I'm an amateur photographer that needs some advice. I have this great image that has a tiny hair that seems to be laminated to the negative. I've done just about everything to keep my negative kept safe from dust but, this negative even after airing it and wiping it with an antistatic cloth it won't seem to go away. Can I soak the negative in water or photo-flo to reclean the negative? If the hair doesn't disappear after taking this step what other alternatives do I have? Spotting my negative or every print? Thanks!

-- Cheryl North (coughlan@interport.net), October 12, 1997

Answers

It sounds as if the tiny hair arrived when the gelatine was still wet, so it is now firmly attached to the gelatine. Yes, you can re-wash the negative: give it 30 minutes in water, photo-flow if that is your thing, and dry it without forced ventilation (which will tend to blast dust at the drying negs, unless you use filtered air).

If that doesn't get rid of the dust, one option is to make one good print, with ny dodging/burning as required, spot the print, and then re-photograph that (using fine-grain, sharp film). Then subsequent prints can be made from the copy negative.

-- Alan Gibson (gibson.al@mail.dec.com), October 13, 1997.

Hmmm. If you can't float out the gremlin as described above, and you really want the image, I'd suggest taking it to a service bureau for importing into photoshop where a fix can be made and then outputting back onto film. Probably cost $100 or so.

-- (camerabug@webtv.net), October 18, 1997.

if actually scratched

if the negative is actually scratched i can suggest something that was a life saver when doing up some final prints and discovered the nasties. It may sound silly but it really does work. Rub your finger down the side of your nose and apply the grease carefully onto the negative. All this does is diffuse the scratch mark.

-- gaelene (gaelene@yahoo.com), November 01, 2000.

NOSE GREASE! it fills up the emulsion

-- a.nguyen (chumpdad@hotmail.com), January 16, 2001.