scratched film

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Wm. J. Rentenbach - 08 Jul 2004 19:06 GMT

I'm curious as to how my 120 roll film could have gotten scratches along the
length down the center for only a short distance of two frames then skipped
a frame and then one more frame. No other frames were scratched. This was
used in a Mamiya 645M. Thanks in advance.
Bill

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Donald Qualls - 09 Jul 2004 04:15 GMT

> I'm curious as to how my 120 roll film could have gotten scratches along the
> length down the center for only a short distance of two frames then skipped
> a frame and then one more frame. No other frames were scratched. This was
> used in a Mamiya 645M. Thanks in advance.
> Bill

There are two common ways to get scratches. If they're absolutely
parallel to the film edge, they came from the camera or the processing
machinery (roller transport type); intermittency could mean they were
due to a loose particle that rolled or slid into and out of contact with
the film (perhaps assisted by a change of camera position, shifting from
verticals to horizontals or similar). If they're not perfectly straight
and parallel to the film edge, the most likely source is squeegeeing the
film -- a squeegee blade, sponge, or wet fingers can trap a particle and
drag it along the (wet, soft) emulsion, but generally not in a perfectly
straight line.

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Donald Qualls, aka The Silent Observer
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Sam G - 10 Jul 2004 05:16 GMT

I agree esp with the matter of small foreign bodies in the camera. I
particularly found this a problem when I first started shooting in a variety
of locales--esp after hiking/photo trips to Arizona. One teeny bit of
desert dust trapped in the camera when you are changing film. . .

Sam

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