A new approach to load-stepping photoelasticity is presented in which the isochromatic phase is unwrapped between load steps rather than spatially. This is based on the technique known as ‘temporal phase unwrapping’ that has mainly been applied in shape measurement. The potential advantages of temporal phase unwrapping are based on the notion that each pixel is unwrapped independently of its neighbours. The benefits for load-stepping photoelasticity for reducing the effects of measurement error are discussed in this paper. New developments using temporal phase unwrapping are applied to experimental data obtained from a bimaterial interface specimen loaded in three-point bend. The results show that a modified approach to unwrapping significantly reduces the effects of systematic noise present in the data.