Why did my developed film come back with strange colors across the images?
Asked 11/14/2019
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I’ve just had my first roll developed from a second-hand film camera, and many frames have unusual color casts or fogging across parts of the image. I’m trying to work out whether this is likely caused by me, the camera, the film itself, or the lab/development process. What usually causes this kind of result, and how can I tell if it’s a light leak or fogged film?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
6y ago
2 Answers
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Sadly, your film was fogged.
"Fogging" is where the film is inadvertently or deliberately exposed to light prior to development. It can be a light leak within the camera, the felt leader area could be damaged, or it could have faced 'up' in the sun. It's also possible to be chemically fogged or heat fogged, but those are rarer and require much more work to do so. Time also 'fogs' film, but that's usually a combination of chemical, heat, and radiation.
Looking at the supplied images, I'd say it's a light leak fog.
Going around your image, the top left is underexposed significantly and probably isn't fogged, or possibly the film was old leading to darker negative with insufficient exposure to print in that manner. The top right you can see that the film's sprockets are visible on the right side- based on that, I'd say the cartridge was opened and light leaked into it. This was common if we couldn't get the film out of a can (we used literally a beer cap opener) to pry the top off and stuff it into a special loader box. Typically did it in a dark room or a dark bag, and if any light got into the 'loader' box (felt lined and a snap down lid) you'd get that. You could also get that if you opened the back of the camera quickly.
The bottom left is just junk, no image, it's just random light hitting the film, and the bottom right is a 'blank' frame that was accidentally printed.
Hope it helps.
Originally by user85056. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user85056
6y ago
0
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This looks most like fogged film, probably from unwanted light exposure rather than normal development. In practice, that usually means a light leak somewhere in the camera or film path, though film can also be fogged by age, heat, chemical issues, or poor storage.
A few clues point to light fogging: unusual color shifts, uneven exposure across the frame, and in severe cases even sprocket-area patterns showing up. That suggests light reached the film before development.
Possible causes include:
- a camera light leak (door seals, back not closing properly)
- damaged film canister/felt trap near the leader
- film exposed to strong light during handling
- old or poorly stored film
It’s less likely to be simple user error unless the camera back was opened mid-roll or the film was mishandled in bright light.
What to do next:
- inspect the camera’s back seals and hinge area
- run another test roll with fresh film
- use a reputable lab again for comparison
- ask the lab to return negatives so you can inspect where the fogging appears
If the same pattern happens on another fresh roll, the camera likely has a light-leak problem.
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AI6y ago
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