Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
p.1 #1Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
I have done a lot of research regarding this question but answers people gave in the photo forums over the past few decades have been contradictory. Seems there’s is no consensus especially when comes to storing exposed color film for up to a year. The days of shooting 50 rolls a week on some trip are over. I don’t want to give up film so it can’t be all or nothing.
I don’t shoot much film these days and I like both color and b/w. For C41 color I want to be able to have at least 5 rolls before sending them off to a lab due to costs of return shipping of the negatives. It isn’t like I can walk down the street and drop off a roll. For b/w I don’t want to process a roll at a time every few weeks. While Rodinal can last for ages fixers don’t last that long once uncapped even if I use those tiny amber glass bottles.
I don’t shoot much film these days and I like both color and b/w. For C41 color I want to be able to have at least 5 rolls before sending them off to a lab due to costs of return shipping of the negatives. It isn’t like I can walk down the street and drop off a roll. For b/w I don’t want to process a roll at a time every few weeks. While Rodinal can last for ages fixers don’t last that long once uncapped even if I use those tiny amber glass bottles.
Sep 27, 2026 at 09:24 AM
p.1 #2Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
Don't over think it. Just put them in your fridge for however long it takes before you need to send them out to be developed.
How do I know? Well.... a dear friend sent me a cr@p tonne of film that he had left over, ancient stuff really, because as a pro he stopped shooting film years ago when he went digital.
The interesting part of this story is one roll was marked '18 exposures shot' - on a 36 exp roll. So he shot 18, then for some reason unloaded the camera and left it at that. Maybe because it was for a personal project and he needed the camera for paid work? Who knows.
That roll was Kodak RVS Ektapress 200. From 35 years ago. I developed it I think early last year - after shooting the rest! - to see the results and what was on it. He told me all the film he sent me was in a box in his basement. Next to his water heater... So no cold storage! A couple of his images:
As you can see, being shot 35 years ago but developed recently does not seem to have made that much an effect. So just toss your shot film in the fridge, and get it developed when it suits you. It'll be fine.
How do I know? Well.... a dear friend sent me a cr@p tonne of film that he had left over, ancient stuff really, because as a pro he stopped shooting film years ago when he went digital.
The interesting part of this story is one roll was marked '18 exposures shot' - on a 36 exp roll. So he shot 18, then for some reason unloaded the camera and left it at that. Maybe because it was for a personal project and he needed the camera for paid work? Who knows.
That roll was Kodak RVS Ektapress 200. From 35 years ago. I developed it I think early last year - after shooting the rest! - to see the results and what was on it. He told me all the film he sent me was in a box in his basement. Next to his water heater... So no cold storage! A couple of his images:
As you can see, being shot 35 years ago but developed recently does not seem to have made that much an effect. So just toss your shot film in the fridge, and get it developed when it suits you. It'll be fine.
Sep 27, 2026 at 11:39 AM
p.1 #3Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
Thanks. I’ll just shoot film and not worry about it!
Sep 27, 2026 at 01:10 PM
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p.1 #4Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
It's always hard to say with a scan, but to be those do look a bit degraded. For motion picture film kodak says in the freezer up to 6 months.
Oct 07, 2026 at 09:53 AM
p.1 #5Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
marlinspike wrote:
It's always hard to say with a scan, but to be those do look a bit degraded. For motion picture film kodak says in the freezer up to 6 months.
Dood, the fiiln was exposed 35 years ago and not cold stored! But developed recently. The results are actually shockingly good given all that.
So shooting a roll today and throwing it in your fridge for however long before developing? No issues.
It's always hard to say with a scan, but to be those do look a bit degraded. For motion picture film kodak says in the freezer up to 6 months.
Dood, the fiiln was exposed 35 years ago and not cold stored! But developed recently. The results are actually shockingly good given all that.
So shooting a roll today and throwing it in your fridge for however long before developing? No issues.
Oct 07, 2026 at 11:58 AM
p.1 #6Freezing/refrigerating exposed film for long periods
Per Kodak, for exposed and uprocessed film should be stored -18 to -23* C (0-10*F) with RH below 60% (Ideally 50%) for short term (6 months or less). Anything over 6 months is not recommended, but having said that.. if it's already in the freezer and you need to keep it there, keep it there.
Oct 08, 2026 at 06:45 AM