Very unnusual circles in my negatives

[Joao]

Please help me:
I was testing a “new “ Olympus Stylus Epic and I found these images after developing hand-rolled Orwo UN 54. Those circles near the edge of the frame are regularly placed and are visible in only some frames (mostly in the pictures taken under sunlight - but not against the sun). There are obvious lightleaks, please ignore them. It’s the circles that puzzle me.
Can you sugest any explanation for those circles ?







Thank you for your input
Joao

 

[BLKRCAT]

they look like dirty transport rollers. I typically see this with cheap drugstore C41 processing machines. I realize that this isn't a C41 film.

Sometimes you can wash it off.

Did you process this yourself?

 

[Hatchetman]

Looks like a light leak. What does the pressure plate look like - does it have little holes/bumps like that?

 

[B-9]

Could they have been preflashed onto the film during the "hand loading"?

Curious, it really does look like a roller of some sort with little nubs.

 

[xayraa33]

I remember getting something similar when I used a development tank with apron (Kodacraft) back in the early 70s and I did not fill the tank fully up with developer and used uneven agitation.

 

[Larry H-L]

I, as Hatchetman suggests, would also suspect a light leak reflecting off of the dimples on the pressure plate. The circles have half-moon 3-d lighting on them, indicating a reflection from a concave surface.

 

[rfaspen]

Dimpled pressure plate. Now just how and where the light leak is manifesting?.....

 

[JoeV]

It looks like the streak light leak is related to the "dimples." It's the lower edge of the film being fogged, since the images are projected upside down onto the film plane from the lens.

I'd look at the light seals along the lower edge of the rear door.

~Joe

 

[sevo]

I am more inclined to the processing or handling error. Does your bulk loader have a roller?

I would not rule out the pressure plate light leak, but thanks to the AHA backing, the rear of film is nowhere as easily exposed as the front side, so it is very rare for a film to show a pressure plate imprint. Usually they already are zapped from the front before the light from the rear would have visible results.

 

[Joao]

Thank you for your answers and sugestions. The film was hand-rolled by me and developed at home in Diafine.

Looking at the negatives there are one or two of these circles also in the space between frames; inner reflection from a lightleak sounds a probable explanation.

Lightleak: The Olympus stylus epic has a small plastic protection in the vewfinder (half transparent, half black); this plastic piece was loose and I shoot without it, as I was afraid of loosing it. There is a strong possibility that light might have got in through the viewfinder in the absence of the black part of that plastic piece. I glued it in its place and I am currently finishing a roll . I will inform then about the results.

Thank you again
Joao

 

[Joao]

New findings

New findings

Some more information:
The replacement of the platic in the viewfinder had no effect.
But the pressure-plate has indeed several rows of dimples and those must be related to the 3D-like marks ( probable light reflections inside the camera). Some of you had sugested this possibility.

In a test roll they are evident almost to the center of the frame


Now the test: First I used black tape to cover the transparent window in the back door. No more circle marks but still a huge lightleak

Second step: some more tape over the lower eddge of the cover: no lightleaks. The causes of the problem were found.

Now I need to find a way to seal the lower edgge of the back door. A thin rubber seal is still there, I will leave in place and add some of the stuff Jon Goodman sent me.
Any other sugestions ?
Thank you for your comments and advice.
Joao

 

[sevo]

How about the foam around the cartridge window? That would be in a position where light leaks would get behind the film, and foam seals tend to go bad after 15-20 years...