Before I put my exposed film in the fridge....

Hello,

 

I have taken some shots (120 films) that are very important to me, but I can't process these films now that everything is closed for weeks at least. I am also not leaving home nor I plan to make a trip to the post office/dropbox.

 

My room has become very humid and I am worried and they have been there for weeks. Are you sure that I can just move the films the fridge? I have read that but I wanted to double check. I want a place to store them for at least a month or two. Also fridge vs freezer? I am in disbelief that it is actually OK to freeze exposed and unprocessed film (shrinkage, temp damage...?).

 

Grateful for advice from people experience with the subject.

Unopened film can be refrigerated or frozen because the humidity in the packaging is controlled. I don't know about film that's been opened/exposed but there's probably some risk of damage if you don't do it right. More research needed!

Due to lower ambient temperature in the refrigerator or freezer, you slow down chemical deterioration of the images. Are there other issues...sure! Potential formation of moisture or ice crystals on the film itself condensing out of the air as it cools. By reducing the amount of air surrounding the film, you diminish these potential issues. Several years ago frozen films were recovered from the Adm. Byrd TAntarctic expedition many years ago. So I'd say just go ahead.

Put in a double zip freezer bag with as much air as possible removed or shrink wrap if you have a vacuum sealer.

Here is a quote from the Kodak publication 'Storage and Care of KODAK Photographic Materials':

 

"Once you have exposed your film, paper, or material, it is important to minimize changes in the latent (unprocessed) image. For consistent results, process the film, paper, or material promptly after exposure. This is particularly important with professional color films, because they are optimized for processing soon after exposure. Storage at a low temperature after exposure will retard latent-image changes. You can keep exposed, unprocessed film in a refrigerator for a few days when necessary. Put the film in a sealed container, and allow the unopened container to reach room temperature before removing the film for processing."

Actually, I wanted to add something to my previous reply...

 

15 years ago, I took a trip around Southeast Asia immediately followed by a trip around Australia. The trip took about 25 weeks and I exposed slightly less than 50 rolls of film. I didn't make any attempt to store my film at cold temperatures, and as you can imagine, 25 weeks in these parts of the world is not really ideal conditions for film. When I finally got everything processed and scanned, I didn't notice any ill effects.

 

I think people new to film (maybe that's you, maybe not) get a bit wound up about this. In most cases, it really isn't that critical. I mean, if you store film in the fridge for a few weeks or even months, you probably won't notice any difference ultimately when the film is developed.

The photofinishing industry has for many years relied on "control strips". These are short strips of exposed film suppled by film manufacturers and third parties. These precision exposed films arrive by subscription, at the lab, packed in dry ice. Upon receipt, we place them in a freezer. Each day, we take a box containing many strips from the freezer to the darkroom. In the dark, we open the box of frozen film and remove one of the stirps to be processed. The remaining strips in the box are returned to the freezer but not necessarily right away. This ritual has been practiced for more than a century. Damage due to storing, removal, and restoring, very very rare. In other words, don't worry, just pack your film in a zip-lock bag and squeeze the bag to reduce air-space. By the way, I was one of those third party suppliers (maker of test films). The freezing retards latent image shifting. Most shifting occurs in the first 48 hours. Control strips are made by precision exposure base on an aim point after the principle latent image shift. To accomplish, after exposure they are held at room temperature for a time and then frozen. The real danger is moisture from condensation as they warm up, before processing.