I think you missed my
I used film for many, many years. I just don't right now. I have nothing against it at all. These articles are just funny to me when it sounds like the writer just discovered the latest fad. The only issue I have is that some people truly seem to think that your results will be inferior if you use digital (No SOUL!!!!) or assume you've never used film if you prefer digital. That's not what this article is about though. I was making a light hearted observation.
bjornkeizers
Established
Articles like this are a necessary evil I guess I'm not really one of the younger film shooters (30) but I only started using it again last year. It was a great rediscovery, since I did use film when I was younger.
I don't really subscribe to the Lomography hate that some do. Yes, it's a bit silly, yes, they charge a bundle for 'crap' cameras... but in the end, they do help in promoting the medium and even reviving once dead stuff like 110 film. Their and mine interests happen to overlap.
I personally started my film rediscovery with a Canon GIII rangefinder, which I guess puts me in the more serious film shooter category. I also use a Canon EOS 5 and some other serious cameras, in addition to owning a Holga and Diana as well. Yes, there's even a medium format Bronica in my camera bag. Shoot what you like and promote it every way you can.
I'm not really one of the younger film shooters (30) but I only started using it again last year. It was a great rediscovery, since I did use film when I was younger.I don't really subscribe to the Lomography hate that some do. Yes, it's a bit silly, yes, they charge a bundle for 'crap' cameras... but in the end, they do help in promoting the medium and even reviving once dead stuff like 110 film. Their and mine interests happen to overlap.
I personally started my film rediscovery with a Canon GIII rangefinder, which I guess puts me in the more serious film shooter category. I also use a Canon EOS 5 and some other serious cameras, in addition to owning a Holga and Diana as well. Yes, there's even a medium format Bronica in my camera bag. Shoot what you like and promote it every way you can.
Admin -
Folks, please take the time to post in the best forum from the get go.
Thread moved from "General Interest" to film.
There are almost 110,000 threads and 1,900,000 posts at RFF.
Guess what?
You will be able to go back and find that thread you are looking for a lot faster if its posted in the most appropriate forum with a title that really says what the thread is about.
Thanks,
Stephen
Folks, please take the time to post in the best forum from the get go.
Thread moved from "General Interest" to film.
There are almost 110,000 threads and 1,900,000 posts at RFF.
Guess what?
You will be able to go back and find that thread you are looking for a lot faster if its posted in the most appropriate forum with a title that really says what the thread is about.
Thanks,
Stephen
wilonstott
Wil O.
At least they are making film look cool to young people--they will undoubtedly spend the most money on niche products.
Hell, Lomography, and things of that ilk may be what's keeping film going, and if that's what it takes, then I say, go ahead with it.
However, I know what you guys mean about not really seeing or hearing about people that are out there doing quality work with film, and not simply falling on to film for its assumed "old-timey" or "haphazard/you-never-know-what-you're-going-to-get" aesthetic.
$hit man, I know what I'm gonna get nearly all of the time. Anomalies are just that.
Going in this vein, I wanted to share a link--a photography collective out of Australia that I stumbled across some weeks ago.
The majority of their photographers (young people--late 20s and 30s) use film predominantly, and not just medium format, but 35mm as well. Color and Black and White.
Oculi
Check these guys out. Some really great documentary work.
Edit:
I think a lot of the problem may be that serious photographers often stray away from questions about gear and process, and instead focus on the end product. I've dug up interviews with a lot of those Oculi photographers, and they will talk about shooting film, and their affinity for it, but they aren't outright about it. I understand this sentiment; perhaps they don't want to place too much emphasis on equipment because they think it takes away from the image (or some permutation of this thought process).
The point is, with a lot of serious photographers, the fact that they use film (prefer it even) is not immediately obvious when viewed by the novice, or even to the routine digital user--perhaps, many times the medium becomes transparent (pardon the pun) because it's being used as it was intended, and not being forced into a premature state of visually antiquated novelty. F
Film used correctly, whether it be slide, color neg, or BW, just looks very good--that's all. It reacts differently to light than digital sensors do, and the result might conjure questions from digital users about Photoshop presets and Lightroom Plugins---precisely because nothing really screams film about a good film image--it's the subtle differences that really set it apart. Additionally, the subtle differences are the things that digital has such a hard time with (highlight rolloff in C-41 vs Digital, for instance--digital would kill for it--seriously, some guy at Nikon would knife his mother today).
Back to the point, I think we don't hear about better photographers using film because, on the whole, they don't talk about it.
Hell, Lomography, and things of that ilk may be what's keeping film going, and if that's what it takes, then I say, go ahead with it.
However, I know what you guys mean about not really seeing or hearing about people that are out there doing quality work with film, and not simply falling on to film for its assumed "old-timey" or "haphazard/you-never-know-what-you're-going-to-get" aesthetic.
$hit man, I know what I'm gonna get nearly all of the time. Anomalies are just that.
Going in this vein, I wanted to share a link--a photography collective out of Australia that I stumbled across some weeks ago.
The majority of their photographers (young people--late 20s and 30s) use film predominantly, and not just medium format, but 35mm as well. Color and Black and White.
Oculi
Check these guys out. Some really great documentary work.
Edit:
I think a lot of the problem may be that serious photographers often stray away from questions about gear and process, and instead focus on the end product. I've dug up interviews with a lot of those Oculi photographers, and they will talk about shooting film, and their affinity for it, but they aren't outright about it. I understand this sentiment; perhaps they don't want to place too much emphasis on equipment because they think it takes away from the image (or some permutation of this thought process).
The point is, with a lot of serious photographers, the fact that they use film (prefer it even) is not immediately obvious when viewed by the novice, or even to the routine digital user--perhaps, many times the medium becomes transparent (pardon the pun) because it's being used as it was intended, and not being forced into a premature state of visually antiquated novelty. F
Film used correctly, whether it be slide, color neg, or BW, just looks very good--that's all. It reacts differently to light than digital sensors do, and the result might conjure questions from digital users about Photoshop presets and Lightroom Plugins---precisely because nothing really screams film about a good film image--it's the subtle differences that really set it apart. Additionally, the subtle differences are the things that digital has such a hard time with (highlight rolloff in C-41 vs Digital, for instance--digital would kill for it--seriously, some guy at Nikon would knife his mother today).
Back to the point, I think we don't hear about better photographers using film because, on the whole, they don't talk about it.
BLKRCAT
75% Film
someone adopt me. Im looking for a 35mm for my M2.
in al seriousness though, I love shooting film and still kept with it even as digital progressed and became more popular.
Right now, at 24 im right in that demographic everyone speaks about. Definitely get strange looks carrying around a polaroid folder, bronica, or even my instamatic 60.
in al seriousness though, I love shooting film and still kept with it even as digital progressed and became more popular.
Right now, at 24 im right in that demographic everyone speaks about. Definitely get strange looks carrying around a polaroid folder, bronica, or even my instamatic 60.
KoNickon
Nick Merritt
That's great -- and I certainly didn't mean to imply everyone shooting film who's young is just going for the hipster thing.
I've got a Thorens myself, but it's been in storage for ca. 20 years!
I've got a Thorens myself, but it's been in storage for ca. 20 years!
redisburning
Well-known
set your sights higher my friend.
Im looking for someone who wants to adopt me and has a Deardorff 8x10 and a collection of current Rodenstock lenses
well, you should get it out. in fact right now Im listening to some English Clarinet music on Hyperion; a record which I purchased for less than one dollar as part of a collection of English early 20th century.
HHPhoto
Well-known
+1.
Excellent written!!!!!
Will, thank you very much for this very well thought text!
Cheers, Jan
kuzano
Veteran
Clearly not spending much time on eBay or ShopGoodWill auction.
I doubt that you can go on eBay/Shopgoodwill at any time and not find at least one or more High End SLR, Rangefinder, Medium Format,... and the list goes on. I sell film camera's on eBay. Prices (demand) are rising for the upper end SLR, MF and particularly Large Format.
There are plenty of SLR's available there that can do multiple exposure.
And, very little of what you see there is junk, and a goodly portion can be fed a battery and a roll of appropriate film and go to work.
And if you don't want to spend a lot of money, you can find almost every model and manufacture of yesteryears program, auto or manual focus, or pure analog, many of which will do double exposure.
Per the "young people trying film" nature of this thread:
I donate about 10 - 12 good working film camera/lens combinations per year to our local community college film camera class. SRO class every quarter filled with young people. They even get quite a few people fed up with digital, never shot film before, and want to try it out.
Examples of cameras sought for these classes... Pentax K1000, Canon AE-1, Minolta SRT x... and so forth, primarily manual focus, manual exposure, perhaps with early simple aperture priority program.