× B+W Infrared C41 E6 Equipment About
FILMGRAIN
Only Film

About

Why only film?

I have taken pictures with a DSLR (Digital SLR) for many years, and it is undoubtedly an excellent way of capturing images. Even smart phones have their place these days due to the advancement of technology.

I fully intend to continue to use both my phone and DSLR to capture photos, as nothing compares to the speed and convenience of the digital format... and after all is said and done:

"The best camera is the one you have with you."

Chase Jarvis

However, there is something more involved about film photography, and the end product is just more appealing to me. I like the fact you can't see what you have taken immediately, and the limited amount of frames you can take. It makes you think before you press the shutter.

There is also the process of developing, and scanning or enlarging the film, which gives you a fair amount of artistic scope if you wish to go down that rabbit hole!

...and last but not least you can (if you put in the effort and time...and some money as always) take a picture, and have it sat on paper in front of you, without it even touching a computer. No pixels at all!

Even in a technical sense it produces a different outcome. The films grain structure gives character to a photograph, rather than reducing it's quality as we see with digital. Further to this, film is a little more forgiving with overexposed areas (like a bright sky). Digital will likely render an overblown mess, where you might stand a chance of recovering detail with film.

All said and done, it is no better or worse than digital. It is just different, and for that reason alone I thought my film photos deserved their own space.

Are licenses or prints available for the photos on this website?

If you wish to use any of the photographs displayed on this website then please send an email to:

In the email please state your name, company name (if applicable), type of output (i.e. print or digital and required sizes) and intended usage (i.e. commercial, personal etc.). Any other relevant information is always helpful.

I will get back to you ASAP.

In the future I will provide a set of pricing for reference, but for the moment just ping me an email as per the above.

How are the photos on this website processed?

Black and White Film

The black and white film is typically developed by me. Earlier photos may have been processed in an external lab (typically Ilford's Lab in the UK).

Colour Film (C41 and E6)

All the colour film will be processed by an external lab. This is down to the fact that I don't have the necessary equipment to do this at the moment.

Scanning

To display the photos on the website I obviously have to digitise them. Currently I use my DSLR to "scan" the photos, which produces a very high resolution image (currently up to around 18 Megapixels). Some of the photos have been scanned in external labs with a typical output of around 15 Megapixels.

Enlargements

I am currently in the process of setting up the necessary equipment (an enlarger) to allow prints to be produced directly from the film (i.e. no scanning required). I will update the equipment page once I have an enlarger.

Prints

Prints will always be processed by an external lab. Quality printing equipment is very expensive.

All prints are made from the highest resolution digital scan to ensure a quality print.