177 ☼ Why I Love Shooting Expired Film (and You Should Try It Too)

GIVEAWAY: Bags of Mystery Film!

Dear friends,

This week, let’s talk about expired film. Not the kind you forgot in the back of a drawer for a decade—though, honestly, that works too. I mean film that’s been sitting around long enough to lose its manufactured perfection and starts acting like a moody teenager. It’s unpredictable, and messy, and can be a lot of fun.

And, at the end, a special PROCESS GIVEAWAY: a mystery bag of expired film from my freezer for three winners!

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Why Expired Film is the Opposite of Perfection

If you’ve ever felt crushed under the weight of making something “perfect” with your photography, expired film is the antidote you didn’t know you needed. It doesn’t care about your vision board. It doesn’t care that you’ve meticulously planned your exposures. It’s here to surprise you, mess with you, and—if you’re lucky—reward you with something weirdly beautiful.

Kodak T-Max 3200, exp. 1989, 200 ISO

What happens to film when it expires? Over time, the chemicals inside the film start to degrade, leading to funky results: color shifts, grainier textures, reduced contrast, and a general “I woke up like this” vibe. Sometimes you get your negatives back and see…exactly…nothing. I once shot three rolls of 1978 Ektachrome that gave me zero frames. That was…painful.

The degree of unpredictability depends on three things:

1. How the film was stored. Fridge or freezer = good. Glove box in Houston = bad.

2. The type of film. Not all film ages equally.

3. Your ability to embrace chaos. (This might be the most important factor.)

Let’s break down how expired film works across these three main categories:

1. Black and White Film: The Sturdy Overachiever

B&W film ages the best of all. It’s stable, dependable, and doesn’t freak out when you’re a few decades past its expiration date.

Hasselblad 500cm, Kodak Tri-X, exp. 10/1988, ISO 32

In most cases, you can shoot it at box speed (its original ISO) or overexpose it by one stop (my choice even with fresh black and white film), and the results will be fine or underexposed. But fine is boring, and underexposed is usually not my jam.

If it’s old, I like to overexpose it by a stop or two to coax out some extra richness. If it’s really old, I get excited and shoot it at ISO 8, 12, or 32 to challenge myself and see if I can make it look like fresh film. The photo above, for example, was shot on Tri-X 400 from 1988 at ISO 32, but it looks pretty darn clean and fresh. Other times, I try but fail to get a fresh look but I still love the messy darkness and grain, like the one below shot on Ilford Pan-F 50 from 1990 at ISO 25.

Pentax LX, Ilford Pan-F 50, exp. 04/1990, shot at ISO 25

2. Color Negative Film: The Wild Card

Color negative film is where things start to get interesting. It’s more sensitive to aging, so you’ll likely see color shifts—greens where there should be blues, oranges where there should be reds.

Kodacolor VR 400, exp. 1986, shot at ISO 64

We all know the general rule: overexpose by one stop for every decade past the expiration date. Have fun with it tho. Got a roll of Kodak Gold from the 90s? Set your ISO to half the box speed and see what happens. Hey, go quarter box speed, get wild.

Kodak Vericolor iii 160, exp. 12/2000, shot at ISO 64

Some of my best expired film results have come from color negatives. I’m still waiting for the right project to use a brick of Kodak Gold 120 from 1999 that’s been sitting in my freezer for over six years.

📚 For more on shooting expired color negative film, check out Process 122.

3. Slide Film: The Drama Queen

Expired slide film (a.k.a. reversal film) is like that one friend who needs their coffee order to be just so—high-maintenance but worth it when it delivers.

Kodak Ektachrome 100, expired unknown year, shot at 64 ISO

Slide film has a much narrower exposure latitude than color negative film, and it only worsens with age. The result are sdramatic and contrast-heavy with exaggerated colors (when you get it right) or a hot mess (when you don’t). Conventional wisdom says you should shoot slide film at box speed even if it’s expired. I love doing the opposite and drop the ISO to something wild, as long as there is enough light.

Left: Kodak Ektachrome 160, exp. 2002, shot at ISO 64. Right: Ektachrome 100, exp. 2004, shot at ISO 64

📚 For more on shooting expired slide film, check out Process 025.

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A Personal Reflection

When I first started with a camera, I didn’t know much, but I loved learning the basics and figuring out the rules. Funny enough, even when I made tons of mistakes—like shooting ISO 6400 in bright sunlight (yes, I checked my 2013 roll notes, I really did that)—I still got results I was happy with. In that case, it worked out by sheer luck, taking a portrait at 1/8 shutter speed (rookie move!). But once I learned the rules, I wasn’t afraid to break them because I had seen it could work out in interesting ways.

In a sense, expired film and I are a good match. I love the nerdy test aspect. I once spent months testing rolls of expired Ektachrome—meticulously taking notes, ruining a bunch, and figuring out how much light they needed to sing. I had so many from the same batch that it paid off and I was able to shoot most of them in an optimal way after the test shoots.

Kodak Vericolor iii, exp. 05/2000, shot at ISO 40

One roll of Ektachrome 64T (expired in 1999) needed to be shot at ISO 16—yes, sixteen—to get anything usable. I stood in blazing high-altitude sunlight, sweating buckets, just to get the exposures right. And you know what? Worth it! Some of the images I shot became portfolio favorites, like the ones below.

Left: Ektachrome 6T, exp. 1985, ISO 16. Right: Ektachrome 200, exp. 2003, ISO 160

Was any of this financially or practically smart? Absolutely not. Creatively satisfying? So very much!

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Expired Film Challenge

Here’s my challenge for you: dig out a roll of expired film (or grab one online—they’re cheaper than fresh film, you can grab one from my friend Stephan at BuyMoreFilm or on eBay). Experiment, and just see what happens. Take notes if you want to get scientific (which I obviously love), or embrace the chaos.

And when you’re done, I’d love to see what you come up with. Share it with me, tag me in your social media post or newsletter—whether it’s a triumph or a disaster. Because with expired film, it’s not about perfection; it’s about the fun of not knowing exactly what you will get. To help, I will give away three mystery bags of expired film from my personal freezer. Scroll down for more.

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Thanks for reading and shooting with me. If you enjoyed this issue, feel free to share it with a friend.

Let’s keep shooting, learning, and sharing together—one messy, human step at a time.

Warmly,
Wesley

NEXT WEEK: A long-awaited reveal—my large format portrait shoot with my father, his many siblings, and their partners, made five years ago and next week it will be shared for the first time.

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This Week’s Gear and Lab

Camera: Pentax LX, Hasselblad 500cm, Pentax 67ii.

Shout out to MPB.com, my go-to for buying and selling used gear—they’re fantastic. Easy, fast, and everything comes with a 6-month warranty

Lab: My film is processed and scanned by Carmencita Film Lab, whose care and consistency I trust completely. They’re the best. Use code “PROCESS” at checkout for a free upgrade on your next order.

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Process Expired Film Giveaway

From the depths of my personal freezer, I have put together three bags with 10 rolls of film each, all expired, a random mix of color, slide, and black and white.

How to enter: Answer this week’s question in the comments:

Q: If expired film could capture memories from the past, which story or moment would you document, and why?

Make your answer specific and personal—it’s always great to see what inspires you.

Deadline: Submit your answer before 11 a.m. EST on February 2nd. The three winners will be chosen randomly and announced in an upcoming issue.

This giveaway is for all Process subscribers, free or paid—thank you for being here!

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