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Thread: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

  1. #1
    Founder QT Luong's Avatar
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    Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    I've read quite a few stories about photographers buying quantities of their favorite soon-to-be-discountinued light-sensitive materials and storing them in freezers, but I am curious how long you can do that for color transparency film. What is the longest past its expiration date that you've used transparency film without ill effects?

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    Whatever David A. Goldfarb's Avatar
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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    Recently I found a roll of RDPIII 120 that I'd exposed in 2015 and has been unrefrigerated for the past 2-3 years. It expired in 2007 and was frozen for most of the time until I exposed it, but had been defrosted during moving a few times over the years. I had it processed at Icon in LA and much to my surprise, it looks perfect.

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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    I have always shot transparencies and when I started getting into large format 18 months ago was always on the lookout for out of date film for economy. Last year I bought a few boxes frozen from new of RDPIII dated 2004 which has come out completely fine, though strangely curly. Got some similar stored Ektachrome 2009 also fine. Others, older and of unknown storage history either lacked DMax and or tendency to magenta.

    I've got a load Fuji 400X 120 frozen and ration myself with that, perfect, such a gorgeous film. I shall have a wake when the last roll of that is used, might be a few years yet.

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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    Me? Frozen well over ten years -- E-6. Kodak, Fuji & Agfa. No problems.

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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    I use a lot of expired film. For me so far everything with a 2000 or later date seems to be fine.
    1990 - 2000 might have more or less color cast (Kodak and Fuji seem to be better)
    Anything before 1990 is low contrast and strong color shift. It can be to an extend corrected in scanning or printing, but it will look gritty. (And of course no projection)

    Here an 1987 scanned corrected example.

    https://instagram.com/p/BLorxQlB0_m/

  6. #6

    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    2008 I've purchased a carton with Fuji Provia 100F, some Astia 100 and 4 old Velvia 50 with date of expiration between 2008 and 2010. I've never put them into a freezer. From 2009 until 2013 the carton had been stored in a warehouse in south Spain without any aircon, that means a daytime temperature of around 32° C or 90° F. 3 years ago I started to use them, still not frozen, but stored in my closet at normal north European room temperature around 21° C or 70° F. Last year and this year I've used the oldest film from 2008 (expiration year identical to year of purchase). All colors intact, maybe the sensitivity is a bit lowered like 1 f-stop, that means instead of 100 ASA I should have rated the exposure to 80 ASA. This was for the Provia and Astia. The Velvia behaved completely different: I came out very hard in contrast after development, limited to 4 or 5 EV in tonal range. But colors are intact, which is fascinating me.

    A sample of a Provia 100F I have exposed December 2016, around 9 years old, stored in the above mentioned carton:

    Click image for larger version. 

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  7. #7
    village idiot BennehBoy's Avatar
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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    I'm shooting E64T that expired in 2004, it comes out perfectly (I can't notice any issues anyway). I've only kept it fridge stored since I picked it up on this forum in 2008.

    I've some 1995 expired Provia and some 1994 expired Ektachrome 200 to shoot yet, 25 sheets & 75 sheets respectively. I'll be shooting some tests of this at the weekend (and probably developing them too).

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    village idiot BennehBoy's Avatar
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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    So I just developed some 1994 Ektachrome 200, I shot one sheet at box and one at 100, the 100 looks better but tbh both are fine.

    I'll put up a scan when I get round to it.

  9. #9
    village idiot BennehBoy's Avatar
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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    This is one of the 94 expired Ektachrome 200 shots I took yesterday. I shot this at 100 ASA as a compromise, but it turned out to actually be a little overexposed - I'll try 160 next time.

    There's a magenta cast on the slide that I corrected as best I could in post process.


  10. #10
    Founder QT Luong's Avatar
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    Re: Longest expired transparency film you have used successfully?

    Thanks for sharing. My freezer-stored Astia sheets have an expiration date of 2000. A few years ago, I got good results with prompt shooting and processing. However, when I let exposed film sit for a while before processing, I got nasty color shifts and reduced contrast.

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