Tricky Film Problem

So I recently got my hands on an old Kodak Six-20 fold-out, and decided to give it a go. It takes 620 medium format film, but that's not available anymore, so you apparently have to buy 120 and then respool it. So, for my first roll, I respooled, shall we say, sloppily. For some reason, I decided that a combination of ISO 100 film and weak light would be somehow okay. Now, I'm guessing it probably wasn't.

I took the first roll in yesterday for processing, and I got a call that said the film was completely overexposed, with nothing recoverable, although some traces of image on some of the frames (and there were, apparently, distinct frames). The guy on the phone thought it was something wrong with the camera, because there were distinct frames. My thought, though, is that I exposed the film some when I was respooling, and then trying to expose the film normally exposed it even further (I was using Sunny 16 in broad daylight, or modifying it for shade and such, so I'm assuming my exposures were generally correct). Also, if it helps any, the film was Fujichrome Superia. Who do y'all think was likely right?

If it really could be the camera, then I should probably spend my next roll doing some controlled tests, to determine to what extent the camera's markings are off, if they are. But if it was just the spooling process, then I may as well just go on and shoot normally with the next roll (I've loaded another roll onto the spare spool, and this time I did it in an interior bathroom, with the door closed, at night. I could see a slightly less dark patch at the bottom of the door, but throughout the process I couldn't see anything in the room, the film included, so that should be safe, right?).

So, what do y'all think? Should I just go ahead with the next roll, or could it really be a problem with the camera? Also, just out of curiosity, does anyone know just how much exposure lattitude you get with these films?

If you exposed the film to light it would be fogged black in spots, if not the whole roll.

If you have fogging along the edges, in weird places, etc. it could be the light seals on the camera failing.

If there's no fogging but all the images are over/underexposed it sounds like the meter is hosed (battery dead?).

My suggestion.. Spool the film...Load it in the camera.. DO NOT TAKE ANY EXPOSURES..take the film back out of the camera after a few hours. Develope the film. You have now taken any possible exposure issue out of the equation. Film has to be loaded in TOTAL darkenss.
Good luck....

Maybe not. Film accumulates exposure & your eyes don't. If you saw that light when you first went in there, there's probably too much. If it was after you'd been in there 5-10 minutes, maybe it's OK, but why not put a rug against the door to block it out.

Double Negative wrote in post #5874233
If you exposed the film to light it would be fogged black in spots, if not the whole roll.

If you have fogging along the edges, in weird places, etc. it could be the light seals on the camera failing.

If there's no fogging but all the images are over/underexposed it sounds like the meter is hosed (battery dead?).

Haha, meter. That's funny I don't even get a viewfinder that can tell me focus: I get to focus by estimating distance to subject

PhotosGuy wrote in post #5875604
Maybe not. Film accumulates exposure & your eyes don't. If you saw that light when you first went in there, there's probably too much. If it was after you'd been in there 5-10 minutes, maybe it's OK, but why not put a rug against the door to block it out.

Unfortunately, I didn't notice it at all at first, or I would have. About half way through rewinding it, I was like "Oh, crap, that could be a light spill." I did do it pretty quickly the second time, though, and for the most part the backing paper should have kept any light off of the film, even if any was coming in, due to the angle I was holding it at, so I'm reaalllyyy hoping I was okay.

Anyways, I'm going to pick up the spool and negatives tomorrow, and I'll go ahead and post a quick scan, in case it makes the situation any more clear. It looks like y'all are thinking it's probably the camera, though?

If the images were "completely overexposed", there's a really good chance that the shutter is sticky and not closing at the proper time. If you can look through the shutter (no film in the camera and the back open), trip it at slower shutter speeds and see if it's about right or possibly staying open two or three times as long as it should.

You could also take the camera to a repair shop where they could use an instrument that checks shutter timing and tell you if it's OK or not and whether or not they could clean (and possibly repair) the shutter.

I agree fully that TOTAL darkness is a requirement. I use a "changing bag" (see this page at B&H for several of them)to spool film onto reels for processing and have never had a fogged roll.

Guess I underestimated the umm, "vintageness" of the gear.

bieber wrote in post #5875804
Haha, meter. That's funny I don't even get a viewfinder that can tell me focus: I get to focus by estimating distance to subject

SkipD wrote in post #5875923
If the images were "completely overexposed", there's a really good chance that the shutter is sticky and not closing at the proper time. If you can look through the shutter (no film in the camera and the back open), trip it at slower shutter speeds and see if it's about right or possibly staying open two or three times as long as it should.

You could also take the camera to a repair shop where they could use an instrument that checks shutter timing and tell you if it's OK or not and whether or not they could clean (and possibly repair) the shutter.

I agree fully that TOTAL darkness is a requirement. I use a "changing bag" (see this page at B&H for several of them)to spool film onto reels for processing and have never had a fogged roll.

The shutter doesn't appear to be sticking, but the slowest timed speed is 1/25, so it's hard to really tell. If I get the negatives back and there's no signs of fogging, though, I'll probably just go ahead and spend a roll testing it out...

Double Negative wrote in post #5876652
Guess I underestimated the umm, "vintageness" of the gear.

http://www.camerapedia​.org/wiki/Jiffy_Kodak_​Six-20

Haha. It's a tad newer than that one, but definitely something along the same lines

http://flickr.com/phot​os/tehbieber/261530299​2/

bieber wrote in post #5873824
the film was Fujichrome Superia.

That would be Fujifilm; Fujichrome would be slide film.

bieber wrote in post #5873824
Also, just out of curiosity, does anyone know just how much exposure lattitude you get with these films?

About a -1 / +1 1/2 stop I'd say.

bieber wrote in post #5877057
The shutter doesn't appear to be sticking, but the slowest timed speed is 1/25, so it's hard to really tell. If I get the negatives back and there's no signs of fogging, though, I'll probably just go ahead and spend a roll testing it out...

If the shutter is sticky, it's probably easy to tell; open the camera back, and look through the lens from the back. Press the shutter at a fast shutterspeed.
If it's sticky you'll see it.

If there are distinct frames, and no fogging between the frames, there's probably no leak in the camera back, nor a problem with the respooling.
There might be a leak in the bellows however.

René Damkot wrote in post #5877606
There might be a leak in the bellows however.

GOOD thought.

To me. that is more of a probability with a very old camera than just a possibility.

Wow, that sucker IS old... Nice.

Sit in a darkened room and open up the back, shine a flashlight around the bellows on the outside and see if you can see any pinholes perhaps.

I remember someone complaining after a different repair that included patching the bellows. Her complaint was that she could no longer photograph ghosts? They put a few holes in the bellows for her.

René Damkot wrote in post #5877606
That would be Fujifilm; Fujichrome would be slide film.

Ahhh, gotta get my lingo down straight

Aaannndddd, it looks like we have a winner! So I guess I'll take this into the local shop and see if they can do bellows repair (I have a bad feeling about that particular question), and if they can't, I guess just make do. They seem like awfully small holes, and I'm shooting ISO 100, so hopefully if I keep the camera closed until its time to actually take the shot, I can avoid too much overexposure. That, and maybe get a little piece of felt to drape over the top, as that's where almost all the holes are?

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