By John O'Keefe-Odom
Probably one of the easier things I’ve done to save money in photography was to take up bulk loading. I had some difficulty locating a bulk loader available for resale online, so I just ended up loading the cassettes by hand. This process was easy; and, it allows me to switch up types of films easily. Since I don’t have to reload a reel into a bulk loader each time, I can get a great deal of variety from my stocks. It’s super-easy and convenient. I like it.
The procedure is relatively simple. I purchase and obtain a bulk spool of film; these come in reels of 50’ usually, but have also seen them in 100’ and 400’ lengths. If the film is similar to a stock used for movies, the company may only offer it in 100’ lengths because that is the smallest denomination of movie film commonly used for commercial filmmaking.
You will not want to touch the film surfaces with your fingers a lot. I haven’t had much trouble with fingerprints; but, they do come up as a source of trouble; the touch of the oils from the skin can cause blurs or marks on the emulsion. If you wash and dry your hands well before you start, that helps.
Get the spool, some masking tape, scissors and plastic film canisters. I keep the canisters assembled while they are not being loaded, to help keep the small parts organized inside the changing bag. Put everything you need inside the changing bag and zip it up. Hands inside, go ahead and open the spool package. Usually there will be a cardboard outer covering, with the film inside an opaque plastic vinyl bag. Or, the film may be in a cardboard outer covering with an aluminum can protecting it from direct light. Feel the packaging out, and do not attempt to inspect it in the light at first; you wouldn’t want to flub the process by going too far into the packaging in daylight to understand where the light-proofing stops; this could expose the entire roll to light and fog lots of the material.
Get the spool out and set it aside. Set aside the cardboard packaging. Everything that’s used in the changing bag will get similar treatment. For brevity, we won’t go over every little pick up and put down of every item. Main idea is to organize the supplies inside the changing bag so that you can find them easily.
The 35mm reloadable cassette will typically have three parts: an outer case, an inner spool and a cap. usually the caps twist on into position and twist off. One key point to remember when loading the spools by hand is that the part of the spool that protrudes outside the canister; that part points downward. Frequently, like if you see 35mm film cans on display, or if you stand them up on a tabletop, this protrusion will point upward. When it does, the film can is actually upside down. Notice, that when you load film into your camera, this protrusion points downward.
This may seem like a minor point, but being able to recognize this by feel will help you to better align the film when it is in the changing bag. Also, learn the feel of the exterior of the canister. One side will be more cam-shaped; this is the part that is leading to the brush-door that keeps the light out and lets the film enter and exit the canister as it is pulled through the camera. The cap on my reloadable canisters have a tiny pointy protrusion that helps them to match up with the brush door and the camlike surface. This means that if I put the cap on incorrectly, I will be able to notice by feel that things are out of alignment. I noticed that with the products I use that if the canister is properly assembled, its surfaces feel smooth. If not, the spool will not point in the correct direction, or part of the top cap will make a pointy protrusion. Other models of reloadable canisters may be different; they all have the same basic shapes; check your stuff in plain light and get familiar with it before you use it blind inside the changing bag.
Peel off some masking tape; a length about three inches long will usually do it; I just estimate by feel in the bag. This first piece of tape will wrap around the spool to anchor the film to it. This means the tape will go from one face of the film, touch and wrap around the center column of the spool and touch the film again on the other face.
To put the right amount of film on the spool, I just measure with my hands. I will hold one end of the film in one hand, and the spool in the other. Simply spread apart your hands for one length. There will be a limit to how far you can spread your hands apart inside the changing bag easily. Then, just grasp some more film close to the reel and pull off another length. Keep this up until you have pulled off the desired estimated amount off of the reel. Snip with scissors and set the bulk spool aside.
Then, simply tape one end of the film to the canister spool. Use the natural curl of the film to determine the orientation of the film relative to the projection on the canister spool. With the projection facing downward, and the curve of the film facing away from you, lay the film down onto the canister spool. The effect that you want to achieve is that the emulsion side of the film fill be closest to the shutter once the film is loaded. The emulsion side is on the inside of the curl of the film as it comes off of the bulk reel.
With one end of the film anchored to the canister spool, give the film a wrap or two around the spool. This helps to keep the film inside the top and bottom spool guides. These are the big circular projections at the ends of the spool. They keep the film aligned. This is the time to check by feel if your film is properly anchored or not. If it is not, then you will have difficulties when it is time to rewind the exposed film back into the canister.
Then, seat that spool into the canister. This means that you will need to guide the film into the brush door. Fit the cap onto the spool. Check by feel to make sure the edges feel smooth; know that the cap is in place and locked in the correct position. It’s possible on the model I use to have the cap locked into place, but not properly aligned. You want yours properly aligned. If it is not, then the can will have to go back into the changing bag for adjustment. Not a big deal, but check it.
With the canister closed, you should now have one end of the film anchored inside the can and a long tail of film snaking around inside of the changing bag. Use your fingers to turn the projection on the spool. With the fingers of one hand, I turn the projection. With the other hand, I hold the canister. Also, using that hand, I will press my finger on the far end of the spool. This keeps the tension on the spool and makes for easier winding.
Wind the film into the canister, checking every moment or so for the position of the free running end. When you get close, I find that it is helpful to hold the very end in the fingers of the same hand that is holding the canister. That way, I do not accidentally spool all the film into the can. If you do, then you will have to uncap the can and retrieve the loose end. By doing so, the tension will already have come off of the film, and by pulling the spool out and putting the spool back in, you will have to make sure the right amount of tension is restored so that the film doesn’t get out of alignment with the other canister parts. So, to avoid all of those problems, don’t completely spool the free end of the film all the way back into the can.
Peel off some masking tape; a length about three inches long will usually do it; I just estimate by feel in the bag. This first piece of tape will wrap around the spool to anchor the film to it. This means the tape will go from one face of the film, touch and wrap around the center column of the spool and touch the film again on the other face.
To put the right amount of film on the spool, I just measure with my hands. I will hold one end of the film in one hand, and the spool in the other. Simply spread apart your hands for one length. There will be a limit to how far you can spread your hands apart inside the changing bag easily. Then, just grasp some more film close to the reel and pull off another length. Keep this up until you have pulled off the desired estimated amount off of the reel. Snip with scissors and set the bulk spool aside.
Then, simply tape one end of the film to the canister spool. Use the natural curl of the film to determine the orientation of the film relative to the projection on the canister spool. With the projection facing downward, and the curve of the film facing away from you, lay the film down onto the canister spool. The effect that you want to achieve is that the emulsion side of the film fill be closest to the shutter once the film is loaded. The emulsion side is on the inside of the curl of the film as it comes off of the bulk reel.
With one end of the film anchored to the canister spool, give the film a wrap or two around the spool. This helps to keep the film inside the top and bottom spool guides. These are the big circular projections at the ends of the spool. They keep the film aligned. This is the time to check by feel if your film is properly anchored or not. If it is not, then you will have difficulties when it is time to rewind the exposed film back into the canister.
Then, seat that spool into the canister. This means that you will need to guide the film into the brush door. Fit the cap onto the spool. Check by feel to make sure the edges feel smooth; know that the cap is in place and locked in the correct position. It’s possible on the model I use to have the cap locked into place, but not properly aligned. You want yours properly aligned. If it is not, then the can will have to go back into the changing bag for adjustment. Not a big deal, but check it.
With the canister closed, you should now have one end of the film anchored inside the can and a long tail of film snaking around inside of the changing bag. Use your fingers to turn the projection on the spool. With the fingers of one hand, I turn the projection. With the other hand, I hold the canister. Also, using that hand, I will press my finger on the far end of the spool. This keeps the tension on the spool and makes for easier winding.
Wind the film into the canister, checking every moment or so for the position of the free running end. When you get close, I find that it is helpful to hold the very end in the fingers of the same hand that is holding the canister. That way, I do not accidentally spool all the film into the can. If you do, then you will have to uncap the can and retrieve the loose end. By doing so, the tension will already have come off of the film, and by pulling the spool out and putting the spool back in, you will have to make sure the right amount of tension is restored so that the film doesn’t get out of alignment with the other canister parts. So, to avoid all of those problems, don’t completely spool the free end of the film all the way back into the can.
As long as the free running end projects for two inches or so, a distance of less than what will be exposed on loading the camera anyway, there is no film lost or wasted.
Load other rolls as needed using the same procedure. Those canisters would need to have been put into the changing bag to begin with. If you are finished, or if, for any reason, you need to open up the changing bag, make sure your bulk film is back in a light-tight storage. Just put it back in its bag, can and box before you open up the changing bag. Any film in the bag not protected from light when the bag is opened will become fogged.
When using scissors inside the bag, I find it is helpful to choose a short pair of safety scissors. I like bandage scissors for labwork because they are durable, easy to clean, and have a blunt projection on their far end. Also, the smaller size cutting surface helps inside the bag. As you are using the scissors, you want to avoid cutting or nipping yourself or the bag material itself. So, when cutting, apply gentle pressure through the scissor handles. If you feel resistance, a lot of times that means you are also cutting some fabric of the changing bag. Just stop and back up. I will use my hands to fluff up the top of the bag so that the fabric doesn’t bear down on the scissors or generally get in the way of what I am doing when I am working inside the bag.
Check to make all your stuff is light tight before you open the bag. Once the bag is opened up, take a piece of masking tape and mark the exterior of the can with any information you desire. I like to note what type of film I have loaded in there; I frequently use more than one bulk loaded variety. Also, for some cameras, leader trimming may be required. Now’s a good time for that. Leader trimming is cutting the far end of the film that protrudes from the canister so that the film can be loaded on the take-up spool of the camera during camera loading. Some camera models can accommodate the full width of a 35mm film. Others have designs which require the trimming. If yours does require the trimming, it’ll need to be done before loading. Simple observation will answer if this applies to your equipment or not.
Load other rolls as needed using the same procedure. Those canisters would need to have been put into the changing bag to begin with. If you are finished, or if, for any reason, you need to open up the changing bag, make sure your bulk film is back in a light-tight storage. Just put it back in its bag, can and box before you open up the changing bag. Any film in the bag not protected from light when the bag is opened will become fogged.
When using scissors inside the bag, I find it is helpful to choose a short pair of safety scissors. I like bandage scissors for labwork because they are durable, easy to clean, and have a blunt projection on their far end. Also, the smaller size cutting surface helps inside the bag. As you are using the scissors, you want to avoid cutting or nipping yourself or the bag material itself. So, when cutting, apply gentle pressure through the scissor handles. If you feel resistance, a lot of times that means you are also cutting some fabric of the changing bag. Just stop and back up. I will use my hands to fluff up the top of the bag so that the fabric doesn’t bear down on the scissors or generally get in the way of what I am doing when I am working inside the bag.
Check to make all your stuff is light tight before you open the bag. Once the bag is opened up, take a piece of masking tape and mark the exterior of the can with any information you desire. I like to note what type of film I have loaded in there; I frequently use more than one bulk loaded variety. Also, for some cameras, leader trimming may be required. Now’s a good time for that. Leader trimming is cutting the far end of the film that protrudes from the canister so that the film can be loaded on the take-up spool of the camera during camera loading. Some camera models can accommodate the full width of a 35mm film. Others have designs which require the trimming. If yours does require the trimming, it’ll need to be done before loading. Simple observation will answer if this applies to your equipment or not.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment