Topic: Stoopid mistakes

[Dave_M]

I was out taking photographs of an abandoned mansion last night. It was spectacular - really old and spooky. The lighting was perfect (last hour before sunset). I took 2 rolls on the Yashica TLR and 2 rolls on the Holga. As soon as I got home I dug out the film tank and changing bag. I decided to load up one of the Yashica rolls. I normally snip off the edges with a pair of scissors in the changing bag....


They are sharp BIG scissors.....


And I was daydreaming........



<cue drum roll>


I cut through the changing bag. Not just a wee nick, but a huge open gash. On a positive note, I managed to create a few new expletives in my subsequent foul mouthed rant. I think one shot on the roll survived. Thankfully I still have 2 Holga rolls and another Yashica one to try.

So - done any really stupid 'film wasting' recently? (see what I did there  )

[This-is-damion]

top story, and its good to know such errors occur all over the shop!

everyone once in a blue moon, just to let me know im still, and always will be, a rank amateur,  i cant for the life of me get the film onto the spool.    when my hands get into that changing bag its as if they change into hooves.   after a few minutes my hands get clammy which makes the film worse.  after a fair few minutes of swearing and glaring  i give up and have to remove a hand and fetch a reuseable tub to force the now sweaty film into and usually either freeze it and try again or if im feeling really deflated, send away for processing.

This usually puts lots of scuffs on the film and/or really messes it up generally.


stupid hobby anway. 

[espadana]

Some weeks ago I was processing two films that I had just shot. I have been a bit busy lately, with little time to photograph, so I hadn't used my processing equipment in some time.
I loaded the film in the spools, closed them inside the tank, prepared the chemicals, checked my watch, and opened the tank to pour in the developer.
At this point, I remember thinking "funny, I didn't remember that you could actually see the spools and the film at this stage". Suddenly I felt a rush of panic running down my spine.
Yes, I had actually opened the film tank instead of opening just the little rubber lid that lets you pour the chemicals in, thus ruining two whole rolls of film.
I did try to process them anyway, changing the times accordingly, but of course to no use - all pictures were now blank...
Oh well.

[Ron]

Well, nice to know we all are prone to make an honest error or have fate force our hand!  Here's something along those lines (you prolly need to have some knowledge of a 4x5 Polaroid back to fully appreciate this one):

I had purchased a box of expired type 54 Polaroid and was wanting to shoot some pinholes with my view cam.  I was just getting to know my way around my 545 film holder and couldn't understand why my pinholes were not coming out at all (these were not the first I had done, but close).  Ah! Of course, it WAS at tad shady, let it go several more minutes on the next exposure.  Nothing!  OK, I am getting pissed at this point - so I do at least 3,4,5 more in bight sun and nada every darn time.  My brother and his girlfriend, who were outside watching me at this point, were nicely saying things like, "well maybe you need to do this or that..."  Crap!!! I finally gave up.  Later that day, still very puzzled, I decided to try again - it was then I realized the catch at the bottom of the film holder was not completely 'catching' and so when I was pulling up the paper sleeve to expose the film, I was actually pulling the whole piece of film up, still covered!  I was shooting pictures into a blank film holder.  No wonder the film was black no matter how long or short of an exposure - duh 

[david b]

I once did a band photo shoot - found a nice location, got the people looking decent, got the camera set up on the tripod and loaded with film, composed the shot, checked the light, took some shots.  I did, however, forget that useful part of the photographic process - focus.... At least until the 2nd roll anyway, and I think the "arty blur" of the first one went down quite well actually!

[Janet_P]

Ah yes, stoopid, I can do that with the best of them.

Just yesterday I sat in my conservatory, blazing sun, enjoying some quiet time. I thought I'd load my film into the developing tank while I was there.
So I set to it. It took me a while because those darn 120 films always give me trouble, but I was sitting in the sun so it didn't bother me too much. Finally loaded it in and dev'd it, only to find streaks of fog all over the film. No ordinary fog either, it looks like the teeth of a zip, mostly at the start and end of the film. I can only conclude that sitting in the full blaze of the sun and not quite doing the zip up at the bottom of your changing bag is a 'bad thing'.

 

Janet

[Francois]

I too was a victim of being somewhat absent minded in the darkroom a few years ago.

Why is it that:

• not paying enough attention when preparing 1 liter of D-76.
• added to not noticing that you ended up with WAY more developer than is physically possible.
• plus being in a hurry to use that brand new 4 roll tank (you know, the big one that weights a ton when full).
• and putting 4 rolls in that same tank (nooo, I couldn't use it with only 1 or 2 rolls on the first time, I had to go full bore).

always results in very thin negatives?

Here's the very slow motion movie of the aftermath:
I first went 
Then, I realized what happenned 
Then, I looked at the faint pictures and a tear came out the corner of my eye 
After that, I was just plain mad at myself, having nobody else to blame
And finally, I was just plain embarrassed to talk about it for years

Ever sound familiar?

[Dave_M]

Good to hear I'm not alone 

[Aline]

Here's mine...
I had just gotten my first Holga and somehow managed to sneak one of those
gold Thai hats with the long point into Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles (our baseball stadium)...obviously this was
pre 9/11.   Anyway, I  talked my 12 year old daughter into wearing the hat in the crowd and I was planning on
capturing her amidst the crowds wearing the hat.  Though thoroughly embarrassed, she put on the enormous hat and I ran down
the steps, turned, and starting shooting her.  Everyone was staring and after a number of shots, a kind gentleman tapped me on
the shoulder and said, "Your lens cap is on".  From that day forward, I have thrown out my toy camera lens caps as soon
I purchase them.  Nothing like making stoopid mistakes in public.