lomography is killing me

[ptpdprinter]

I see this in alt circles as well. Mediocre images that no amount of historical processing can redeem, yet a lot of oohs and aahs.

 

[Takkun]

Not saying your friends do this, but what I have seen is all those who b1tch and complain about film tend to be old people who no longer use film, but exclusively shoot on digital.
And they will have anecdotes about how they used film for the last 40 + years, all the amazing things they did with it, and what a pain in the a$$ it is and so good riddance to it. They seems to almost be offended that it still exists and young people are discovering it and loving it. It's as if they don't want any newbies to experience what they experienced, so they can lord over them that back in the day they were pro film shooters but 'you' wouldn't understand as 'you' are not able to use it.
So they try their darndest to turn people off it, and then berate those that do use it by denigrating them because, well, perhaps there is an envy that they are demonstrating a passion that is no longer within them.

I've definitely noticed this, not universally, but pervasively. Whenever I have a problem developing I get a-googlin' before posting a new discussion, and there's inevitably someone on a technical thread saying don't even bother, i switched to digital/iPhone years ago (or conversely, the ONLY way to do film is wet printing on FB paper, forget all that scanner and inkjet crap). I just have to wonder what the purpose of even replying to such a thread is. Haven't determined if those are the same posters that bemoan the death of the industry (see another heated thread here)...

 

[Takkun]

Photographic effects, or Syntax is something I teach to painters, illustrators, etc. And I think it's something people who are new to shooting film are intrigued by which is why they pursue things like grain, vignetting, lens flare, etc. Because those effects, while undesirable to "good" photographers are also hallmarks of the medium.

Digital has also long been sold on a falsity that it is easier than film, so there is this perception that film must be really hard to learn. Impress your friends and family - try film!

I've softened my stance a bit on this. My mother was a landscape painter and illustrator, and used to abhor non-representational art—felt it wasn't fair a few splats or squares on giant canvases were more celebrated than someone toiling at perfecting a craft. I felt similar for a long time, but have come to appreciate that some have a different aesthetic interest and embrace and push the limitations of the medium. Might not be my style, but who cares, really?

Then there are the others that hold the attitude that film is inherently crappy. Reminds me of the time an acquaintance told me they loved music on vinyl because it was all scratched up and crackly and that was the way old music was supposed to sound. Never really got the circa-2010 instagram/tumblr aesthetic of blurry, pastel photos of nothing, but I guess that's not much different than those who beautifully print exceptionally boring photos in the darkroom.

 

[ptpdprinter]

(or conversely, the ONLY way to do film is wet printing on FB paper, forget all that scanner and inkjet crap).

Well, if you want to maintain any claim to authenticity, which many film users do...