What’s Your Experience With Film?
Digital is the norm nowadays. Most of us shoot with digital cameras, even those who have traditionally shot film. Both mediums have their perks and limitations, so one is not necessarily better than the other. I've only recently been introduced to film photography, but it may be something that I dabble with from time to time (I'm even trying to get my Dad to send me his old manual SLR equipment from the 70's & 80's). So this got me thinking, how many of us have already experienced film and at what level?
Also check out the poll results from last time “What Percentage of Your Shots Are Worth Hanging?” A majority of us fall into the “less than 1%” or “1-5%” categories, but we actually had quite a few claiming to achieve up to 25% or 50%.
Damien Franco
February 19, 2008I was lucky enough to go to a highschool that had a photojournalism class. We learned everything about film including advanced processing techniques. I’ve always thought that learning those skills helped shape the type of photographer that I am. I still compose my images carefully before capture, and I rarely produce “too many” images to sort through. I’m thankful I never learned to “shoot first and ask questions later”. Having said that, I love many techniques available to me in my “lightroom” with digital capture. I couldn’t do some of the things I do in a traditional darkroom.
Cody Redmon
February 19, 2008A good friend of mine and a wonderful photographer, Jay Wesler, just decided to go back to film after using digital for the last few years. There are still so many issues with clean gradients and tonal shifts with digital work, Photoshop magic or not. So, he traded in his Canon 5D for a 4×5 view camera…it’s the bomb. I’m considering picking up a large or medium format film camera myself…
Chica
February 19, 2008I also had a class in high school on it, got to tinker with the darkroom stuff even too. I hope to someday go to the local college and enroll myself into some photography classes, that deal with film, and history of photography.
I really love Polaroid images too, just something about them, if done “just so” can really make for a neat effect. 🙂
Chris
February 19, 200860,000 plus transparencies as a pro, never counted the negatives…far too many. Wish I’d have had digital back then, it would have saved me an awful lot of money!
laanba
February 19, 2008My point and shoots in high school were all film. After being away for a while I have dabbled in film with my Holga (which I love). I also have a rangefinder and a 35mm SLR that I’m going to run some film through this year. It won’t ever be my primary medium, but I like the variety it provides.
Susheel Chandradhas
February 19, 2008I started on film when I was about 8. Photography class in School put me in the dark-room quite a bit. Then college put me through the rigours again… and again… I’d got to loving the black and white dark room so much that when I set up studio, I decided to put in a colour / B&W darkroom… Unfortunately for the room, digital caught on much too quickly. I still do shoot film occasionally, mostly on Hasselblad (120 film)
the_wolf_brigade
February 20, 2008I voted “Film is my main preference”, but given the option of free processing, or access to a scanner with time to spare, I’d sell my digital in a heart beat.
At the moment it’s generally reserved only for the kids, but i’ve even started shooting them with film…
Tibor
February 20, 2008I used to use an old Zenit SLR many years ago without really knowing how aperture setting can impact a photo. Few months ago I found the old camera. Some pictures of it are here. I suppose the camera still works. I’ve put film into it and now use it occasionally. Waiting for development time (when shot all the 36 frames) anxiously.
Charles in Charge
February 20, 2008Wow I’m a minority! 🙂
Film is my main preference. I shoot B&W, process myself when I get home, dry the film while I enjoy a cold beer, and then scan it in. Bob’s your uncle!
Digital got me into photography, Film is keeping me doing photography.
Lexie
February 28, 2008I share a dSLR with my dad, but I generally use film. I have two film SLRs: one Canon EOS, and an Olympus OM-1; a Holga, and a Canon rangefinder. So I use up a lot of film. It’s all my father’s doing. He wanted me to learn to shoot with film before letting me touch the digital SLR, so I could, “learn to think before shooting”.
Now, our dSLR is feeling pretty lonely, as my father has acquired another Olympus OM-1 and he has also gotten three rangefinders, a Petri, a Fed3 and a Leica IIIF.
Larry Lubell
May 14, 2010This is a letter I wrote to Ms Goodman at Kodak.
[email protected]
Message: Dear Ms, Goodman,
I do have a 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR; so I understand the role that digital equipment can play in a 21st century, Facebook, Newsletter, and web based world. But imagine a world where Microsoft “Paint” replaced “Oil Paints”
Where a person, hand on a mouse, was a substitute for an artist with a brush in one hand, a palette in the other.
For all the ever improving quality of Digital, Film still has a magic. We might live in a digital world, but “People” are still analog. The Music industry switched form analog to digital, and in the end destroyed their industry.
I fully understand the desire to build a medical scanner with a higher resolution, such equipment has the ability to save lives. I appreciate the every increasing number of MPs can have an important use.
I also under stand that Ansel Adams and Henri Cartie-Bresson’s work needed no improvement. And no digital technology has allowed photographers to take better photos.
Film is Eastman’s legacy. For Kodak to stop selling film would be as silly as Coca-Cola to stop making Coke and come out with called “COKE II ” ( Oh yea, they did that, it was a mistake)
Please continue to sell film.
Larry Lubell
https://lubellphotography.blogspot.com/
__________________________________________________________
Here is Ms Goodman’s response:
Greetings Mr. Lubell:
We received your email and appreciate the opportunity to respond.
Kodak is serious about feedback like yours and we act on it when we can. Your current comments are going to be seen by the right people and you can rest assured your voice has been heard.
Sincerely,
Deborah Coles
Senior Customer Relations Specialist
Worldwide Customer Care
Eastman Kodak Company
[email protected]