 BetterPhoto Member |
Duration of quality I just found this site and hope that you can help me. How long can I keep used (exposed?) film before developing it? I just ran across 3 rolls of film that I never developed. I would guess that they are approximately 5 years old. Is it worth attempting to develop it? What are the odds that it will work? Thanks a lot.
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Hermann Graf |
Walter, normally, exposed films should be developed as soon as possible, i.e., after a few weeks' period. Also unexposed film runs out after appr. two years (color film). Therefore, it is questionable whether you will get good results. Color film is more sensitive than B&W, especially when it is not stored properly. In most cases, films stored too long show discolorization.
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John A. Lind |
There's only one sure-fire way to find out; have it developed. Unless they have been subjected to severe extremes of heat and humidity you should get something out of them. Along with the potential color shift, you are also likely to find the pictures slightly "soft" or out of focus (lacking acute sharpness). The reasons for this have to do with what happens to latent images on exposed film if they are not developed and fixed as soon as possible. The chemical reaction that occurred in the film emulsion when it was exposed to light will migrate to nearby crystals in the emulsion. Not only can this migration occur sideways within a color layer (color film has three layers: cyan, magenta and yellow), it can occur between color layers. The migration of the chemical reaction causes the "softness" and can be responsible for at least some of the color shift in addition to the aged emulsion. This migration occurs very slowly at a microscopic level so it's not normally a concern, but after five years, the effect being detectable is very likely. It's why Hermann recommended developing film as soon as possible following exposure. Longevity or "shelf life" of unexposed film is much higher than longevity of exposed film containing latent images. I try not to let any roll of consumer film sit in a camera for over a week after the first frame is exposed. For professional films which should be kept in refrigerated storage, a week after it's loaded even if completely unexposed. If film cannot be processed for a long time (several weeks), refrigerating the exposed film slows down the chemical changes considerably. Deep freezing is even better; it very nearly stops them. Note: -- John
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