Do you overexpose expired film?

There is a very general rule of thumb, that you should overexpose by one stop for every decade the film is out of date. So, for example, if a film is 400 ISO, but expired in 2010, you should rate it at 200 ISO.

What happens when you use expired film?

Over time the chemicals on the film lose their potency and start to deteriorate. The silver halides in the films’ emulsion degrade and lose their sensitivity. As a result, colours will lose their vibrancy, and contrasts will fade and grain increases. Eventually, expired film becomes foggy and unusable.

Can you process expired film?

Yes. Old film doesn’t go bad all at once – colors shift, contrast fades away, and fog builds up. Old film (~10+ years past the process date) will have faded, skewing towards magenta. In many cases, this is preferred and authentic to the time.

Will expired 35mm film still work?

After the day the film expires, the manufacturer is not responsible for the problems you may encounter when using it, but the emulsion still works properly. The chemicals on the films’ emulsion would eventually lose light sensitivity, however gradually!

What should I shoot with film that expired 20 years ago?

One commonly cited rule of thumb for shooting expired film is to add an extra stop of exposure for every decade since the film expired. So if you’re shooting an ISO 1600 roll of film that expired 20 years ago, you should shoot as though it were an ISO 400 roll.

What should the ISO be on expired film?

So, if the film is ISO 200, drop it to ISO 100. This does place limitations on your film, as most cameras won’t drop further than ISO 100. If you have a light meter or exposure calculator, you can still find the appropriate settings. Expired film is as trendy as the duck-faced selfie.

How many stops of light should I put on expired film?

There is a rule that most agree with, yet others say is complete nonsense. For every decade of the film’s expiredness, you should add one more stop of light. So, if the film is ISO 200, drop it to ISO 100. This does place limitations on your film, as most cameras won’t drop further than ISO 100.

Can you shoot expired film at box speed?

Generally speaking, for all ISO 200-400 film that’s been cold stored and expired anything up to 10-20 years, go ahead and shoot your film it at box speed (its native ISO). That covers colour negative, colour slide and black and white negative and slide film.