curved holder edge

[Los]

has anyone seen this type of problem before? the bottom edge of the film looks as though the holder is curved. one side even had a light bleed mark. did i load this film wrong, or is this holder faulty? it's a used Riteway graphic 4x5 holder.

[Doremus Scudder]

Looks fine to me. Not all holders have straight guides at the top (where the bottom of your image is). Remove the dark slide on some empty holders and see for yourself.

Doremus Scudder

[David A. Goldfarb]

Yes, that looks normal. Just check the holder without film to be sure.

A problem one sometimes sees is that the border at the top edge of the image isn't sharp, which means the film isn't seated all the way in the holder.

[Los]

thanks for the heads up. i'll check the holder for a curved end the next time i'm changing film.

[Donald Qualls]

Most of the film sheaths I have for my plate cameras have a deeper curve than that, and the wooden 4x5 film holders are effectively a film sheath permanently mounted, rather than removable to accommodate glass plates as with my 9x12 cameras. Given that the metal sheath is folded from sheet, it's not too surprising if the end has a bit of a curve, nor does it do any harm.

The light leak is another problem entirely -- checked the felts in the dark slide slot lately?