Introduction
I've been a photographer for quite a while and, aside from a brief part of my childhood, I've always shot on digital cameras. A couple of years ago I decided to try shooting and developing my own film. Since then I've been getting into more experimental methods of photography. This month I decided to try redscaling some film.
Redscaling
Redscaling is basically just loading the film into the camera flipped around so that the light from the camera's lens enters the film from the back. This provides a very red-tinted look to the image. The technical details are already documented on Wikipedia so I won't go over them here. However, I did want to document the process of making a canister of 35mm film in case anyone was interested in giving the technique a shot.
Supplies
You're going to need:
- A sacrificial roll of film.
- A roll of the film that you'd like to redscale.
- Scissors.
- Scotch tape
- A film-changing dark bag.
Preparation
If you've never redscaled film before then you're going to need a donor film canister of film that you don't mind sacrificing. I happened to have an expired roll of Ilford HP5 lying around, so I used that.
First, pull the film from the sacrificial out all the way. Needless to say, using expired film is ideal and if that isn't an option then the cheapest roll you can get your hands on should be used instead. Pro tip: if you don't have an expired roll then ask your friends if they do before you go spending money!
Cut the film away, giving yourself about 1.5-2 inches of a tail to work with. Don't cut the film too close to the can because then you won't have enough left to tape the new film to.
Once the donor can is prepared, take the film that you'd like to redscale and trim off the leader.
Orienting and attaching the film
Now that everything is ready, it's time to tape the film to be redscaled to the tail of film in the donor can. To do this properly, orient the cans so that the film to be redscaled is rotated 180 degrees about its long axis. The important thing is to make sure that the emulsion side (the dull-looking side with the light-sensitive chemicals) of the film to be redscaled is matching up with the non-emulsion (i.e. shiny) side of the donor film. If the description is confusing then simply reference the image below.
Once you have the film aligned correctly, go ahead and tape them together using a small piece of tape. I placed one small piece of tape on each side of the film in order to prevent anything from getting snagged. Don't extend the tape too far down the film, a small amount will do.
Once the rolls are taped together, wind the taped portions into the donor can in order to minimize any hickups during the next steps. Only wind the small, taped portion into the new can at this stage!
Winding
The next step must be done in complete darkness because it involves removing the new film from its can and winding it into the donor can. So before going any further, place the film into the changing bag and close it up. For extra assurance, perform this operation in a room with subdued light (i.e. close the blinds and curtains, turn off unnecessary lights, etc.) If you don't have a changing bag then working on your bed and pulling your (heavy) bedsheets over your head may work.
Once the film cannisters are safely in the changing bag, wind the film to be redscaled into the donor canister by turning the knob on the end. It will take a lot of turns. Also, the film will have a tendency to wind up like a spring inside the canister so if you let go then the spindle will spin back and you'll have to wind all the slack out of it again.
Finishing
Once all of the new film is wound onto the donor spool, remove the rolls from the changing back. Cut the film, leaving yourself about 1.5-2 inches of a tail left. You could cut the film very close to the canister if you want to maximize film, but doing so is unlikely to result in any worthwhile gain in usable film length (i.e. gaining another exposure on the roll). Another benefit to doing this is that if you leave a sufficient tail then you won't need to sacrifice an unexposed roll of film in order to redscale another roll of film in the future. Optionally, you can also trim the corners of the film slightly.
Labeling
At this point, the only thing left to do is to label the canister appropriately. This step is critical to preventing your hard work going to waste. Labeling the canister serves two purposes: first, if make sure that you don't forget what's in the can. Second, it makes sure that the lab developing the film knows what's up. This is particularly important if you, as I did, redscale your film into a black and white donor canister. Color and black and white films are developed using different chemistries so any confusion at the lab could result in a totally ruined roll.
Final thoughts
That's all there is to it! Just remember to expose by 1-4 additional stops in order to compensate for the light loss due to shooting through the back of the film. Happy shooting!
