Negative Archival and Numbering System

[Vlad Soare]

Hello,

What system do you use to number and identify your large format negatives, and to quickly find the negative that a certain print has been made from? I have a system that works well with small and medium format negatives, but it doesn't quite seem to suit large format ones.
I'd like to hear about your methods. I could use some ideas.

Thank you.

[Michael Graves]

I'm supposed to identify and file them?

[David de Gruyl]

I'm also at a loss. I wish I could number and file them, but somehow I just toss them in a box and shuffle when I am looking for a particular negative to print.

Needless to say, this is suboptimal.

Why not extend your system for smaller formats?

[jslabovitz]

I've only started shooting large format (5x7), but so far what's worked is adopting my roll-film system, which I've used since 1997: each roll is identified with a code representing the date it was started (eg, today's code would be "110126"; if I shot another roll, it would be "110126b"), followed by a sequence number for the shot -- so the fifth image on a roll started today would be called "110126.05".

This gives me several advantages:

- I don't have to keep track of any absolute roll or other long-running sequence numbers. If I am shooting many rolls/shots during a day, I generally have them all with me, so I can figure out the next identifier.

- The identifier sorts well (except for pre-2000 shots) in a file browser or image-management application.

- The identifier is not biased towards any particular project, camera, etc., so I don't run into the issue of needing multiple identifiers for the same image.

For large-format, I've simply figured that anything shot on a given date counts as one roll, and the individual shots are numbered according to the order they were shot. So I end up using the same sort of identifier.

When I use a particular negative, I use the same identifier on the scan file, print, web page, etc. (This doesn't work, of course, if I combine multiple negatives, but I don't often do that.)

Hope this helps.

[Leigh]

I use the same system for all formats:

nYYMMDDrr-ff

n = format identifier
YYMMDD = date
rr = roll or sheet number
-ff = frame number, for prints from roll film

I maintain a subject index that cross-references to the individual roll or frame.

This system works nicely with computer databases.

- Leigh

[Jeff Bannow]

All rolls of film are marked with a unique code, to help identify and track negatives and prints.

The format is as follows:
YYMMDD-#SS-FF
YY – year / MM – month / DD – day / # – roll number for that date /
SS – format code / FF – frame number

Ex.: 960515-166-08 is the 8th frame from the 1st roll of 6x6 film, from May 15th, 1996.

Format codes:

DIG – digital “negatives”
35 – 35mm
35S – 35mm slide
645 – 6x4.5 (120)
66 – 6x6 (120)
67 – 6x7 (120)
69 – 6x9 (120)
612 – 6x12 (120)
45 – 4x5
810 – 8x10

[ic-racer]

For rollfilm I started at #1 back in 1975 and just have numbered each roll consecutively for each format.

For LF I number each negative file page only with date of processing.

I figure the date is all I need to record. Since I don't include the sun or moon in my images, it will be difficult for the workers at the High Altitude Observatory at Boulder, Colorado to date my famous images....

[Bruce Barlow]

For sheet film, I write the identifier on the film edge with a Staedtler .1mm pen:

FYYNN, where F is Format (8 for 8x10, 5 for 5x7, 4 for 4x5)
YY is year (10, now 11) and NN is the consecutive number.

The pen's nice because it shows up on the proof.

[Ben Syverson]

My rollfilm numbering is in the format:
FFF-RRRR-NN
Where FFF is the format, RRRR is the roll number with leading zeros, and NN is the frame number. So 135-0149-30.psd would be the 30th frame of the 149th roll of 135 in my archive. This has the advantage of grouping nicely when you sort by filename on the computer. When possible I note the dates on the PrintFile negative page.

I also have a low-contrast 1200 dpi "contact scan" of every roll of film—like a contact sheet, it's just a scan of the whole negative page. That way I can refer back to a roll easily, and at 1200 dpi, I can see which frames are grossly out of focus. Those filenames take the same format, but instead of the frame number, I add the camera used:
135-0149-hexar.jpg

I'm not as careful with sheet film when it comes to numbering. However, I have digital photos that correspond to every sheet of film I've shot, so it's always possible to know the date and time.

[Vlad Soare]

Thank you.
My system for small and medium formats is similar to those presented here, though not as detailed. I just mark the year, the format, and a three digit sequence number, based on the assumption that I'll probably never shoot more than 999 films per year. Then on the back of each print I write a code like "09M007/5", which means the fifth frame on the seventh film made in 2009. Different formats go in different folders, and one PrintFile page contains one film. Other details, like date, subject, location, etc. are written on a small label in a corner of the page.
Encoding the shooting date in the negative's identifier would not work for me, because I almost never shoot a whole film in one day. In fact, with 35mm, it's not uncommon for me to shoot a film over the course of one or even two months.

I tried to use the same system with large format, but I didn't know how to define one film. I may take one picture today, two tomorrow, one next week, and so on. That's why I tried to consider each sheet as being one film, and giving each sheet a three digit sequence number. Like "10P037" meaning the 37th sheet shot in 2010 (the P stands for the Romanian word designating large format sheets). It does work, but I think it would be nicer if I could find a criterion for grouping the sheets somehow. Maybe I'll try to consider "one film" as being all sheets shot in the same week or month. Or maybe I'll regard every four sheets of 4x5" (and every one sheet of 8x10") as one film, to make one "film" correspond to one PrintFile page, like it does with smaller formats.

Bruce, I like your idea of writing the code directly on the sheet of film. It never occurred to me to do that. I'll try it.

Jeff, I think I've discovered a bug in your system.
Would 1645 mean the first 645 film, or the 16th 4x5"?