Film

In the last few years there have been a couple of film entries scattered throughout this blog, mostly personal work and travel snapshots, the stuff I love the most. Until recently I didn’t own any particularly special film cameras, just an old manual Minolta I had found while nosing about in the spare room storage when I was younger, and after that one died I was gifted a cool little Canon A1 from a lovely aunty at church. It’s the stuff I started on, the stuff that made me fall in love with photography, and the stuff that gets my heart racing (literally), when I pick up processed rolls from the lab. To be honest I’m so excited about it, I pay for my purchase, and because I get the film scans on disc, I jump on those little kiosks (that are there to facilitate the purchase of prints), simply to view my photos so I don’t have to wait another 25mins during the car ride home. Yeah, I was never really the patient kind.
So why am I telling you this?
Because of a cool dude called Jonathan Canlas, and his energy and love behind Film is Not Dead, and his workshop which I had the privilege of attending in Melbourne last month. I finally whipped out my Contax 645 which I bought 6 months ago but till then had never used, and had the time of my life – slowing down, seeing, thinking, hoping, and trusting in the brain God gave me. Oh, and hanging out with a bunch of awesome new friends! Film is not difficult to get your mind around, it’s just a mindset left behind in this digital age. More than that though – Jonathan refreshed my love for photography in itself, reminded me of why I have chosen to make a living from what I do, and presented a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, I might not have to sacrifice the best hours of my day to the computer when the rest of life is beckoning.
I better apologise now for the lack of images (again) in this post, but I only sent my rolls off for developing on Monday and it will be about a fortnight before I get to see results. In any case, if you are anything like me and want to get back into film or want to see what all the fuss is about, there is something more valuable that comes with loads more eye candy too. Jonathan has had something in the works for a while and today has launched a Learn to Shoot Film Guide, with a launch price of $89. To be honest I didn’t know all that much about Jonathan when I booked in for the workshop (it was slightly on impulse, and I was more thinking that I had better figure out how to make good use of that Contax before my husband made me feel guilty about the dust-collecting purchase hehe). But I was pleasantly surprised. In a sell out world, he gives more of himself, holds nothing back, and keeps it totally real and honest…plus he has a huge heart. If you want to learn about film, you’ll want to start here, and I promise you won’t be disappointed!
I’ve still got a bit of a way to go before I have enough confidence to start incorporating film into my paid shoots (but if you’re a client and you want some of this film action, please holla!!). In the meantime, I’m looking forward to a bit of quiet time this year before our little bub gets born, and a lot more time spent with film and personal work, and I’m looking forward to sharing the journey with y’all! Happy Thursday everybody!!