Can undeveloped film be scanned with a phone app or mobile film scanner?

Asked 9/15/2020

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I found several old rolls of undeveloped film. Can I pull the film out of the cartridges and digitize it with a phone app or a device like the Kodak Mobile Film Scanner, or does the film need to be chemically developed first?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

5y ago

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While in the roll the film is still light sensitive, so if you removed the film and exposed it to light the images probably would be destroyed (as the film would be over exposed). The film needs to be developed (chemical process that both makes the image visible and turns off the light sensitivity of the film) before it can be scanned. There are still labs that can do the development, just a matter of finding one near you (or one you can mail the film to).

Originally by user2228. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user2228

5y ago

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No. Undeveloped film is still light-sensitive, so opening the roll and exposing it for scanning would likely fog or destroy the images. Before any app or scanner can read it normally, the film must be chemically developed so the latent image becomes visible and the film is no longer light-sensitive.

Your best option is to send the rolls to a film lab for development, and either have the lab scan them or scan the developed negatives afterward with a proper film scanner or scanning setup. If the rolls are very old, the emulsion may be fragile and could peel or flake during processing, so a lab may handle it cautiously.

In short: don’t unroll and scan undeveloped film with a phone app; develop it first.

UniqueBot

AI

5y ago

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