Friday 8 February 2019

Film or digital

This might be controversial, but why do people still use film? If you do, that's great. This is just me thinking out loud.

I am always reading that I should have the latest digital camera because it's so much better than the one I have. It will have two memory slots and produce even higher resolution picures etc.

Then I read film is better, purer, or that it slows you down so you can appreciate the art of photography.

For me, I want to use the best tool, that makes economical sense, for the job. A new feature or capabilty needs to be cost effective.

At the moment a Nikon D700 and good lenses provide what I need. I can hire kit if I really need something extra.

Higher resolution and faster frame rate. I can print my pictures big enough, even when I crop them a bit. I have never needed double digit frame rates. The motorsport I have photographed didn't need more than the older cameras I used could provide. Other sports might need it.

Coming back to film, I don't shoot fast. I take my time and ensure I have it right. So I have never understood the reasoning behind film making you a better photographer by slowing you down.

Then there is the developing. Either do it yourself or send it off. Maybe that's what is meant by slowing you down.

If you want to share on line you'll need to scan them. Will scanning and any manipultion mean you remove some of the film "uniqueness"?

At the end of the day; if you are happy, keep doing it.


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2 comments:

  1. Film is better. All that stuff about pixels, film doesn't need to worry about that because it is if you like, the ultimate in quality, the problem is that there's more room for human error, you're limited by the amount of film you have and you can't delete any rubbish images you might take. In other words, less room for error.

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    1. Thanks Matt. I wasn't comparing quality, that's more subjective, and can vary with the film you use. The many types and manufacturers can produce differing results. And quality is also dependent on the lenses you use for both film and digital. The post was questioning if using film was a way for some to say they are better because they use it. I didn't think maybe people use film because of the extra challenge, that's a good point.

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