uhy film A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO F I L M P H OTO G R A P H Y
the fine art O
O F F I L M P H OTO G R A P H Y
nce upon a time, a young girl carefully opened the back of her little Konica camera. Placing the film canister in the right way around she then held it with her thumb as she drew out enough of the shiny, brown film strip to feed into the takeup spool. Still with the camera back open, she slowly pulled back the wind-on lever, checking that the film was being wrapped around the spool. She shut the back. She shot several blank photos. And she was ready. I learned a lot with my little Konica. Digital photography in today’s world – it’s so convenient, so flexible. But it has removed the need to be ready. It has taken “pointand-shoot” to giddy heights. More than this it has removed the fine ar t of
photography: understanding how the camera works, taking time to compose the image, waiting for that perfect moment. No wasteful shots, no checking the LCD display after each shot. And so – and here is the really interesting par t - a far higher propor tion of film stills from a session are good than are the propor tion of digital shots. This is found to be the case by a majority of hybrid photographers. More than 80% of my film stills make the cut straight from the lab; sometimes fewer than 50% of my digital images even make it through the first stage of post-production. The time is taken before the shot - to understand and to create. This is crucial. After the shutter, then comes the magic.
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flat or flattering
tend to ask difficult questions! For example, has the convenience, flexibility - and sheer megapixels! - of digital photography come at the expense of truly stunning imager y? Has it in fact reduced - or even removed - the need
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et’s break down the real benefits of digital photography, before taking a look at the considerable qualities of film, comparing their merits. At the same time you can take a look at the differences between the mediums, as shown in side-by-side photographs of the same subjects with digital on the left, film on the right. → The digital images have had basic corrections to colour and exposure.
for the photographer to be intentional and thoughtful? Is it yet another case of computer cleverness trumping the ability of people to work with ar tistr y, using the raw materials found in the world around them?
digital
• Thousands of raw images fit onto one memor y card: a substantial saving over film and lab costs. • LCD preview screens allow me to check the shot was good enough. • Easily adjustable to ver y high ISOs (equivalent to fast film speed) for low light situations. This would necessitate a change of film, which is possible, but less convenient. • Powerful editing software enables me to correct huge exposure issues, adjust colour hues and saturation, tweak contrast, add filters and on goes the list of tricks. Perfect digital images SOOC (“Straight Out Of Camera”) are something to boast about, but before the digital era that was all we had, so we needed to get it right!
film
• Light par ticles react with silver in the film emulsion – a natural chemical reaction. This is what gives the colour depth, contrast and grain that sets film stills apar t. Digital camera sensors measure pixels, a mathematical process which results in flatter images. • Exposure latitude – which simply means you can overexpose quality film stocks by huge amounts, with little to no discernible impact. • Slower, more deliberate shooting leads to properly exposed film, better composed shots, and a lot less of the paparazzi soundeffects. • Skin tones! If one thing will swing it in favour of film, let it be this: in a film image your skin will be smoother and glow more than it actually does in real life. Call it magic. (Or chemistr y).
film
digital
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conclusion
his brief comparison of the relative strengths of digital versus film photography shows how ver y different the two types are. I am passionate about the exceptional and unrivalled beauty found in a good film photograph, that draws the eye and touches the soul.
Whether you are celebrating a marriage or marking an anniversar y, remembering a growing family or capturing a creative business – I believe absolutely that film photography will do it more beautifully, and more gracefully. To finish I outline the process from your session through to you holding the images in your hands (or on your phone).
film THE STEPS
1. I take your photographs using a range of different film stocks and film cameras. 2. A light meter helps me determine the best camera settings to use during shooting, remembering that lots of over-exposure is not a problem on film. 3. I send these rolls of exposed film to a professional, world-class lab to be developed. 4. The processed film negatives are then scanned according to my specific instructions regarding colour, tone and contrast.
Professional scanners (made by Fujifilm and Kodak) are used to turn your negatives into high-resolution digital files. (Steps 3 and 4 takes around a week.) 5. Once I receive these files I have the oppor tunity to do some basic editing if necessar y (ver y often none is required). 6. You receive your beautiful, digitised film stills to view and share on your phone, laptop and social media. And they can (and should) be printed and mounted in an album, or framed and hung on the wall.
stay in touch
W E B . l i z b a k e r p h o t o g r a p h y. c o . u k E M A I L . i n f o @ l i z b a k e r p h o t o g r a p h y. c o . u k PHONE . 07419 819988 I N S TA G R A M . @ l i z b a k e r p h o t o g r a p h y FACEBOOK . /lizbaker photogr apher