Help: Why did my film come back without any images?

Don’t be disheartened by your first few rolls. Most, if not all people who are new to Lomography get a few wonky rolls while they’re getting used to their cameras.

If your film came back clear (black/underexposed prints): Always remember that your Lomography cameras love the light! They love the sunshine so much! If you’re using a slower speed film (ISO 100 or 200), you must go out in bright sun to get images on your film. For most of our cameras (SuperSampler, Oktomat, Fisheye 1 and 2, Actionsampler, Diana F+, etc), we recommend using an ISO 400 film to make sure you get an image on your film, rain or shine.

If you know you were shooting an appropriate speed film in the right lighting conditions, check on your shutter. If the shutter on your camera doesn’t open, your film can’t get exposed to light, and therefore can’t make an image! Simply open the back of your camera (without film in it, of course), cock the camera’s shutter (if necessary), and look through the lens plane while you click the shutter button. You should see a brief circle of light appear and disappear right before your eyes. If you don’t see the shutter open and close, get your Lomography.com order ID number and contact us!

If you know you’re shooting the right speed film in the right lighting conditions and your shutter is working fine, your film may not be advancing within the camera. To make sure your film is advancing within the camera when the back door is closed, simply locate the rewind crank on your camera and watch it as you turn the advance wheel. The rewind crank should spin as you advance the film. If you know you loaded the camera correctly and the film still isn’t advancing within the camera, get your Lomography.com order ID number and contact us!

If your film came back black (white/overexposed prints): While Lomographic cameras love the light, too much of it can be disastrous! Make sure to use an appropriate film speed for the camera and for the lighting conditions. A Fisheye camera can do really well with ISO 400 film in bright sun, but if there’s a lot of sun, even using a roll of ISO 800 might overexpose the film!

If you know you’re using the right film speed for your camera and the lighting conditions, check to make sure that you’re not using the B or “bulb” shutter setting on your camera. A bulb exposure in bright sunlight on fast film can create a completely dark negative in less than a second! This is most applicable with Fisheye 2, Diana F+ and Holga cameras. Simply set your camera’s shutter to the “N” or “normal” setting, then open the back of your camera (without film in it, of course). Cock the camera’s shutter (if necessary), and look through the lens plane while you click the shutter button. You should see a brief circle of light appear and disappear right before your eyes. If the shutter setting is all the way over to “N” and the shutter stays open for as long as your finger is on the shutter button, your shutter may have a defect. Get your Lomography.com order ID number and contact us!

written on 2010-03-30 in #film