Why film? It’s very simple really: film is fun. You don’t worry about megapixels, SD cards, batteries draining or charging, expensive equipment, or getting your car broken into for your $20 camera from 1983. And it’s inexpensive — shooting film costs less than digital. Yep, contrary to popular belief, for your and my purposes, shooting film costs less. If you buy a professional camera from the eighties or nineties off eBay, it will run you a hundred or so bucks at the high end. You can shoot upwards of 500 rolls with processing and CD scans (that’s 18,000 photos) before getting halfway to the cost of Canon 5D MKIII.
So far I have illustrated two points: it’s fun; and I’m a cheap bastard.
There’s only a few other reasons — film looks cool! People spend time trying to edit photos to look like film, or apply filters that attempt to replicate the “film look.” I hate editing photos. I don’t like spending hours going over hundreds or thousands of shots. I’m lazy when it comes to my leisure time. I’d rather be doing other things like watching Battlestar Galactica or having a little alone time (maybe both — that blonde cylon is hot). So, I never edit my photos; I know what a particular brand will look like and I’m stoked when it comes out of the camera the way I envisioned.
My last reason is very simple: I never planned or plan on being a photographer. I enjoy my profession as a firefighter. Photography is a hobby for me. A passionate one, but still only a hobby. I have no need to spend the money on high-end gear. If my ambition was greater for a profession in photography, then I’d shell out the loot for quality digital stuff.
There’s the why. People inevitably ask, so I thought to explain it first. It has nothing to do with “film vs. digital” and what looks better, and blah blah blah… Arguing that is like arguing what flavor of jelly tastes better with peanut butter.
These are a few photos from a variety of beat-up cameras I own (I have a terrible habit of buying every film camera I come across at a garage sale). I included the camera and film type in each caption so you can see the effect. Most shots are from east Hawaii on the Big Island. When I’m not working or doing family things, I’m surfing and taking pictures.
For more from Mike Caputo, visit AlohaBigMike.com, and be sure to follow him on Instagram and Flickr.
