The Film Guide
all you need to know about film photos
Film photography is back in a big way. And as someone who grew up shooting film, I could not be more excited. I am here to be your film guide. There’s nothing as timeless as film.
Choosing film for your wedding or portrait session might feel like a big risk — what if the photos don’t turn out? How do I know what film to choose? Do I even have to decide that? Not to worry, friend, I got you.
This guide will tell you everything you need to know about film photography, offer examples of different film stocks (black and white, colour, more and less grainy, moodier or more airy, etc.), and help you envision how film enhance your experience.
Why You Should Choose Film
Why Film?
If you’re an elder millennial like me, you probably remember going to your friends’ houses and having their families break out the photo albums to embarrass them. Inside were all their precious memories. The entire chronicle of their lives, right before your eyes. Printed and bound for preservation, they were there to be relived anytime. There was a beauty in the slightly blurry shots of snow days, or excitement at the first day of school.
No Seriously, Why Film?
Because one day, you’ll be sitting and showing people photos of your wedding day. Maybe you’re showing them photos of your kids when they were tiny.
Think back to the photos you took 2-3 phone models ago. They look dated, they’re blurrier, and they definitely show their age. And while i love having a supercomputer and great little camera in my pocket, it can’t replicate film. The feeling just isn’t the same. Film is instantly timeless and nostalgic. It’s present in a way that phones or DSLRs aren’t.
Why Is Film So Expensive?
The long and the short of it is: because it’s worth it.
The long of it is is that there are far fewer film stocks than there used to be. Film is expensive to produce, so it’s expensive for photographers to purchase. Many of us have to send our rolls off to film labs to be developed, sometimes across the country. So that adds both postage and development costs in.
Why Should I Pay Extra For It?
Photography is expensive. Digital photography requires a lot of equipment, too. New cameras, new computers every 3-4 years. New hard drives every year. Software to develop photos. Subscriptions for gallery delivery. And so on.
All that said: you’ll never regret paying for quality photography. And that includes film photography. Your memories deserve to be captured. And they deserve to be captured in a way that will never look dated. And if there’s one medium that stands the test of time, regardless of trends, that’s film.
How To Choose Film
Colour or Black And White?
The first choice is: do you like colour or black and white more? Or do you want a mix of both?
Black and white has a beautiful, editorial, photojournalistic feel to it. Photographers like Dorothea Lange and Ansel Adams excelled at black and white photography. Set against the backdrop of our beautiful mountains under gorgeous, big skies, your photos can look the same.
Colour, meanwhile, offers so many options. Do you want lighter, airier photos? Do you love saturated colours? Do you like to play with colour? There are so many film stocks, and more being released by independent labs all the time.
What’s This About Grain?
Grain is an integral component of film. Have you ever seen a digital photo blown up and you can see all the pixels? That’s kind of like grain. Higher film stocks have more grain (ISO800+) and lower film stocks have more fine grain.
That’s not to say grain is a bad thing. Grain is a big reason we shoot film! How much grain you want will determine what film stock to choose.
Indoor or Outdoor?
This is an important consideration: where your wedding or portrait session takes place will factor into what film you choose. Some films are versatile in both indoor and outdoor environments. Some aren’t.
One thing to consider is your entire day doesn’t need to be on one single film stock. Maybe you want a mix of colour and black and white. You can have a stock with rich, saturated colours outside and a photojournalistic black and white film inside.
Your day is your day. We’ll make sure we capture it in a way that aligns with your vision.
Do I Need to Choose A Specific Stock?
Absolutely not. If you know what film stocks you like, that’s great! That makes both our lives easier.
If you just know you like the look of film and want it for your session, that’s the perfect place to start. If you have a vision for how you want your photos to look, that’s even better.
A huge part of my job is taking your vision and making it come to life. Whether we’re capturing your kids running wild in the mountains or an intimate elopement, I translate your vision to visuals.
Read on for more examples of film stocks to give you some inspiration!
Film Stock Examples
Kodak Gold 200
Kodak Gold is a versatile, low-grain, somewhat saturated film. Shot at box speed, its colours are true-to-life and produces beautiful colours at every aperture. I prefer to use it most in outdoor settings.
kodak Ultramax 400
Faster than Gold 200, Ultramax 400 offers brighter everything. Skin colours render beautifully on this slept-on film! Colours are slightly less saturated but certainly not washed out. It’s truly a happy medium film.
Kodak Portra 800
If you love bright and airy photos, this is your film stock. This is the go-to for every bright and airy film photographer (RIP Fuji Superia X-tra 800). This stock flatters all skin tones without washing them out. The colours are just so bright. This film just makes you feel happy!
FlicFilm Elektra 100
Now this. This film is my secret GOAT film. I instantly fell in love with the first image I saw shot on it and knew it was going to be my go-to for most of my photography. See, my digital work puts a lot of emphasis on rich, warm colours that still feel real and true-to-life. And that’s exactly what this film does (did you know it’s respooled Cold War aerial film? You can’t tell me that doesn’t rule). To me, this film is perfect.
Fuji Superia X-tra 400
A wonderful alternative to Kodak Portra 400 is Fuji 400. It works great in bright and low light settings (pictured above is Jimmy Eat World in Missoula). Slightly richer colours than Portra 800 but still bright and airy, this film gives you a lot of latitude to create beautiful portraits.
Kodak Tri-X 400
With a gorgeous grain, this is my favourite monochrome film. It’s the most timeless black-and-white film with an old school photojournalistic quality. Always my go-to when I want to shoot monochrome.
The End! Or Is It?
This is the end of the film guide, I do just want to be clear about that. No more to read. And if you read to the end here, I owe you a beverage of your choice when we meet.
Now the choice is: are you going to choose film for your next family photo session? Will you add it in to your wedding? We haven’t even scratched the surface of the beauty of Super 8mm film video!
Do you still have questions? Want to talk more about anything you read in here? Send me an email with the handy-dandy form right below this paragraph and let’s chat. I love talking shop, and I’d love to help you not only see how film can help elevate your photo experience but choose a stock that aligns with your vision.
Get In Touch
If you’re looking for a photographer and you connect with my work, I would love to hear from you!
