How to Rewind and Remove Film from the Nikon N50 (F50)

Nathaniel Stephan

2022-10-25 2022-10-25 731 words 4 minutes

Step-by-step how to successfully rewind and remove the film from your Nikon N50. Don't expose your film by unloading it incorrectly.

Contents

This page will cover the steps needed to rewind and remove a roll of 35mm film from the Nikon N50. If you need help with loading film into the camera see this step-by-step guide on how to load film into the Nikon N50.

The Nikon N50 needs to have a 2CR5 battery to be able to rewind the film. As soon as the roll of film is done, the camera will automatically rewind it.

How to Rewind Film

Time needed: 1 minute.

Here are the steps you need to follow to rewind and remove the film from your Nikon N50 before a roll of film is completely used. For demonstration purposes, I am using a roll of film that was left in a used camera and exposed.

Push the film rewind button on the bottom of the camera with a pen.

Push the small film rewind button on the bottom of the camera. There is a film rewind icon next to it. You will likely have to use the tip of a pen or something similar to be able to press the button.
Wait for the film to rewind.

The frame counter will count down while the film is rewinding. There will also be a blinking film rewind icon.
The frame counter will display an ‘E’ when it is done.

When an ‘E’ is shown in the frame counter, the film is fully rewound. You can now open the film door.
Open the film door.

Slide down the small button on the side of the camera to open the film door.
Remove the film canister from the Nikon N50.

Tilt the top of the film canister out first to make removing it easier.
Load another roll of film.

Now is the best time to load another roll of film into the camera. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to load film into a Nikon N50.

If you don’t have another roll of film, you can just close the back of the camera. For long-term storage, remove the battery so it does not leak and cause corrosion on the battery contacts, which can ruin the camera.

Where to get your film developed?

There are 3 different ways you can get your film developed.

Develop the Film Yourself

The least expensive and most involved way to develop your film is to do it yourself at home. This is what I prefer to do.

You will need some inexpensive equipment and a way to scan your negatives or slides.

Developing film yourself is definitely worthwhile as long as you are consistently shooting film. If you are only going to occasionally shoot film, mailing it to a lab is going to be less expensive.

Mail Your Film to a Professional Lab

There are many photo labs that offer mail in developing and scanning services. What’s nice is that you’ll get your film scanned using a high-end scanner. This is a big time saver.

Another important aspect is that you’ll get your negatives or slides back from the lab. This will allow you to make prints in a darkroom or re-scan them in the future. Plus they act as a physical back-up.

Depending on the lab you choose, you can have the ability to select the machine that does the scanning and any profiles/corrections that get used.

You can also indicate if film has been pushed or pulled so that it can be processed correctly.

Here is a list of US photo labs that offer mail developing services. I have no affiliation with them and I have not used any of their services.

Find a Local Lab

A local lab is a good option as long as it is an independent professional photo lab. These are likely going to be limited to large cities.

The labs located in pharmacies or big box stores are the worst option as they no longer develop the film on location.

What happens is that the pharmacy or big box store will mail the film off to get developed by a third party. You will only receive digital copies of your images. You will not get your negatives or slides back.