Random Neural Firing: Sorting Out My Film Fixation By Accident.
I have been trying to figure out why I still use film so often for a while now. I have thought of weaning myself off of it and going digital. But I have always used film—always. And I could never figure out exactly why. I had my suspicions it had to do with my Father teaching me to use his film cameras.
Have written many posts about that. One thing I knew it was not about was the look. Yes, film looks unique. Many have tried different recipes for imitating a film look on digital. Some companies even bake these effects into their cameras. But to me, there is no real replacement for the way film looks. But… that is not enough of a reason in isolation to keep me using film.
Then while texting with a friend in photography, the Cesar Molina…
…out of the blue I typed the following.
Part of the reason I still like to shoot film. Each pic costing me money, developing, and scanning time makes each shot selection more precious and translates into curbing any spray and pray tendencies when using digital… hold on. That has the makings of a blog post.
Hold on. I think that is it. While I do believe the other elements above play some part I think I may have accidentally hit upon the main reason. It all comes down to this.
The preciousness of a frame.
I will be the first to admit that even on my best behavior I risk taking way too many photos when using digital cameras. I am a work in progress but I try to control myself at events. The ability to capture as many images as I wish becomes a real detriment when you spend more time editing photos afterward than you spent capturing images at the event. Plus you risk losing a special frame once image review fatigue kicks in. It is very easy to lose the plot and just start deleting files when one may have been a keeper.
And this ties to all of the other elements as well.
When care is taken while capturing an image it heightens the anticipation and intensifies the dopamine hit when you see that image on the negative and again once you scan it.
I will also stop the car. I will lean in. I will get closer. I will kneel or dip down for that certain angle. There is no articulating screen as a crutch. You either have to put yourself there looking through the viewfinder or sharpen your skills at predicting a no look hip shot frame based on experience.
Each capture becomes its own little event.
It also allows one to let an image go. While at a car show last year, that Cesar invited me to, I let many a moment pass when I was using film. I was more prone to snapping a pic with a digital rangefinder,…
…but there was a similar level of restraint. But when I used a modern AF digital tool it did not take me long before I reverted back to letting it rip. As a result I got more images but my keeper rate dropped and I look back more fondly on the film and digital rangefinder pics. They are more… precious.
That is it for now. I could keep on with these nonsense ramblings but I will wrap up proceedings here.
Do I recommend film to others? Depends.
Done sparingly it could be therapeutic for all. Done often, as I do, I highly recommend developing your own film or the costs will swiftly escalate. So much so that I doubt I would still be using film much if at all if I did not.
Cameras need not be expensive instathreadface darlings. The newly released film cameras cost many hundreds to thousands, but there are plenty of reasonably priced no prestige name plate point and shoot…
…and SLR options…
…available that do just fine.
Or… you could just discipline yourself to film shooting ways. That is largely what is behind my minor obsession with older digital cameras.
With no blazing fast AF and sky high ISOs to lean on they force some of the same limitations as film on the user.
Ok, ok. I said I would stop, so I will end this here.
No hard and fast suggestions here. Just a distraction from proceedings at hand in the “real world” rambling about one of my favorite pastimes.
Happy capturing.
-ELW
Eric L. Woods 