And not from a technical point of view.
One thing I’ve noticed: if I’m carrying two cameras – one digital and one film – I either hesitate while deciding which to use, or I end up taking the same photo twice. Neither option is great. It wastes resources – mental and financial – and it quietly drains some of the joy out of photography.
On the other hand, when I only have one camera with me, everything feels simpler. I stop thinking about how to take the photo and just focus on what to capture. It’s both liberating and fulfilling.
So I’ve made a small rule for myself: from now on, I’ll carry only one camera ready to shoot. That doesn’t mean the others can’t live somewhere in a bag or backpack – it just means there’s only one active choice at a time.
More broadly, I feel like my process still needs refining. Lately I’ve had the impression that film is drifting toward becoming a “treat” rather than a true creative outlet. And honestly, I can be just as creative – maybe even more so – when shooting digital.
Yes, I’m absolutely in awe of the Kodak Ektar colors in the scans I just got back from the lab. They’re gorgeous. But if color and grain alone were the goals, I could probably reproduce something very similar in Lightroom. Yes, I stand behind that statement.
I’ve also come to terms with the fact that home scanning is more cumbersome than I’d like – at least without dedicated equipment that I don’t feel like buying. So I’m perfectly happy relying on lab scans. They’re generally very good, and even though they’re JPEGs, they still allow for some minor editing.
And if I truly need maximum image quality… well, that’s what digital is for.
Because film – at least for me – isn’t really about image quality.
It’s about slowing down.
Thinking a bit more before pressing the shutter.
Accepting that I might miss a shot – and being okay with that.
The journey continues.