Film can

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A 35 mm motion picture release print in the form that it would typically be delivered to a cinema. Each reel contains roughly 2,000 feet, or 20 minutes of running time at 24 fps in length. 35mm cinema release print.jpg
A 35 mm motion picture release print in the form that it would typically be delivered to a cinema. Each reel contains roughly 2,000 feet, or 20 minutes of running time at 24 fps in length.

A film can is the light-tight container used to enclose film stock. They are typically a circular box pressed from thin sheet metal, but plastic examples are also used. Film cans are used to hold unexposed film, exposed film ready for developing and also for the distribution of completed film prints. The last of these does not require the can to be light-tight, but environmental protection and exclusion of dust makes a similar container just as useful.

Film stock

Film stock is an analog medium that is used for recording motion pictures or animation. It is a strip or sheet of transparent plastic film base coated on one side with a gelatin emulsion containing microscopically small light-sensitive silver halide crystals. The sizes and other characteristics of the crystals determine the sensitivity, contrast and resolution of the film. The emulsion will gradually darken if left exposed to light, but the process is too slow and incomplete to be of any practical use. Instead, a very short exposure to the image formed by a camera lens is used to produce only a very slight chemical change, proportional to the amount of light absorbed by each crystal. This creates an invisible latent image in the emulsion, which can be chemically developed into a visible photograph. In addition to visible light, all films are sensitive to X-rays and high-energy particles. Most are at least slightly sensitive to invisible ultraviolet (UV) light. Some special-purpose films are sensitive into the infrared (IR) region of the spectrum.

Tin box

A tin box is a tinplate container. Tinplate metal is primarily steel with a very thin tin coating. Tin-free steel is also used. In some cultures, these boxes or cans are referred to as "tin boxes" or sometimes even "tins". Many “tin boxes” have hinged or removable lids or covers. Some people collect tin boxes as a hobby.

Sheet metal metal formed by an industrial process into thin, flat pieces

Sheet metal is metal formed by an industrial process into thin, flat pieces. Sheet metal is one of the fundamental forms used in metalworking and it can be cut and bent into a variety of shapes. Countless everyday objects are fabricated from sheet metal. Thicknesses can vary significantly; extremely thin sheets are considered foil or leaf, and pieces thicker than 6 mm (0.25 in) are considered plate steel or "structural steel."

Contents

Cans of undeveloped film must only be opened in darkness, within a darkroom.

Darkroom workshop used by photographers make prints and otherwise handle photographic film

A darkroom is a workshop used by photographers working with photographic film to make prints and carry out other associated tasks. It is a room that can be made completely dark to allow the processing of the light-sensitive photographic materials, including film and photographic paper. Various equipment is used in the darkroom, including an enlarger, baths containing chemicals, and running water.

Cassettes

35mm still film cassette Fujifilm Fujicolor Superia 200 - 2010-02-17 at 20-17-04.jpg
35mm still film cassette

A film cassette is similar to a film can in that it is a light-tight enclosure containing a spool of film. However a cassette also has a light trap, usually a set of lips covered with velvet, that allow film through without allowing light into the can. This allows a cassette to be loaded into a camera in daylight, then the camera back closed and light-sealed before use.

Velvet type of pile fabric

Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinctive soft feel. By extension, the word velvety means "smooth like velvet." Velvet can be made from either synthetic or natural fibers.

Cassettes are themselves stored in cans, to keep dust off the light trap. Dust caught in the velvet can scratch an entire roll of film. For 35mm film, these cans were once made from pressed aluminium with a screw top, now moulded plastic with a push fit lid.

35mm movie film Motion picture film gauge

35 mm film (millimeter) is the film gauge most commonly used for motion pictures and chemical still photography. The name of the gauge refers to the width of the photographic film, which consists of strips 34.98 ± 0.03 mm (1.377 ± 0.001 inches) wide. The standard negative pulldown for movies is four perforations per frame along both edges, which results in 16 frames per foot of film. For still photography, the standard frame has eight perforations on each side.

Bulk film

Most film is wound onto spools within the film can. Unexposed film supplied in bulk is commonly supplied unspooled, as a bare roll within the can. Before use, lengths of it are wound onto spools in a darkroom, then enclosed in cans or cassettes.

See also


Related Research Articles

Photograph image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface

A photograph is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of what the human eye would see. The process and practice of creating such images is called photography. The word photograph was coined in 1839 by Sir John Herschel and is based on the Greek φῶς (phos), meaning "light," and γραφή (graphê), meaning "drawing, writing," together meaning "drawing with light."

8 mm film film gauge

8 mm film is a motion picture film format in which the film strip is eight millimeters wide. It exists in two main versions — the original standard 8 mm film, also known as regular 8 mm, and Super 8. Although both standard 8 mm and Super 8 are 8 mm wide, Super 8 has a larger image area because of its smaller and more widely spaced perforations.

135 film Photographic film format

135 is photographic film in a film format used for still photography. It is a cartridge film with a film gauge of 35 mm (1.4 in), typically used for hand-held photography in 35 mm film cameras. Its engineering standard for the film is controlled by ISO 1007.

120 film

120 is a popular film format for still photography introduced by Kodak for their Brownie No. 2 in 1901. It was originally intended for amateur photography but was later superseded in this role by 135 film. 120 film and its close relative, 220 film, survive to this day as the only medium format films that are readily available to both professionals and amateur enthusiasts. As of December 2018 all production of 220 film has stopped/paused worldwide. The only remaining stocks are from the last Fujifilm production run (2018) and they are mostly found in Japan.

126 film

126 film is a cartridge-based film format used in still photography. It was introduced by Kodak in 1963, and is associated mainly with low-end point-and-shoot cameras, particularly Kodak's own Instamatic series of cameras.

Advanced Photo System

Advanced Photo System (APS) is a discontinued film format for still photography first produced in 1996. It was marketed by Eastman Kodak under the brand name Advantix, by FujiFilm under the name Nexia, by Agfa under the name Futura and by Konica as Centuria.

Medium format photographic cameras with an aspect ratio in the range of about four to ten centimeters edge length

Medium format has traditionally referred to a film format in still photography and the related cameras and equipment that use film. Nowadays, the term applies to film and digital cameras that record images on media larger than 24 mm × 36 mm (full-frame), but smaller than 4 in × 5 in.

Land Camera

The Land Camera is a model of self-developing film camera manufactured by Polaroid between 1948 and 1983. It is named after their inventor, Edwin Land, who developed a process for self-developing photography between 1943 to 1947. After Edwin Land's retirement from Polaroid, the name 'Land' was dropped from the camera name. The first commercially available model was the Model 95, which produced sepia-colored prints in about 1 minute. It was first sold to the public on November 26, 1948.

Photographic processing or development is the chemical means by which photographic film or paper is treated after photographic exposure to produce a negative or positive image. Photographic processing transforms the latent image into a visible image, makes this permanent and renders it insensitive to light.

Negative (photography) Image on photographic film

In photography, a negative is an image, usually on a strip or sheet of transparent plastic film, in which the lightest areas of the photographed subject appear darkest and the darkest areas appear lightest. This reversed order occurs because the extremely light-sensitive chemicals a camera film must use to capture an image quickly enough for ordinary picture-taking are darkened, rather than bleached, by exposure to light and subsequent photographic processing.

Enlarger a specialized transparency projector used to produce photographic prints from film or glass negatives, or from transparencies

An enlarger is a specialized transparency projector used to produce photographic prints from film or glass negatives, or from transparencies.

828 film

828 is a film format for still photography. Kodak introduced it in 1935, only a year after 135 film. 828 film was introduced with the Kodak Bantam, a consumer-level camera.

The original camera negative (OCN) is the film in a traditional film-based movie camera which captures the original image. This is the film from which all other copies will be made. It is known as raw stock prior to exposure.

In cinematography, bipacking, or a bipack, is the process of loading two reels of film into a camera, so that they both pass through the camera gate together. It was used both for in-camera effects and as an early subtractive colour process.

Developing tank light-tight container used for developing film

A developing tank is a light-tight container used for developing film. A developing tank allows photographic film to be developed in a daylight environment. This is necessary because most film is panchromatic and therefore can not be exposed to any light during processing. Depending upon the size and type, a developing tank can hold one to many roll or sheet films. Famous brands include Paterson, Yankee, Jobo and Nikor.

Vesicular film, almost universally known as Kalvar, is a type of photographic film that is sensitive only to ultraviolet light and developed simply by heating the exposed film.

Dark slide (photography)

In photography, a dark slide is a wooden or metal plate that covers the sensitized emulsion side of a photographic plate. In use, a pair of plates joined back to back were used with both plates covered with a dark slide. When used, the dark slide is removed for the period of the exposure and then replaced. Modern dark slides are used in conjunction with a film holder, that either holds in place pieces of cut sheet film or, if modified, some piece of light sensitive material such as glass.

Resealable packaging

Resealable packaging is any type of packaging that allows the consumer or user to reseal or reclose the packaging. Often packaging needs to be resealed in order to maintain product freshness or prevent spillage. Reusable packaging allows for multiple uses which can help reduce waste.