Getting Started with Film Photography

Film has made a surprising comeback in the photography world and has swept many people off their feet with its aesthetic feel and look. From hobbyists to professional photographers, film photography has many different features that one could explore when shooting.

So, why film?

Shooting film is a personal preference of mine, I started with digital photography back in early high school and shot with a Canon Rebel T3 (the staple of beginner camera for photographers in 2016, a classic). I shot digitally on and off for about five years before I bought my first film camera.

I had bought it on a whim in local photography store, it was an old Konica film camera and I had been vaguely interested in trying out the medium. So, I gave it a shot. A broken light meter and a lever that didn’t lift when you tried to turn the film — I shot two rolls before the camera tragically kicked the bucket.

Fast forward to me researching and finding a mint Olympus Mju Zoom 105 on Ebay, and I fell in love with it. A standard point and shot film camera, the Zoom 105 comes with an auto-focus, a remote timer, and different flash modes. All I had to do was shoot and I loved it.

Shot on Kodak Portra 160 in Tokyo

Why I love film is because I became so obsessed with getting the ‘perfect’ shot (I know, I know, pursuit of perfection and all that) that I would use up my SD card with two or three locations or shoots and that was it. I would find something I didn’t like or change settings that made a minute change — film allowed me to embrace the natural feel of photography. Instinct and a keen eye allowed me to remember what I liked about photography in the first place and not create a technical monster for me to overcome.

How to start shooting film

Film requires a few different things than digital photography. To start with, you need to have a film camera. Film cameras range far and wide, as most things in the photography community, and what works for one person may not work for the other. If you want to start shooting in film and you’re uncertain if this is something you want to pursue, then I would recommend a point-and-shoot. Any will get the job done and get you the taste of working with the new medium.

Second decision, what film you want to shoot. I truly hate beating a dead horse, but this is also something that is up to the user. For this, however, I would recommend trial and error. Trying different rolls and different companies will give you an idea of how your photos will turn out even before you start shooting. Some of my favorites are Cinestill 800T for night photography, Kodak Portra 160 for an all-around film, and Kodak Gold.

With those two out of the way, you’re ready to shoot some film!

Kodak Portra in Tokyo

So, you shot your first roll. What now? 

Now, comes the fun part. You had a few different routes you could go, but first things first, you have to develop the negatives. Photo labs are accessible via mailing in your film to a lab and they will send back your negatives (and scans depending on what the lab offers!). I have never tried them personally but there are many people that swear by Indie Film Lab as a good lab to develop at. It is also possible to develop your own film at home, if film is something you want to pursue and want to save on costs from developing at a lab.

I personally use Lone Star Darkroom because they are close to me and have a very short turn around time. Places like Walgreens and CVS develop film, but I highly discourage using either because they ruin the quality of your photos, and their development isn’t true to what the film should look like.

Next, the scans. I have been using film for a while now and have bought a scanner to scan my film in, but I know that isn’t reasonable for many people. Thankfully, film labs also offer an additional service of scanning in the negatives and digitizing them. I like scanning my own film in because it gives me another level of control over how the photos turn out and I can edit certain aspects how I like them. I use Negative Lab Pro on Adobe Lightroom to edit and turn the negatives to positives, adjust curves and temperature, alongside many other features.

After this, you successfully shot and developed your own film roll!

There is a reason there has been a revival of film and why it has taken people by storm. Film is definitely worth a try, have fun and go take some pictures!

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