Film Photographer – Hipsters or Not?

Too Cool for School?

Well, first let me say I’m actually a hybrid shooter.  Which means I’m a film photographer mostly, but will use digital when needed. I have not one ounce of digital bigotry in my heart. And I’m the guy who sat on the board of directors for APA/NY helping to ease Advertising film photographers into the digital era. Which included me. While I mostly shoot film these days, I’m fine with all other mediums of imaging. All the way back to collodion and other alternative processes. Guess I wasn’t paying attention when all the name calling and “hoopla” began. Oh, well.

As you can see in the above images, I was fine using both a 35mm Nikon and a medium format Rollei. Never thought it was a big deal which format photographers went with. And today, it’s the same with digital. The film movement seems to be growing,…not with the old timers. More so with the youth of the world leading the charge. However, it’s not a big deal. Especially since 90% of all images are taken with an iPhone. And people upload 350 million+ images a day to Facebook alone! So, if you’re going to approach me with megapixel counts and other irrelevant stats, you’ll have to please excuse me if I yawn. Only the work matters. If it’s good, how you managed to achieve it is of less importance in a world drowning in visual overload.

That said, I’m listing a bunch of film blogs here. This is barely a drop in the bucket. Film blogs, sites and resources seem to be popping up almost on a weekly basis.

Film Photographer Slam?

The reason for this post was an article I read in an online magazine called ‘Newnation’. The article was a little dated, but I’ve since found others. The writing style was sarcastic in nature, but I’m unsure if he was serious or just being facetious. People who shoot film are “hipsters”? Really? While I’m very cool, 😎 I’m unsure if I qualify as a hipster. The story, titled “Hipsters stunned as vintage cameras fail to make them professional photographers” can be found here; NewNation

As a film photographer I do have a little condescension thrown my way on occasion. I don’t really know why. Are strictly digital camera users and Photoshop mavens that insecure? Most of the people with an “attitude” have never shot film. I’ve never found a film blog that disparages any photographers. They usually just dispense advice and knowledge with civility. I haven’t run across any “hipsters” in the bunch yet.

Also, someone asked me why I didn’t include C-Heads Magazine. While I like C-Heads and it has lots of great film images by young photographers, it’s not actually a film site. Some of the images are digital. However, it’s a great site for inspiration and to  see what the young up and comers are doing,  whether film or digital.

Film Blogs;

Ilford Blog

I don’t know if this blog is owned by Ilford, because it’s a free WordPress blog/forum, but I guess it is, since it uses the Ilford name. Anyway, it’s a great resource for a lot of film info. From cameras to film to printing.

Emulsive

Pertaining to ’emulsion’,…a word you should be familiar with. Lots of cool photos.

Pylot Magazine

All analog, all the time. Very professional looking. Some great work on here.

Film Shooters Collective

Interesting work by a lot of film shooters. A little hard to navigate, but worth it.

Film Is Not Dead

Well, I knew that! Lots of resources and work displayed.

Japan Camera Hunter

OK, everyone knows this one. But it does have a lot of camera and film related articles that are quite good.

Digital Truth

I don’t know why “digital” is in the name. They don’t cut down digital users and they are a film site. A good amount of film stuff for sale, articles and even a forum.

Photrio (formerly Analog Photographers Users Group)

Forums, articles and photo samples. A nice group of people. Great place to find out about that weird Argus C3 camera you found at a garage sale. Or other esoteric cameras/lenses.

There are 100’s more, but these are a good cross section of different types, depending on what info you’re trying to extract. But all film! Enjoy. You nasty hipsters. 😁