So in all of this business of acquiring really old cameras, here’s something I recently learned. There are lots of old cameras lying around in peoples’ attics that still have film in them. And frequently they end up on eBay or in collectible shops, without anyone checking if there is still film inside. This happened to me recently when I bought a lot of 8 used cameras on eBay:
The Ansco on the bottom left in the photo had a roll of Ansco All-Weather film in it that had been fully exposed and forgotten – here’s what it looked like:
Considering the Ansco B2 Cadet was manufactured in 1937/8 and the film was manufactured in the 1950s, this is a roll of film that is anywhere from 65 to 75 years old. What secrets might it contain? Well, that’s what I hope to find out this weekend, as I’m told it is often possible to get usable images from old film – even this old.
While you wait for the film to be developed, why not have a look at this advertisement for Ansco film?