# First film SLR experience, photos turned out bad. (Canon AE1 Program)



## Woolloongabba (Jun 26, 2012)

Hello, a few weeks ago I dug up my dad's old Canon AE-1 Program film SLR but not all of the prints turned out so great, about half of them had some sort of defect. In most of them, it was a shade of red that ran through the middle of the photo (seen below) and there were also some that had the white washout on the left-hand side of the photo (also seen below). Also included are some photos that turned out alright, for comparison.

This was my first time ever using a film SLR so I don't know exactly what caused these defects (I made sure not to expose the film to light so I don't think that this was the problem), but I'm hoping you guys can help tell me what went wrong, and if the camera is at fault. It would be a shame to have to toss this new found treasure of mine but I think the photos might be indicating that the camera is no longer any good.


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## pisicel (Jun 26, 2012)

You have a light leak. Maybe the camera's door. Or maybe the lab boys messed your negative.


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## Marcelle (Jun 26, 2012)

definitely light in the cam, attention with the AE-1, it always had problems with auto exposure (usually -1 stop) 
did you use a skylight filter ? if not, two options, film out of date or problem with the processing, all pics have a pink/magenta/silvery look to them, might come from the bleach at processing


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## Alex_B (Jun 26, 2012)

I would not know how expired film should cause the problem.

Messed up processig by the lab could be a cause though.


Most likely: a light leak. Especially since the pattern of overexposure on your images is typical for the AE1 with the light seals of the rear door rotten away AFAIK.
You can see that the streaks always appear in the* same positions *on the images, with *varying intensity*. This very much speaks against the film or the processing being the cause!
-> the *positions *depend on the position of the light leak, the *intensity *depends on for how long the image was sitting in the same position at the rear door. 


If you quickly shot 4 images in a row, the two "inner" images of the four would hardly show any streaking. The first and last of the four however would. E.g. if you would leave the camera after the fourth image for say several hours before taking a fifth image, then image number four would sit at the rear door for several hours - exposed to those nasty leaks.

Looks familiar:
http://static.photo.net/attachments/bboard/00F/00FXIR-28630784.JPG

http://static.photo.net/attachments/bboard/00Y/00YaKo-349295584.jpg

from a similar discussion 6 years ago:
Where is this red streak coming from? - Photo.net Film and Processing Forum


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## Alex_B (Jun 26, 2012)

... you might be able to repair this by yourself, by replacing the light seals with some rubber/foam.


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## Woolloongabba (Jun 26, 2012)

Thanks to everyone, Alex_B (strange, that's my name / initials too, haha) I checked the link to that other thread and it seems to have the same consensus of it being a light leak. I'll try bringing it to a photography shop and see if they can help me fix it, I don't think I'd be able to do it on my own.


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## Alex_B (Jun 26, 2012)

To check if it really is a leak, you could load a film, seal the rear door with light-light tape, shoot the film ... and see if the problem is gone.


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## christopher walrath (Jun 26, 2012)

I would think a light leak would occur in a consistent portion of the negative.  Your marks are all over.  On the other hand, the error is not along the film, but across each defective negative.  Weird.  Where did you take your film for processing, by the by?


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## Woolloongabba (Jun 27, 2012)

christopher walrath &#8212; I did get the idea that the processing might have been at fault. I had it processed at 'Fred Meyer', it's a one-stop shopping chain on the west coast. It was the first time I had film processed there so I'm not too sure about their reliability.


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## Sw1tchFX (Jun 27, 2012)

These are light leaks in the camera, the seals are probably shot. Also, these look like the negs were thin and underexposed a stop or so, I'd recommend whatever film you're using, rate the ISO at half of what the box says, it will reduce grain, and open up your shadows with negligible difference in the highlights.


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