Darkroom
Troubleshooting Tips for Film
* Scenario 1: No images - Ends are black, frames are transparent.
Problem: Your pictures are underexposed.
Reason 1) Check your ISO. I'm not a gambling woman, but I'd bet money that you forgot to set your ISO to the correct number.
Reason 2) If you know for certain that your ISO is set correctly, make sure you understand how your light meter works. Chances are better that certain that you are metering incorrectly and underexposing the film.
* Scenario 2: No images - The entire film strip is black.
Problem: Your pictures are overexposed.
Reason 1) Make sure the film you are using never sees the light of day before, during, or after you take your exposures. Even just seconds of exposure to light can destroy your film.
Common reasons film is overexposed:
a) The back of your camera popped open while you had film loaded.
b) The film was exposed to light when rewinding and unloading your film canister
c) The film was exposed to light when loading your reel and development tank
d) You skipped the fixer step when developing the film.
Reason 2) Check your ISO settings. There is a chance you are metering incorrectly.
* Scenario 3: Negatives are very faint - the entire film is transparent-ish.
Problem: Your film is underexposed
Reason 1) Make sure you are reading your meter correctly and that your ISO is set to the correct setting.
Reason 2) Make sure you are taking the temperature of your developer correctly and developing your film for the correct amount of time. There is a chance you are not allowing it to develop long enough to produce pictures.
* Scenario 4: Negatives are very dark - the entire film is black-ish.
Problem: Your film was fogged or exposed to light
Reason 1) Make sure you are reading your meter correctly and that your ISO is set to the correct setting.
Reason 2) Make sure you are taking the temperature of your developer correctly and developing your film for the correct amount of time. There is a chance you are over-developing the film.
* Scenario 5: Negatives are blank - the entire film is transparent.
Problem: Your film was fixed but never developed.
Reason 1) Pay attention to your chemistry. Make sure you are following the steps for developing your film correctly. If you add the fixer before adding your developer, your images will be erased from your film, and you will wind up with completely undeveloped film.
Reason 2) You rewound your film before exposing it, and developed an unexposed roll of film. Oops.
* Scenario 6: Negatives came out with weird marks.
Problem: Your film was mishandled during developing
Reason 1) Channel marks and swishy lines usually indicate too much agitation.
Reason 2) White water spots indicate the film was not dried properly
Reason 3) Crescent shaped marks indicate the roll of film was bent while loading the film
Reason 4) Milky blotches indicate the film came into contact with itself when loaded on the reel
Reason 5) Small wormy looking patterns caused by chemistry that is too hot or too cold
Reason 6) Film has overall white milky appearance because it has not been fixed long enough
Scenario 7: Negatives are increasingly fogged across the roll (edge gets darker)
Problem: Your tank was loaded incorrectly
Reason 1) The reels were loaded into the tank without the center core.
Scenario 8: Negatives are fogged intermittently across the bottom/top
Problem: Your equipment is leaking light
Reason 1) There is a light leak in your canister - one end is not sealed
Reason 2) There is a light leak in your camera - The back door does not seal.
Write down reminders to yourself based on the problems you encountered (if any).
For your next attempt, make sure you correct the errors from your previous attempt.
Problem: Your pictures are underexposed.
Reason 1) Check your ISO. I'm not a gambling woman, but I'd bet money that you forgot to set your ISO to the correct number.
Reason 2) If you know for certain that your ISO is set correctly, make sure you understand how your light meter works. Chances are better that certain that you are metering incorrectly and underexposing the film.
* Scenario 2: No images - The entire film strip is black.
Problem: Your pictures are overexposed.
Reason 1) Make sure the film you are using never sees the light of day before, during, or after you take your exposures. Even just seconds of exposure to light can destroy your film.
Common reasons film is overexposed:
a) The back of your camera popped open while you had film loaded.
b) The film was exposed to light when rewinding and unloading your film canister
c) The film was exposed to light when loading your reel and development tank
d) You skipped the fixer step when developing the film.
Reason 2) Check your ISO settings. There is a chance you are metering incorrectly.
* Scenario 3: Negatives are very faint - the entire film is transparent-ish.
Problem: Your film is underexposed
Reason 1) Make sure you are reading your meter correctly and that your ISO is set to the correct setting.
Reason 2) Make sure you are taking the temperature of your developer correctly and developing your film for the correct amount of time. There is a chance you are not allowing it to develop long enough to produce pictures.
* Scenario 4: Negatives are very dark - the entire film is black-ish.
Problem: Your film was fogged or exposed to light
Reason 1) Make sure you are reading your meter correctly and that your ISO is set to the correct setting.
Reason 2) Make sure you are taking the temperature of your developer correctly and developing your film for the correct amount of time. There is a chance you are over-developing the film.
* Scenario 5: Negatives are blank - the entire film is transparent.
Problem: Your film was fixed but never developed.
Reason 1) Pay attention to your chemistry. Make sure you are following the steps for developing your film correctly. If you add the fixer before adding your developer, your images will be erased from your film, and you will wind up with completely undeveloped film.
Reason 2) You rewound your film before exposing it, and developed an unexposed roll of film. Oops.
* Scenario 6: Negatives came out with weird marks.
Problem: Your film was mishandled during developing
Reason 1) Channel marks and swishy lines usually indicate too much agitation.
Reason 2) White water spots indicate the film was not dried properly
Reason 3) Crescent shaped marks indicate the roll of film was bent while loading the film
Reason 4) Milky blotches indicate the film came into contact with itself when loaded on the reel
Reason 5) Small wormy looking patterns caused by chemistry that is too hot or too cold
Reason 6) Film has overall white milky appearance because it has not been fixed long enough
Scenario 7: Negatives are increasingly fogged across the roll (edge gets darker)
Problem: Your tank was loaded incorrectly
Reason 1) The reels were loaded into the tank without the center core.
Scenario 8: Negatives are fogged intermittently across the bottom/top
Problem: Your equipment is leaking light
Reason 1) There is a light leak in your canister - one end is not sealed
Reason 2) There is a light leak in your camera - The back door does not seal.
Write down reminders to yourself based on the problems you encountered (if any).
For your next attempt, make sure you correct the errors from your previous attempt.