This blog will explain why I shoot so much on vintage film despite it being considered by many "industry experts" as "obsolete technology", "overly expensive" and "unreliable".
Vintage automotive photography in Notting Hill, London using Fujifilm colour 200
My film photography kit which I used to achieve all of the stills in this blog is very small and consists of the following three items:
Canon A1 SLR
50mm f1.4 lens
35mm Fuji 200 film roll
Rest & Recharge:
Film photography is a common genre of photography at Martin Creates. This is because when I go on holiday, I want to rest and recharge my mind and body. Whilst I love photography as a hobbyist, I don't necessarily want to be in "work-mode" and edit a lot of photos whilst I'm on holiday and trying to relax.
Culling, editing and retouching photos are daily tasks in my photography workflow as a professional photographer, and it can be quite intense and taxing on the mind and body. All professionals should take time to rest every so often in order to maintain a high level of performance throughout their careers.
We see high-performing professionals such as sportspeople, entrepreneurs and public figures taking breaks. So why don't all of us follow this example?
Vintage black and white photography in Chamonix, France using Ilford 400
These two vintage images were taken in Kalamata, Greece using Candido 400
Becoming a Better & More Rounded Photographer:
Being a versatile photographer means being competent at using different photography equipment in order to achieve compelling stills. In my case at Martin Creates, we offer a lot of photography packages from corporate events, headshots, branded lifestyle shoots to photographing music covers and weddings. And by doing film photography, I'm improving lots of important skills that are needed for advanced photography. These skills are transferable across photography genres as they relate to the creative mind, camera settings and more.
One massive appreciation that I have for film photography is that the settings are mostly manual and you don't see the results until the negatives are developed and scanned. This means over the last year or so - through much trial-and-error - I have honed my light metering and aperture adjustment skills massively. And as it turns out, these are the absolute fundamentals to photography which a lot of professional photographers overlook due to modern technologies that are built into camera bodies. Prior to shooting in film, I found myself quite reluctant to shoot at f5.6 because I was worried I'll lose "valuable bokeh". This is complete nonsense and I advise all photographers to shift away from aperture priority because there is a whole beautiful world beyond that.
The challenge behind this still was stability whilst shooting in a moving vehicle. IBIS didn't exist in the 1970s when the Canon A1 was released, so steady hands were the only way to achieve stable and sharp handheld shots.
Another challenge which I didn't fully appreciate at the time but I imagine my brain must have subconsciously factored it in was lighting. The windshield on the car almost acted as a type of ND filter; disguising the true level of light. This meant that the aperture ring was on f2.8 as opposed to f5.6 if shot had been outside of the car.
Vintage image taken in Kalamata, Greece using Candido 400
This vintage photo taken in Notting Hill is slightly too bright for my liking and subject is slightly too far ahead - I was quite slow with the shot due to manually focusing. But then again, the photo is also relatively well-composed and has meaning in my opinion.
Learning to embrace imperfections in photography is something I've always struggled with. And enjoying going through my albums with imperfect shots taken on film feels more forgivable and somewhat "part of the process" compared to digital mirrorless equivalents.
Vintage street photography in Notting Hill, London using Fujifilm colour 200
Nostalgia:
The colours of film photography cannot be disputed.
Yes, they can be unreliable because film is very sensitive and easy to damage.
I just don't believe there's any fun in being afraid of doing something novel and exciting. I value the reward and accept the risk when it comes to film photography.
The variety of film currently on offer is truly incredible because you can choose which characteristic you want to document your photography session with e.g., warmer vs cooler, colour vs monochrome and much more.
Each film has its own personality and getting to know each film recipe is a wonderful journey that I am still enjoying. The natural tones and authentic imperfections never fail to put a smile on my face.
For me, the nostalgia in film photography comes from the fact that you only have 36 exposures per film roll. That's 36 photographs. And you'll have to wait at least a few days to see the results. Compare that to a digital camera with a 128gb SD card that is filled with repetitive shots "just to be sure you got the right one and you'll delete the rest later". The extra thought that goes into each exposure when shooting film gives photography meaning.
Film photography reminds me that life can be genuine, if we want it to be.
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