Summer of Film
This summer I decided to shoot on film for the first time since 2017. I had always loved the way film looked, last year I noticed I started editing my photos to replicate the way film looks and found myself thinking, maybe I should just try it out. Luckily my grandad had a film camera that i could borrow whilst I experimented, so the Minolta 7000 has been my baby this year :)
I thought the way that you only had a certain amount of negatives within a film roll made it all so exciting. I couldn’t shoot a certain composition a number of times, otherwise I’d just waste 4 or so negatives on the same image- it’s just not worth it. I made me start to really think about what I was shooting, it made me cautious about each image and whether I really liked it and thought if I could do better or not. I guess really it just made me more self aware of the photos I was taking really. One thing that I have found that has stressed me out almost is not knowing what the photo looks like. Maybe stress isn’t the right word…it’s a feeling that I just can’t describe ahah, it’s sort of exhilarating but I get nervous as I don’t know whether it’s good until it’s developed. As well as that, I have a bad memory so can barely remember the photos I took at the beginning of a roll when I’m nearing the end of it.
As i mentioned at the beginning, this was a summer for experimentation. So of course things went wrong, they are bound to, I mean no one picks up a film camera and gets it all right start away. So I thought i’d use this post to actually show where i went wrong, so if anyone out there is looking to shoot film or just starting, at least they can see how I went wrong and try not to make the same errors I did ekk aha.
(all my ‘correct’ photographs I have posted on instagram and throughout this website so if you want to see the ones that went well feel free :) )
Too dark / no light source
This is pretty much the same for a DSLR (digital camera), if you’re shooting in darker/dimmer light, DO bring something that provides light for your subject. Whether that is a flash on camera, portable light source or a soft box if you’re somewhere with a plug or have one that takes batteries asa well as a reflector; it really depends on what look you want your photo to have for what light source you use.
It’s a shame, if I took this photo about 20 minutes earlier then I would have been at golden hour and oh would this have been a better photo!
Nothing I can do know aha :F
Advice?? Light light light!! Also if you’re thinking about shooting in the dark a lot, maybe research to see what cameras are best to work in the dark.
TIMING!!
Now, I have found that with my camera, once I press the shutter that the photo actually takes a split second after i’ve pressed it.
I know. Annoying.
Well for me at least.
There is nothing much more to say here but to know your camera so that when it matters, you can get the photo you want since (for me) the camera takes the photo later, so press the shutter earlier,
Advice?? Use your camera. That’s the only way you’re going to know how your camera works, as well as testing out your different camera settings depending on what you’re doing- for this picture, since my subject was moving round lots I needed a shorter shutter speed to be able to capture the movement and not make my subject blurry.
Don’t face towards the light (if you can help it)
As well as timing and the fact that I tried to yet again take a picture in darker light and had no extra light source, I also was facing towards the light which didn’t help the look of the photo.
When facing towards the light, a lot of the time it can underexpose a subject, give you a silhouette effect on your subject. So if that isn’t what you’re going for, think about having the light behind your subject so it lights your face rather than the back of their head.
I find as well the sky can look funny a lot of the time. There beena. few lucky times where i’ve had blue sky with a few clouds or even no clouds, but then you have to deal with harsh light from the sun, so there are pros and cons.
Advice?? You want your subject in the light…face them towards it ahaha
What a summer it’s been, i’ve enjoyed every minute of using film, even when it has failed drastically ahaa. I think i’m going to keep using it for a while longer. I haven’t been neglecting my DSLR, in fact i’ve been working on a documentary project for the last few months and i’m hoping to share it with you all soon, but I might make you wait a little longer…
But anyways, i’ve recently got my last roll of the year back so keep an eye out for my instagram as i’ll be posting the photos there over the next few weeks.