thread posted by a member from Holland a few month ago. She shot a roll of film from the late '60's and had decent results. You might want to search here for that thread.

🙂 That would be me.
And yes, I was delighted with the results, but then again I shot the '67 Svemapan in a Ricoh Gr1s, and I had a chain-lab develop the film (scanned it myself) - so I can't really advise on the processing part. I have two more rolls, these ones expired in 1968, and I am so looking forward to using them!

 

[wclavey]

I, too, have looked at Gene's materials and have used various techniques, with varying degrees of success, to get pictures from film that was exposed 30+ years ago. But I have not had success getting anything but fog on 30+ year old unexposed film, regardless of the exposure I give it. I will be anxious to see your results. I have a couple unopened pro-packs of Plus-X and Tri-X from the early 70s that my son and I have tried to use, but with no success.

 

[Damian]

THEY LIVE. I went about town this weekend, and just decided to shoot wherever I might be. I didn't capture anything good, mind you, since I really didn't think I'd be doing anything but wasting developer.

Well... After 8 minutes in Xtol 1:1 at 68 degrees, I have PERFECT negatives. Well, unless they disintegrate as they dry. The density appears to be spot on. At first glance, they look nice and clear with decent contrast. I will return when I scan a couple! 🙂

 

[Damian]

In case anyone was actually interested in seeing a sample....

Here's one shot, right outta the scanner, with a section enlarged. 2400dpi.

 

[Honus]

Sweet!

Nice to know that 33 yr. old film still has life.

There's a lot of silver in those negatives, Damian. Good job.

Robert

 

[aad]

Beautiful.