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Forum: Film SLRs and Compact Film Cameras
02-26-2013, 02:08 PM
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I used to think I had it bad. I had a hard time choosing between so many Pentax lenses for my DSLR. So many options; some good lenses that are horribly undervalued, and some great options that are priced accordingly. Then I got curious and ran a roll of film through my "free" Spotmatic that had come with one of those lenses. Now, I'm hooked--and I haven't even begun exploring the different films or mechanisms to run film through. This could become problematic because I live in a small apartment.
Here are my current options:
The Spotmatic is going to get new seals, as will the Super Program. I'm surprised at how well the Super Program handles DA lenses, especially compared to the SF1. Overall, though, I'm mostly enjoying the slower approach to photography that film encourages, and I'm learning tons about how to work with color in the digital domain. I'm quite amazed that, despite my K-5's undoubted superiority when it comes to resolution in low contrast images, I'm preferring this contrarian approach to making pictures. Not just because I like contrariness, which I do, but because the images somehow seem more representative if less accurate.
...I watched a movie last night and thought to myself, "this was shot on film." I don't know how I recognized that. I wonder, though, if this is why I like the look of my film images, and why Instagram is so popular: most people alive today grew up associating 2D imagery with film, which makes it look right, whereas the more accurate digital images just look "off" somehow.
Regardless, I'm apprehensive of the possibility that, should I develop a good workflow from negative to print, I will simply need to also have at my disposal cameras that shoot larger negatives. While I am staggered by the technology of digital cameras, and have the utmost respect for the value of large-sensor cameras, I simply don't see myself buying another current-generation digital camera. Film seems to be adequate at its weakest, sublime at its best, and thoroughly enjoyable at all points (if we're willing to overlook dusty, scratched negatives). I assume others can relate to this line of thinking. I'm new to it; where has it taken you?
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