i ❤ film
My love of photography is older than the first iPhone or the DSLR explosion. I started taking photos many years ago when I was given a Kodak Instamatic for a birthday. And I was fortunate to have a wonderful photographer as a father, who despite his many failings, still helped instill a love of this amazing documentary and art form and also a love of travel and nature and the environment.
Initially, my camera only came out for holidays, celebrations, and vacations. Probably like most people. As a young mother, I bought a book on Matthew Brady and was mesmerised by his Civil War photos. Over the years, I saw an exhibit at the Art Institute of Julia Margaret Cameron’s work and fell in love - hard and fast. I returned to the exhibit a few times to marvel at her poetic and otherworldly portraiture.
After attending an exhibit in Chicago at a now defunct museum on Michigan Avenue, my view of photography further changed. The exhibit was of the Los Angeles Times newspaper’s crime scene photos from the 1920’s through the 1960’s. Gritty, no holds barred, black and white photography. True film noir.
All these influences had a deep impact on me, even though I didn’t realise it at the time. In 2005-2006, I started looking at photography differently regarding what I could “portray”, not simply “take”. I upgraded from my compact semi-manual Konica 35mm and my digital Casio P&S to a proper Olympus E520 DSLR (which I still have and use) and started on a journey into self portraiture and still lifes. I learned a lot from both.
But film was always whispering in my ear. In early 2010, I bought my first Holga. I liked the quirky and dreamy photos I had seen on Flickr that had been taken with these cameras. I took Ms. Holga on a 2011 visit to New Orleans and shot two rolls in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, experimenting with multiple exposures and partially advanced frames. A nightmare to print, but they were the feature (Souvenirs Hantés) of my first solo exhibition in Chicago, Still Lives, that ran from November, 2011 to January, 2012.
Feeling confident, I bought my first entirely manual 35mm, a Vivitar student model. The price was right and I learned, but the camera itself was heavier than I found comfortable. Regardless, the bug had bitten. I soon added a 120 Russian Lubitel TLR (Twin Lens Reflex), a Lomography 35mm Sprocket Rocket, and a Polaroid, among others. More recently, I bought a used Olympus OM-1 (35mm) and a Fujifilm Instax. I sold the Vivitar, the Pola, and the Lubitel, along with a couple of others. A few weeks ago, a dear friend gave me a Polaroid 600 One Step and I am loving the Impossible Project films.
I know I am older than dirt, but I truly feel more honest when I use film. Film makes me slow down and think about composition, light, exposure, etc. With 120 film, there are only 12 shots on a roll. (I like the square format for these.) Film makes me patient. And patience is best for my well-being and for the well-being of those around me.
The photos I take on film are rarely edited. Maybe a straightening here and there, or an exposure adjustment. When I do perform a more substantial edit, it’s to create a certain period of time or a feeling, as in some of my film photos from my last trip to Paris. But for the most part, I like the purity of film. I like seeing what I caught in a frame. How spot on my focus was. How the expired film I like to use added its own effects. And for me, not having to go through hundreds of digital frames is both a timesaver and a mental health benefit.
Photography, for me, is like yoga. It’s a practice. I am always learning. I will never master it, but it is a fluid and ever changing journey that brings me much joy, a great sense of accomplishment, and utter frustration. Film will always be my first love - well, after books and music - and the latest iPhone will never take its place.
Initially, my camera only came out for holidays, celebrations, and vacations. Probably like most people. As a young mother, I bought a book on Matthew Brady and was mesmerised by his Civil War photos. Over the years, I saw an exhibit at the Art Institute of Julia Margaret Cameron’s work and fell in love - hard and fast. I returned to the exhibit a few times to marvel at her poetic and otherworldly portraiture.
After attending an exhibit in Chicago at a now defunct museum on Michigan Avenue, my view of photography further changed. The exhibit was of the Los Angeles Times newspaper’s crime scene photos from the 1920’s through the 1960’s. Gritty, no holds barred, black and white photography. True film noir.
All these influences had a deep impact on me, even though I didn’t realise it at the time. In 2005-2006, I started looking at photography differently regarding what I could “portray”, not simply “take”. I upgraded from my compact semi-manual Konica 35mm and my digital Casio P&S to a proper Olympus E520 DSLR (which I still have and use) and started on a journey into self portraiture and still lifes. I learned a lot from both.
But film was always whispering in my ear. In early 2010, I bought my first Holga. I liked the quirky and dreamy photos I had seen on Flickr that had been taken with these cameras. I took Ms. Holga on a 2011 visit to New Orleans and shot two rolls in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, experimenting with multiple exposures and partially advanced frames. A nightmare to print, but they were the feature (Souvenirs Hantés) of my first solo exhibition in Chicago, Still Lives, that ran from November, 2011 to January, 2012.
Feeling confident, I bought my first entirely manual 35mm, a Vivitar student model. The price was right and I learned, but the camera itself was heavier than I found comfortable. Regardless, the bug had bitten. I soon added a 120 Russian Lubitel TLR (Twin Lens Reflex), a Lomography 35mm Sprocket Rocket, and a Polaroid, among others. More recently, I bought a used Olympus OM-1 (35mm) and a Fujifilm Instax. I sold the Vivitar, the Pola, and the Lubitel, along with a couple of others. A few weeks ago, a dear friend gave me a Polaroid 600 One Step and I am loving the Impossible Project films.
I know I am older than dirt, but I truly feel more honest when I use film. Film makes me slow down and think about composition, light, exposure, etc. With 120 film, there are only 12 shots on a roll. (I like the square format for these.) Film makes me patient. And patience is best for my well-being and for the well-being of those around me.
The photos I take on film are rarely edited. Maybe a straightening here and there, or an exposure adjustment. When I do perform a more substantial edit, it’s to create a certain period of time or a feeling, as in some of my film photos from my last trip to Paris. But for the most part, I like the purity of film. I like seeing what I caught in a frame. How spot on my focus was. How the expired film I like to use added its own effects. And for me, not having to go through hundreds of digital frames is both a timesaver and a mental health benefit.
Photography, for me, is like yoga. It’s a practice. I am always learning. I will never master it, but it is a fluid and ever changing journey that brings me much joy, a great sense of accomplishment, and utter frustration. Film will always be my first love - well, after books and music - and the latest iPhone will never take its place.
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| souvenirs hantés St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 New Orleans Holga 120, Ilford Delta 100 Pro ©Trish Korous, 2011 |
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| un autre baiser Stravinsky Fountain Paris, 4e arr. Holga 120 Ektar 100 ©Trish Korous, 2014 |
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| untitled Lincoln Park Conservatory Chicago Olympus OM-1 Kodak Max expired 2002 ©Trish Korous, 2017 |
I really enjoyed this read, Trish. You have expressed your progression & passion for film photography with a personal level of expertise & uniqueness.
ReplyDeleteShaun/Arts.
Thank you very much, Shaun. I appreciate your reading of this and your commenting, and especially your support. We dinosaurs must stick together. Hahaha,
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