Can you tell the age of a film from the markings on the rebate?

[NigelC]

I am casting around for images to enter into a competition and note the rules state should be taken in the last 5 years. How would anyone know? Of course  a digital file has the EXIF data but if I send in a scan of 35mm or 6x7 reversal, they might ask at some stage to see the original film. There are are markings other than the film type but appear to be some sort of bar code. Of course that only indicates when film was manufactured, not exposed, but if the film was manufactured in 1998 with an expiry date of 2002 (say) might be a stretch to convince anyone it was exposed in 2006.

[Deardorff]

You are the one who knows when it was taken. Be honest and upfront and then you won't have to hedge and fib if you are asked.

[bill t.]

You can't rush answers to questions like these!

The one-size-fits-all answer is "it was in the freezer."  Freezers are virtual wormholes connecting past and present that make expiration dates completely irrelevant.  As long as the last film lab on Earth closed more recently than 5 years ago, you're good to go.

Every year I and many other photographers get accepted into a show that insists photography should be "without any manipulation whatsoever."  Rules are for bending, if only to gently protect the people who make them from their misguided notions.