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ok, they might be already developed B&W negatives.
undeveloped film has a coating on it, which is opaque.
if it has been developed it will allow some light to shine through it.
and even if the negs are overexposed and/or overdeveloped they might be able to be saved using a chemical reducer bath.
to do this a black and white lab is a must.
most guys that are into fine art photography develop and print their own stuff, but some commercial labs do develop and print sheet film, i think university art depts that still teach fine art photography have labs and a student can maybe do this for you.
look for a lab that can print 4x5 negs. used to be a bunch of those who advertize in the classifieds of shutterbug magazine.
or post a message on usenet: rec.photo.large-format (or something like that) someone in that group has a lab i'm sure.
someone on this thread mentioned scanning the negs---if you have a good quality scanner with a high D-max that's probably the way to go.
IF they are vintage negs and the images have any connection with people still living they sure can have a profound effect on the recipient.
so make the effort if you can get a good image out of them.
4x5 negs have quality good enough for a museum if the taking lens was any good.
good luck.
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