Hi stereo friends,

I just aquired a bunch of fresh Provia 100F slide film (120 and 135).
How do I store these long term?

I have read on Google that some recommends putting them in double zip lock bags (vacuum packed) and in a normal household freezer.
Then they recommend leaving it out of the freezer to thaw in room temperature for 24 hours before loading a roll in the camera.

Do you guys agree with this?

What are your recommendations?

How long would you estimate they can last in these conditions?

All the best,

Jesper

On 6/6/2018 3:38 AM, jeppeln@yahoo.com [MF3D-group] wrote:

> Hi stereo friends,
>
> I just aquired a bunch of fresh Provia 100F slide film (120 and 135).
> How do I store these long term?

Stable, low temperature is the best. If you have an
old-fashioned (not self-defrosting) freezer, that's where
you wanna store it. Otherwise, keep it as cold and stable as
you can. The colder and more stable, the better.

If you have a vacuum packer, that won't hurt, but I wonder
if it makes a big difference with factory-sealed rolls.

> Then they recommend leaving it out of the freezer to thaw in room temperature for 24 hours before loading a roll in the camera.

{shrug} It kind of depends on where and how you are going to
us it. If I'm going out to shoot in the middle of the
winter, my film will be frozen by the time I use it, even if
it started out warm. On those days, I just pull film from
the freezer, throw it in my pack.

On other days, I also just pull it from the freezer and
throw it in my pack. By the time I get wherever I'm going,
it has thawed out. Think about anything else you grab from
the freezer. A roll of film isn't very large. How long will
that take to thaw?

But how 'thawed' does it need to be? I want it warm enough
neither the film-base nor emulsion crack. My cameras have a
relatively gentle film path. Hasselblads, for example, have
a very severe film path in their film magazines. I've never
shot with one, though. Is that film path tight enough to
require warmer film? I don't know.

A larger concern to me than cracking, is dew point. If the
film is below dew point, moisture from the air will condense
on it even if it isn't freezing. If it's 80F and 80%, dew
point is at about 75F. If your film isn't at least that
warm, you risk condensation.


--
John Thurston
Juneau Alaska
http://stereo.thurstons.us

That's a good point, if the pack is factory sealed, the vacuum packed zip bags won't do much (if anything) to help the air already trapped inside the film pack.

{shrug} It kind of depends on where and how you are going to
us it. If I'm going out to shoot in the middle of the
winter, my film will be frozen by the time I use it, even if
it started out warm. On those days, I just pull film from
the freezer, throw it in my pack.

On other days, I also just pull it from the freezer and
throw it in my pack. By the time I get wherever I'm going,
it has thawed out. Think about anything else you grab from
the freezer. A roll of film isn't very large. How long will
that take to thaw?

It sounds like it is pretty straight forward and not too much to worry about as long as it gets at least some time to "rest" outside the freezer.

A larger concern to me than cracking, is dew point. If the
film is below dew point, moisture from the air will condense
on it even if it isn't freezing. If it's 80F and 80%, dew
point is at about 75F. If your film isn't at least that
warm, you risk condensation.

This sounds like the main concern here, how do you prevent condensation to build up when taking the roll out of the freezer?
Forgive my lack of knowledge here, but I mean the roll is going to be well under the dew point for X amount of time before it reaches the same temperature as the air outside of the freezer.

What do you do to minimize the risk of condensation?
When I think about it the theme music to Mission Impossible plays in my head. : )


All the best,
Jesper

On 6/6/2018 9:27 AM, jeppeln@yahoo.com [MF3D-group] wrote:

> how do you prevent condensation to build up when taking the roll out of the freezer?
> Forgive my lack of knowledge here, but I mean the roll is going to be well under the dew point for X amount of time before it reaches the same temperature as the air outside of the freezer.

Don't crack the seal on the foil until the roll has exceeded
dew point. As long as the roll is in its factory packaging,
it is surrounded by dry air and there is nothing to condense.

--
John Thurston
Juneau Alaska
http://stereo.thurstons.us

35mm canisters are light tight and water tight. 

On Thu, Jun 7, 2018 at 1:05 PM, jeppeln@yahoo.com [MF3D-group]

wrote:

 

Don't crack the seal on the foil until the roll has exceeded
dew point. As long as the roll is in its factory packaging,
it is surrounded by dry air and there is nothing to condense.

A good point!

So the film is sealed in dry air containers, is that also true for 35 mm packages?

Perfect! Thanks for the info!


Skickat från Yahoo Mail för iPhone

Den torsdag, juni 7, 2018, 22:05, skrev 'steve.bremer@yahoo.com' kidwithin@yahoo.com [MF3D-group] :

 

35mm canisters are light tight and water tight. 

Steve b
Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

On Thu, Jun 7, 2018 at 1:05 PM, jeppeln@yahoo.com [MF3D-group]

wrote:

 

Don't crack the seal on the foil until the roll has exceeded
dew point. As long as the roll is in its factory packaging,
it is surrounded by dry air and there is nothing to condense.

A good point!

So the film is sealed in dry air containers, is that also true for 35 mm packages?

I bought 100 rolls of Provia 100F film about 15 years ago for $1 per roll and it went directly into the freezer when I got it. It was already expired when I bought it which is why I got it at that price. I developed some of that film earlier this year, and it still looks OK to me. I'm down to about 10 rolls now.