Why I Still Shoot Film Photography in a Digital Age
I still shoot film photography.
Not because digital photography is bad.
Not because I’m trying to prove something.
And certainly not because film cameras have become trendy again.
I still shoot film because it reminds me how to see.
How I Started Shooting Film Photography
In 1998, a friend handed me a Pentax K1000.
That moment changed everything.
At the time, digital photography had not yet fully taken over, and film was still the foundation of how many photographers learned the craft. After borrowing that camera, I immediately knew I wanted one of my own and put my first film camera on layaway shortly afterward.
A few years later, while studying photography in college, I learned how to develop my own negatives and darkroom prints. The process was physical, imperfect, and intentional. Trays of chemicals, enlargers, photographic paper, and long hours in the darkroom watching images slowly emerge.
It was also expensive.
As a college student, film, chemicals, and printing paper forced me to think carefully before taking a photograph. Every frame carried a cost.
That limitation taught me discipline. More importantly, it taught me how to truly see before pressing the shutter.
If the image through the viewfinder didn’t align with what I imagined in my head, I simply wouldn’t take the photograph.
Why Film Photography Still Matters to Me
Film photography slows me down in the best possible way.
Digital photography offers incredible freedom and the ability to capture thousands of images instantly and refine them endlessly afterward. There is undeniable beauty in that.
But film asks something different of the photographer:
Patience.
Trust.
Intentionality.
When I shoot film, I trust my instincts more. I pay closer attention to light, composition, posture, and timing before ever pressing the shutter button.
Ironically, learning photography through film made me stronger when I eventually transitioned into digital photography.
Even now, I still approach digital photography as if every frame matters. I slow down and make sure what I’m seeing through the camera is truly the image I want to create.
What I Love About the Look of Film
Beyond the process itself, I still love the visual qualities unique to film photography.
The warmth.
The grain.
The tonal depth and mood.
Film renders light and atmosphere differently than digital photography, often in ways that feel more emotional and dimensional to me.
Many of my favorite film stocks continue to influence the way I edit digital images today, including:
Kodak Portra 800
Fujifilm Acros 100
Fujifilm Provia 100
These film emulsions shaped the way I understand color, contrast, and atmosphere. They became part of my visual language long before presets and filters existed.
Shooting Film During Portrait Sessions
I don’t typically photograph entire portrait sessions on film anymore.
But I almost always keep a film camera nearby during shoots for a handful of intentional frames.
Clients still respond differently to film photographs. There’s often an immediate emotional reaction to the texture, imperfection, and presence of a well-crafted film image.
Film photographs feel less manufactured.
More grounded.
More human.
Perhaps because they cannot be endlessly corrected or recreated.
Why Continue Shooting Film in a Digital World?
Continuing to shoot film photography feels like a reminder of my roots.
But it also feels like an homage:
To the friend who first introduced me to photography
To the teachers who shared their expertise
To the slower process that taught me patience, observation, and restraint
In many ways, continuing to shoot film feels quietly rebellious now.
Not against technology, but against speed, excess, and the pressure to constantly produce without truly seeing.
Film photography reminds me that photography was never meant to be rushed.
Final Thoughts
I love digital photography for everything it allows.
But film photography still holds a different place in me.
It reminds me:
To trust my eye
To slow down
To pay attention
And in a world increasingly built around immediacy, there’s something meaningful about continuing to create photographs that ask for patience, both from the photographer and from the subject in front of the lens.
Maybe that’s why I still return to film.
Not out of nostalgia.
But out of respect for the craft itself.
