Uploaded June 2020 | Updated September 2026, 4 days ago
One of the topics I get asked about the most, in-person or online, is “How the heck do I use x-ray film with my large format camera?”
First let’s start off describing just what this stuff is. Back in the not so distant past, if your doctor needed to check for a broken bone, they would have to take an x-ray which was exposed and developed on a large sheet of film. Some clinics and commercial applications still rely on this technology worldwide because of its cost effective and portable nature. Though we might not think of it like we think of photographic film, they’re not too different.
Yes, it’s blue. In medical and industrial uses, blue was the most common base available supposedly to reduce eye fatigue in Radiology. Another funny thing about this film is that it actually has two emulsion sides, not one. This means there’s light sensitive coating on both sides of the film, so there’s no right or wrong way to load the film into holders. Now onto the downsides:
Film is orthochromatic - cannot see red light, also don’t use tungsten balance lights
Lower speeds - most x-ray films have an ISO range of 5 - 100
EASY to scratch - lack of protective layers means less handling of film, the better
Let's load up some film under a safelight, shoot it, and see what we get when we develop by inspection!
Blog Posts for Reference:
matmarrash.com/blog/2012/2/2/x-ray-film-not-just-for-shattered-ulnas-anymore.html
matmarrash.com/blog/2012/8/28/working-with-large-format-x-ray-filmcontinued
Great, Ongoing Source of Collective Knowledge:
largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?48099-Use-of-X-ray-film-technical-discussion-with-example-images
Film Photography Project X-Ray Film:
filmphotographystore.com/collections/4x5-sheet-film/products/4x5-sheet-film-fpp-bw-negative-x-ray-film-25-sheets
Questions? Send me an email: largeformatquestions@gmail.com
Content by Mat Marrash
matmarrash.com
One of the topics I get asked about the most, in-person or online, is “How the heck do I use x-ray film with my large format camera?”
First let’s start off describing just what this stuff is. Back in the not so distant past, if your doctor needed to check for a broken bone, they would have to take an x-ray which was exposed and developed on a large sheet of film. Some clinics and commercial applications still rely on this technology worldwide because of its cost effective and portable nature. Though we might not think of it like we think of photographic film, they’re not too different.
Yes, it’s blue. In medical and industrial uses, blue was the most common base available supposedly to reduce eye fatigue in Radiology. Another funny thing about this film is that it actually has two emulsion sides, not one. This means there’s light sensitive coating on both sides of the film, so there’s no right or wrong way to load the film into holders. Now onto the downsides:
Film is orthochromatic - cannot see red light, also don’t use tungsten balance lights
Lower speeds - most x-ray films have an ISO range of 5 - 100
EASY to scratch - lack of protective layers means less handling of film, the better
Let's load up some film under a safelight, shoot it, and see what we get when we develop by inspection!
Blog Posts for Reference:
matmarrash.com/blog/2012/2/2/x-ray-film-not-just-for-shattered-ulnas-anymore.html
matmarrash.com/blog/2012/8/28/working-with-large-format-x-ray-filmcontinued
Great, Ongoing Source of Collective Knowledge:
largeformatphotography.info/forum/showthread.php?48099-Use-of-X-ray-film-technical-discussion-with-example-images
Film Photography Project X-Ray Film:
filmphotographystore.com/collections/4x5-sheet-film/products/4x5-sheet-film-fpp-bw-negative-x-ray-film-25-sheets
Questions? Send me an email: largeformatquestions@gmail.com
Content by Mat Marrash
matmarrash.com
