Are photographers "going film?"

trexx · Oct 15, 2009

Betting the farm

Well not quite I am keeping my day job, but I am setting up a public access darkroom here in Tucson. I am doing this because I saw a lot of people looking for a change from digital. Some looking to get back to the roots of photography, some wanting to just get away from a computer for a while and many reasons already express in this thread.

I called in Darkroom Renaissance as I believe there is a renaissance in the use of film coming. I have three darkroom areas. One for film developing and classroom area. One all purpose, film, color, B&W toning. The main area has 9 enlargers 6 4x5 , 3 6x7.

fschifano · Oct 15, 2009

mopar_guy said:
I'll believe that film is back when Kodak reintroduces Panatomic X.

It was nice, but we still have PanF+. Arguably, it's not the same, but it is close enough. It's good stuff. I like it.

Perry Way · Oct 15, 2009

Steve Smith said:
He needs to get a new developing tank then!

Yes, that is his agenda. I recently upgraded from a Kodak medium format enlarger up to an Omega 4x5 enlarger and I've got not enough room for both. So I've got an enlarger for his Yashica 6x6 negs, when he's ready for that.

I always wished I had a son....

JBrunner · Oct 15, 2009

1SharpMonkey said:
Yes, that is his agenda. I recently upgraded from a Kodak medium format enlarger up to an Omega 4x5 enlarger and I've got not enough room for both. So I've got an enlarger for his Yashica 6x6 negs, when he's ready for that.

I always wished I had a son....

It's a beautiful thing you are doing.

Dave Pritchard · Oct 15, 2009

1SharpMonkey said:
Yes, that is his agenda. I recently upgraded from a Kodak medium format enlarger up to an Omega 4x5 enlarger and I've got not enough room for both. So I've got an enlarger for his Yashica 6x6 negs, when he's ready for that.

I always wished I had a son....

My serious interest in photography started about 25 years ago. I got to be friends with an older fellow who was a master at color printing. He introduced me to the local arts photography group and helped me find good used gear. I am really thankful that he took the time to teach me.

dwross · Oct 15, 2009

trexx said:
Well not quite I am keeping my day job, but I am setting up a public access darkroom here in Tucson. I am doing this because I saw a lot of people looking for a change from digital. Some looking to get back to the roots of photography, some wanting to just get away from a computer for a while and many reasons already express in this thread.
In my world halfway between 2 and 4 is 2.8
Now there is a place in Tucson to print
http://darkroomrenaissance.com/

Congratulations and Thank you! I'm sure your facility will be a rousing success. I think a lot of people are regretting letting darkrooms become 'obsolete'. I've been doing something of the same thing in my hometown. In my case, the publicly-owned Visual Arts Center had allowed its darkroom to be mothballed into a janitor's closet for five years. We have had it cleaned out and re-stocked for four months now. The feedback from the photo and art community has been very encouraging. I hope that this kind of thing is happening around the country. Heck, around the globe!

I'm going to start a list of public darkrooms and post it on my website. With your permission, I'll start with yours. I'll keep my eyes and ears open for any and all others. People need to know -- the darkroom is alive and well.

Again, thank you and good luck.

Denise Ross
www.thelightfarm.com

mattmoy_2000 · Oct 15, 2009

Wow. Why don't you just tell him to leave APUG? And tell all his friends too. Only old men who spend 20 minutes to shoot B&W 4x5 of trees or rocks need sign up here.

I don't think he was lambasting the young man, since he had specifically said that he _wasn't_ a hipster lomographer.

Unfortunately, Panatomic-X will never come back, because it used cadmium in its manufacture, and Cd is now banned within industry. Cadmium is pretty much poison; to quote Wikipedia:

Cadmium has no constructive purpose in the human body. Cadmium and its compounds are extremely toxic even in low concentrations, and will bioaccumulate in organisms and ecosystems.

Aurum · Oct 15, 2009

BobNewYork said:
My eldest son (mid-twenties now) always had, to my mind, a "good eye". He was the photographer for his high school. He had no interest in pursuing it seriously however, (probably 'cos that's what Dad did!) Went off to college and found himself on the field, taking photos of the football team for the school mag. (This was at Notre Dame) and became the Photo Editor for said mag. Having rubbed shoulders with the "pros" he went straight to ICP after graduating and is now a working photojournalist. Of course it's all digital and he's always regarded my passion for film as understandable - because I'm an old fart.

Well, I've almost got my darkroom set up again and the other day my son say's to me: "Dad, I need to start using film again - it's just more expressive for my personal work. Can you help me?"

THAT'S MY BOY !!!

Bob H

Coooool!

For daily papers / online media, Digital will be the tool of choice for speed of turnaround.
Of course if your son wants to be doing work for the Sunday Suppliment, where the deadlines aren't as tight, and quality rather than absolute speed is the preference, he could give himself a serious point of difference.....

Just throwing out a thought there....

nc5p · Oct 15, 2009

I was in Camera & Darkroom Saturday. The place has moved into the NE part of the building since I visited last. They seem very committed to film. There were quite a number of customers in there purchasing film. I bought some paper, negative sleeve pages, and some trays. This is a good sign to me.

nickstreme · Oct 16, 2009

JBrunner said:
Why are you shooting film?

Pretty much because i learned on it. I tinkered with digital for a little bit but i never found myself using it, except to sell things on ebay. So i sold the D2H, and bought myslef a blad. $260 in repairs later, and im very contempt with my decision. Its the aesthetic and tactility of it all im after.

Perry Way · Oct 16, 2009

nickstreme said:
$260 in repairs later, and im very contempt with my decision.

Interesting play on words.

GinaMaree · Oct 16, 2009

I guess I can be considered one of those hipsterish youth film converts. I started seriously studying photography about a year and a half ago. It started with my late father's polaroid 600 camera, then I bought a dSLR. With digital, I had a hard time really understanding exposure -- I didn't "get" it. So, based on a recommendation from a friend, I purchased a Canon AE-1, and everything clicked so to speak. I fell in love with film, and after taking a bw darkroom class, I fell in love with the workflow. There's nothing like holding a print you made in your hands and sharing with someone.

The photography fever hit me so hard, it made me make a drastic life change. I used to operate my own clothing label and had a comfortable income, basically working 24/7, but I ceased all production and got a part-time retail job in order to attend part-time continuing ed. classes at a some of the art colleges in NYC. Currently I'm working on printing a 20 piece portfolio, half in bw with the other half in color, so I can apply to a degree photography program (and maybe actually finish a BA before I turn 30). This life/career change I attribute to learning on film. If I stayed complacent with digital, it would've probably just remained another money absorbing hobby.

For me, film is just better than digital. I'll take grain over pixels anytime.

mark · Oct 16, 2009

GinaMaree said:
If I stayed complacent with digital, it would've probably just remained another money absorbing hobby.

We own a boat repair business. Boats are a money absorbing hobby.

Boat (n) a whole in the water, money if freely thrown into never to be retreived.

AFlood · Oct 16, 2009

The film grain effect filter in photoshop makes me feel a bit sick.

Ektagraphic · Oct 16, 2009

GinaMaree said:
I'll take grain over pixels anytime.

I can't agree with you more!

Ektagraphic · Oct 16, 2009

AFlood said:
The film grain effect filter in photoshop makes me feel a bit sick.

I'm with you. Many people think it is great. If you want grain, shoot film!

Steve Smith · Oct 16, 2009

mark said:
Boat (n) a whole in the water, money if freely thrown into never to be retreived.

A hole in the water lined with wood which you throw money into is the description I heard.

Steve.

StorminMatt · Oct 16, 2009

AFlood said:
The film grain effect filter in photoshop makes me feel a bit sick.

It kind of reminds me of the way that cars these days with automatic transmissions have a shift lever made to resemble a manual stick shift (as opposed to the old T-handle floor shifters and column shifters of the past) so that the car will have some semblence of sportiness. But it's stupid. Not that I am against digital. But shoot it for its own merits. I think that, if you want the look of film, shoot film.

Anyway, I think that the reason why B+W use has risen recently is actually BECAUSE of digital. It is not necessarily because people don't like digital. But rather, digital got people interested in photography. And naturally, this makes people open to try things that they haven't before (like B+W film).

thebdt · Oct 16, 2009

StorminMatt said:
Anyway, I think that the reason why B+W use has risen recently is actually BECAUSE of digital. It is not necessarily because people don't like digital. But rather, digital got people interested in photography. And naturally, this makes people open to try things that they haven't before (like B+W film).

Color is very difficult. I enjoy B&W film because I have as much control over itthe processing, the printingas I do with digital color. Indeed, I kind of don't understand why anyone bothers with film color any more...

fschifano · Oct 16, 2009

mark said:
Boat (n) a whole in the water, money if freely thrown into never to be retreived.

Yes, it is; just as an airplane is a (maybe an even larger) hole in the sky into which you throw money.

JBrunner · Oct 17, 2009

fschifano said:
Yes, it is; just as an airplane is a (maybe an even larger) hole in the sky into which you throw money.

Sailing: The art of getting cold and sick, while slowly going nowhere, at great expense.

removed account4 · Oct 17, 2009

elekm said:
A recent article in Amateur Photographer says that processing of black and white film rose 45% in a year, at least in the U.K.

I wonder if this is a temporary blip from younger photographers who are curious about film or perhaps the pendulum swinging the other way -- maybe, just a bit -- after nearly a decade of digital globalization.

it's a pr piece for ilford's 120 film and for the processing / print division.
magazines and newspapers do this sort of thing all the time ..
companies pay $$ for a small article to be written ...

Are photographers "going film?"

trexx

fschifano

Perry Way

JBrunner

Moderator

Dave Pritchard

dwross

mattmoy_2000

Aurum

nc5p

nickstreme

Perry Way

GinaMaree

mark

AFlood

Ektagraphic

Ektagraphic

Steve Smith

StorminMatt

thebdt

fschifano

JBrunner

Moderator

removed account4

Are photographers "going film?"

Moderator

Moderator

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency