Why Film?

(because it’s fun)

Lily Meola photographed by Los Angeles portrait photographer Corrigan

Over the past 10+ years, film has managed to always find a way into my workflow and camera bag. What started as a “what if,” for one show, and then a lifesaver when a digital camera died at another, has now become a staple of my work. Medium format, 35mm, color, black and white, reversal (slide) films, I’ve tried a lot of equipment and honed in on what I like.

I still will often take a hybrid approach, bringing a digital camera along (or a film camera along if the digital images are going to be the primary objective for the day, because sometimes that is just how it is).

But, back to film.

Ask me to tell you what it is I like about it, and you’re likely to find yourself on the receiving end of a ramble about image character/rendering, the process, changes in perspective, a different approach, etc. The cameras and lenses I love all have their own subtleties and quirks.

I don’t know if I ever intended to love film photography as much as I do today when I picked up my first medium format camera 10+ years ago, but here I am.

Questions, meet answers: