A conductive film element precursor can be used to provide conductive silver lines from silver halide in a non-color hydrophilic photosensitive layer. This precursor has a substrate having, in order on at least one supporting side: a non-color hydrophilic photosensitive layer comprising a silver halide at a coverage of less than 5000 mg Ag/m2, and a hydrophilic overcoat disposed over the non-color hydrophilic photosensitive layer. This hydrophilic overcoat is the outermost layer and comprises silver halide in an amount of at least 5 mg Ag/m2 and up to and including 150 mg Ag/m2. The noted hydrophilic layers can be disposed on both supporting sides of the substrate to form a duplex conductive film element precursor. After imagewise exposure, the resulting exposed silver halide is developed and fixed to provide silver metal in conductive lines on either or both supporting sides of the substrate.