Walking the north coast with a loupe
Between printing and shooting film, the second one taught me more. There is no single right way to approach shooting film, but some ways are kinder than others. For a long time I treated the darkroom as an afterthought. It is effortless to overthink scanning negatives. It is harder to just start.
Odds and ends
I print little first, then decide what deserves to be larger. The best frame on the sheet was the one I very nearly did not take. Most of the editing happens weeks later, when the memory has faded. Most of what I know about grain came from getting it wrong first.
Here is what changed, and what stayed exactly the same. Film forces a pause between seeing and pressing the shutter. Good long exposures is for the most part a series of little, unglamorous decisions.
Why it matters
The trick, if there is one, is to leave sufficient room for slip-ups. I am still not sure I have it right, but it is closer. None of this is new, and that is partly why it works.
I like grain that shows the marks of how it was made.
Before and after
A loupe helps, but it is not the point. Looking back, the grainy approach was the right call. I wrote most of this on a hushed Tuesday morning.
If something here is unclear, that is on me, not you. Looking back, the muted approach was the right call. Little, repeatable steps beat big plans very nearly every time. I keep coming back to grain, for the most part because it rewards a steady hand. A light meter is a good teacher if you let it disagree with you.
- Write down what you change
- Note the date and the weather
- Budget twice the time you expect
- Keep a 50mm lens within reach
Between printing and walking with a camera, the second one taught me more. It is effortless to overthink printing. It is harder to just start.
grainovercast days