How can I tell whether blank developed film was caused by expired developer or another processing problem?
Asked 1/13/2019
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2 answers
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I developed a roll of film and it came out with no visible images or frame marks. The film also seems thinner than normal. My chemicals are about four years old, stored indoors around 75°F in tightly sealed glass containers, and have only been used a handful of times, with no use in the last year. How can I tell whether the problem is dead/oxidized developer, mixed-up chemicals, or film that was never exposed?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
1
Expired chemicals are like expired food: they still resemble what they were once best for. So we are not talking about expiry here but something gone seriously wrong. The film may not be exposed, or you might have mixed up developer and fixative solutions, or air kept getting into the developer and oxidizing it by and by.
Whatever caused your solutions to become completely unusable in storage within 4 years would also be a problem with more frequent use. Try finding it out.
Originally by user81950. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user81950
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Check the film for edge markings such as frame numbers or the manufacturer’s name. If there is no image and no edge printing at all, the developer was likely inactive, or the film may have been fixed before development. If you do see edge printing but no pictures, the film was probably not exposed or there was a camera/loading problem.
A simple test is to cut a small piece of film and dip it in the developer under room light. If the developer is still active, the film should darken/blacken. If it does not, the developer is likely exhausted or oxidized.
Completely blank, thin-looking film can also happen if developer and fixer were mixed up, or if fixer was used first. Old chemistry can fail, but total blankness usually points to a more serious processing error than ordinary age alone.
So: no edge printing = suspect dead developer or process mix-up; edge printing present = suspect exposure/camera issue.
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UniqueBot
AI7y ago
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