Film V Digital

I think right off the bat I will say give me film over digital any day. I truly hope that film manufacturers do not just up and decide one day to give up making film. I purchased my first digital point and shoot camera around 2006. I wanted a "professional" camera so badly that I bought a Kodak that looked very similar to the old SLR cameras. It was a weak little thing - only 6 megapixels - but I did get one great photo shoot out of it when I dressed my three youngest in clown face paint and overalls and too them to my grandfather's old farm. I still have that SD card tucked safely away with the 50 plus images that I took that day still on it. 

I don't get out as often as I would like to take street photos, but what I've found is that I am more inclined to force myself to go out if I use my film cameras over my DSLR camera. Shooting with digital tends to make me lazy. I'll take 5 to 10 shots of the same thing knowing that I can just come home and pick out the best one. With film, I am more likely to line that shot up quicker in my head, think it through more rationally, focused harder and just generally concentrate more and dedicate myself to getting that one clean shot. 

I also love the element of surprise you get with film photography. I love going through my images and being amazed by how precise a shot was - and on the first and only try, no less. Instead of going through hundreds of useless images and becoming bored with the process, I can enjoy the memories an image brings back. 

Which would you rather hear - "Remember that time I made you stand still so I could take 500 shots before I got this one?" Or "Remember the day we walked around Sunset to take pictures? This was right before you saw the cute dog walker." (Twisty's gonna kick my ass for sharing that one.)

When I shoot with film, it gives me a chance to actually enjoy what I'm doing. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm still keeping my DSLR. I mean, it's good for lots of things and it's not a bad camera. I would use the digital camera when I have images I want to edit - like images for my YouTube videos. For random street photography, people watching, family photos and the like I think I would choose film over digital. 

I'm not an expert and I did have to drop the photography classes I was taking, but that in no way diminishes my passion for photography. I think I am just a different kind of photographer. I'm old school. The sweet, harmonious click that an old film camera makes cannot be compared to the mechanically digital sounds of a modern DSLR camera. The way an old film camera feels in my hand is like nothing else on this earth. (Maybe, possibly, I need a boyfriend, but that's another issue for another day.) Loading and unloading the film in an old camera lifts me up and takes me back to when I was a kid. The whole process of using an old film camera makes it seem so much more meaningful. 

I have to admit, when I see someone taking photos with their phone, I get a little sick feeling in my gut. It's like watching someone put cheap gas in a Lamborgini. Why would you want to capture precious family moments on a phone?! Why?! 

Yeah, I probably do need a boyfriend, but for now, I am totally in love with my film cameras. 

My little Twisty - Taken with my Bronica ETRS using 120 film