PSA: My dog ate my film and I had to develop the roll anyway

I left a roll of Fuji Superia 400 on the coffee table for five minutes last Tuesday, and my beagle thought it was a new chew toy. I still sent the slobbery, tooth-marked canister to the lab because I had shots from my sister's birthday on there. Has anyone else salvaged photos from a physically damaged roll?

3 comments

3 Comments

christopher3853mo ago

That's some serious dedication to the craft right there. Honestly, the lab tech who opened that canister deserves a medal. Hope the birthday pics turned out okay through all the dog slobber.

sandralee3mo agoMost Upvoted

Tried drying out a waterlogged roll with a hairdryer on low heat. The lab said the emulsion was surprisingly intact and they saved most of the frames. Sometimes you just have to send it and hope for the best.

jade2711mo ago

oh man i did the exact same thing with a roll of tri-x that fell out of my bag into a puddle. i left it in a bag of rice for like two days before drying it with a hair dryer on cool. lab didnt even mention any damage and honestly i think the water gave some of the shots a weird cool texture. just make sure you dont crank the heat too high or the emulsion can literally peel off the base. also if the film is still damp inside the canister when you open it, unspool it slowly so nothing sticks together. worst case you lose the first couple frames but the rest of the roll usually survives.