Documentary Wedding Photography On Film: Why I shoot film at weddings
My ethos behind shooting film at weddings as a New York City wedding photographer…
So you absolutely love the beautiful, nostalgic look of film and want to hire a film wedding photographer for your wedding day (or perhaps for some other special photography occasion!), but you’re feeling a bit apprehensive about the potential what-ifs that come along with choosing film. You may have worries that it’s outdated, unreliable, and a definite risk. I completely understand your concerns—buuuuut those are all myths that can be debunked, and I’m going to tell you exactly why that is. My film mentor shared some invaluable wisdom with me during our phone chat, saying, “in my decades of shooting, my digital cameras have failed me at various moments. But out of all the rolls of film I’ve shot throughout my career, nothing has ever been lost. Only happy accidents and occasionally user-error.” That insight changed my perspective on photography and has proven true for me in my own relationship with photography and my beloved cameras… time and time again. In fact, digital photography has let me down more than once on various occasions. However, I have still yet to “lose” a roll of film to any claims of “unreliability,” and I’ve now shot hundreds, if not thousands, of rolls professionally.
Film photography was first introduced in 1885 by George Eastman, with his camera called the “Kodak.” I visited the Kodak Museum when I was in Upstate New York shooting a wedding this past Spring, and I was like a kid in a toy store oooo’ing and ahhhh’ing. Since 1885 film technology has evolved significantly. Today, film photography is experiencing a resurgence which is good news for wedding photographers like me who want to keep film alive. After shooting with a film camera, film rolls need to be processed, and then scanned. Unlike digital, there’s no instant preview with film, adding an exciting element of surprise. Once developed, the film is digitized and sent to me, which is always the most exciting email in the world.
In the summer of 2022, I was heavily burnt out on the digital work I used to love and look forward to so much. On autopilot and without thinking much about it, I picked up a modern polaroid from Target one afternoon, thinking it could be fun to use for photographing my animals. (It was) but what I didn’t expect was the absolute rabbit hole that little polaroid would take me down. I went down a two week long hyper-fixation, bingeing any documentary I could find on the history of polaroid and instant film as a whole. I was enchanted and couldn’t get enough, and there wasn’t enough out there, honestly. I was left still wanting more— to hear from more instant film photographers. I quickly (like, within two weeks lol) bought each type of vintage polaroid I could find, including the original sx70 from 1972. I bought a professional scanner so I could digitize my images. I fell in love. And then I bought some 35mm cameras, picked up some Kodak Colorplus and developed that color film in my bathroom. It went well, no hiccups. Who knew? And then I bought a medium format camera. Now… I’m working with 30 analog film cameras and growing, 8 months after I first began my film journey. It happened fast, with a lot of learning curves to ride along the way, but now I’m just as comfortable with film as I was with my digital cameras, and it’s a crazy good feeling. I was obsessed with photography before I leaned into film; it’s what contributed to my burnout because I simply could not stop working and on the rare day I didn’t have a client, I’d run around with one of my friends and do a whole shoot for them for the hell of it. But now? My passion is unmatched, my adoration for photography but specifically film, is overwhelming at times. I spend most of my free time watching film photography documentaries, hearing from the greats, sifting through photobooks of their physical work or running around my own city taking photos for myself. All this obsession has left me with a plethora of knowledge that I am sometimes begging someone to ask me about, so I guess this film dump word vomit is pretty therapeutic for me.
Film photography is not a risk at your wedding. Not when you’re hiring a professional who specializes in film mediums.
If you ask the same question, “is digital photography for my wedding a risk?” you’ll actually get the same type of answer… I’ve got some important nuggets of information to share with you about film photography. Digital cameras not only fail, but are still susceptible to user-error. Memory cards fail and can corrupt, all the more risk if the wedding photographer you hired doesn’t have a camera with dual-card slots. Can’t tell you how frequent digital cameras shit out in extreme heat, and sometimes extreme cold, too. Are digital cameras more dummy-proof than analog cameras perhaps? Yes, definitely. SOMETIMES. Should you worry about your film photographer if they specialize in analog? No. Am I, and all the incredible film photographers that mentored me, film specialists? Yes. We know our cameras, we know our craft like the back of our hand. We know our cameras, we know our way around them, and we have backups for our backups. These older film cameras— are not subject to the harsh weather conditions that often our digital cameras fall victim to. Your film camera isn’t going to shut off on a 100 degree shooting day, it isn’t going to shit out on a 20 degree shooting day. Old polaroids and the OG film like sx70 film and 600 film are sensitive to hot and cold when it comes to color shifts, yes, but that’s about it and 100% manageable if you know what you’re doing and how to handle them with care in those circumstances. A benefit of film cameras especially the fully mechanical ones like the one my grandfather gave me from the 1960s are RESILIENT. Before digital, we got by just fine for DECADES with film and the intricate yet simple technology of it. They are built with care and built to last. I’m not arguing that modern digital cameras aren’t built to last, but I am arguing that they are not built with the same care that came with mechanical analog film cameras. If you know what you are doing— and listen to your camera and respect its stricter-than-digital boundaries with the utmost care, you’ve got (almost) nothing to worry about. Just like with hiring a digital photographer who knows their shit— you’ve got (almost) nothing to worry about with them and their camera gear, too. The majority of film failures, are user-error. I’m pretty sure I’ve made all the mistakes you can possibly make with film, and that’s the great thing about film is that when you make one mistake, you never make that mistake again because it so costly in so many ways. Lucky for my clients, I’ve got none left to make— and none of the mistakes were ever at the expense of a client, as I perfected my analog craft meticulously before introducing it to my clients.
You don’t have to wait forever to get your wedding film photos back.
This revelation often comes as a surprise to most people, leading them to believe otherwise. But here's the good news: you don’t have to wait long at all! In fact, if you had hired me back in my days as a digital wedding photographer, you would have experienced an agonizingly long wait—nearing what feels like forever, to be honest, much like the waiting times that many other wedding photographers are known for. Believe it or not, film photography actually allows for a MUCH faster turnaround time compared to digital methods. It generally takes about a week for your precious film to arrive at my cherished and trusted lab. After that, within a span of just 2-3 business days, I personally drive up there to retrieve your negatives, ensuring they are safe and sound in my possession. From that point on, I take care of scanning your negatives myself, right from the comfort of my home—a process that is surprisingly quicker than you might assume. Once the scanning is done, I move on to touching up the coloration and enhancing the magical essence of whatever film stock I used. This involves adjusting the exposure and making minor tweaks, as opposed to the extensive color grading that my digital camera necessitates. Tadaaaa—before you know it, you've got a speedy delivery of your wedding photos, which is a refreshing change compared to my past experience of having a turnaround time of around 10 weeks. It’s truly quite wonderful for both of us!
“Will I get less photos with film photography?”
This is another yes and no question that comes with a significant amount of nuance. When I was a digital-only photographer, I consistently leaned more towards a minimalist approach in both my shooting style and the delivery of my work than many of my photographer friends within the industry. I’ve always prioritized quality over quantity, sometimes in the past delivering a wedding gallery that featured just 300 carefully selected photographs. However, my clients never questioned this approach, as I ensured that not a single moment, big or small, was missed on their special day. To be honest, shooting on analog film simply enhances my natural shooting style, making it feel even more seamless and organic. Furthermore, I don't guarantee a specific number of photos for my weddings anyway, nor have I ever made such promises. What I do assure my clients is that they will not be lacking a single special moment or detail when they receive their beautifully curated gallery of images. Just ask my past wedding clients—plenty of glowing reviews are scattered all over my website! The total number of photos you receive can also depend on whether you choose to opt for a completely analog wedding experience (and I highly recommend doing so, as my clients who have embraced this option have never regretted it).
What is it about film photography?
You’ll often hear film photographers describe how the very essence of film forces them to slow down and really think hard about their shots, particularly when working with couples and wedding clients. And I don’t disagree with this sentiment at all, but for me, the question of “why film” goes so much deeper than that initial observation. Film is unobtrusive, honest, and careful in a way that digital simply cannot replicate. I spent the first half of my career meticulously perfecting my digital work and signature style, striving to get as close to the aesthetic of film as I possibly could. And I got pretty close, to the point that most of the clients who hired me a few years ago would express honest confusion when I showed up to their session equipped with a digital camera instead of my usual film camera. You’ll see other photographers often describe their work as “film-inspired” or “film-like,” but I just had to pause and realize, why try so hard to make my work look like film when it will never come close? Why not simply… shoot… analog?
Analog cameras take in light and depth in an entirely different manner than digital cameras, resulting in a unique and authentic aesthetic. Film photographs beautifully capture the subtle variations in the way light can shine and reflect off any given surface, particularly human skin, which is incredibly important in portraiture. There is nuance every single time, with the element of delightful surprise paired with a sense of prophecy fulfilled each time a roll of film is processed and scanned, revealing the intricate details captured within. There is grit and grain, representing the rich texture of real life, reflecting back at us in all its rawness. This experience simply cannot be replicated, and I’m genuinely so glad I decided to wake up one day and finally stop trying to emulate something that would always remain just out of reach.
In conclusion….
I absolutely love film photography. I am profoundly grateful that I discovered the beauty of analog film, even if it was later in life when I turned 27. If I had the chance to travel back in time to my wedding day (which feels like quite a while ago now), I would definitely hire a film photographer without hesitation, instead of opting for a digital shooter. My passion for film has grown so immensely that I keep a camera in every single room of me and my husband’s charming house. This way, whenever that special, spontaneous moment of something beautiful or captivating occurs that I wish to capture and document, I don’t have to awkwardly reach for my phone nor dash to the other room to retrieve my camera. I have made a commitment to never hire a digital photographer again— this is merely a matter of personal preference for me, and certainly no shade at all toward any of the incredibly talented digital photographers in this amazing little world we all share. I genuinely only want to be photographed on film, and it brings me such joy to know that so many people ask me to document their unique journeys on film as well. To share my final thoughts on this matter: is there a monetary expense involved? God yes, absolutely. Is there an increase in anxiety? Well, I’d say there's much, MUCH less anxiety when you are confident in your knowledge and ability. Is there risk involved? Nope, not any more than what one would experience with digital cameras— as we discussed earlier in the post. So, is shooting film with all its quirks and unique personality 100% worth it, a definite 10/10? Without a doubt, YES.
