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Saving photographic film and digital cards that fall in water
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In 1997 I was shooting winter scenes in northwest Connecticut with another photographer. We were walking over a frozen marsh when we heard a crack, and suddenly I realized I was falling into water. Luckily that area of the marsh ended up being only three feet deep, so instead of getting lost under the ice, I merely found myself standing waist-deep in very cold water. However, the Nikon N90s hanging from my shoulder was just low enough to leave my 80-200mm f/2.8 lens half submerged, instantly increasing its cost by $450 (the price of the subsequent repair).
The lens was ruined, but I was relieved that my film wasn't ruined, too. However, even if my film had gotten wet, it still would have been salvageable via a trick many photographers surprisingly don't know about. You can usually save film that's gone for a swim. If your exposed film falls into fresh water, retrieve the canister, but do not let the film dry. Instead, get a plastic film container and fill it with water. Then, put the wet film in the container and replace the cap, being careful to keep the container filled with as much water as possible. Then get the film to a lab and tell them what happened. Chances are your film will be fine; after all, water is a major part of the developing process, so it won't harm film (unless it dries, which would leave spots).
If you drop your film in salt water, you're in more trouble. If you have some fresh water with you, use it to try to thoroughly flush the salt out of the canister, then fill the film container with fresh water and proceed as above. Either way, get the film to a good pro lab as soon as possible. Explain what happened and what measures you took to salvage your work, and they'll know what to do from there. As for digital media (such as Flash cards), follow the same procedures for film, and contact the manufacturer as soon as possible. |
© 2002 - 2008 Chris Nicholson