One of my favorite things about film is that it has limitations. When I shot exclusively digital, I carried a camera around like it was a third arm. I felt pressure to capture every waking moment, and while I enjoyed it at the time, looking back, I actually missed out on a lot because I was more focused on documenting the moment than I was on actually living it. When I started shooting film, a lot of that pressure went away. I no longer felt the need to take a picture of everything, because each frame was costing me money and I had to be more intentional about when I chose to click my shutter. Now that I shoot more film than digital, I feel a lot more present.
There are a lot of things to love about film, but it can be nerve-racking to take the dive and start shooting. Here are five things I wish I would have known (or that helped me) when I was first starting out with film photography.
1. Stick to one film stock at first
Every film stock has its own nuances in terms of color and ideal lighting scenarios, so I’d recommend sticking to one film stock at first to isolate extra variables and focus on learning. Kodak Portra 400 is a great film stock for first time shooters if you’re interested in color film, or if you’d rather go for black & white film, I’d recommend Ilford HP5 Plus 400. Both of these film stocks can handle various lighting scenarios and aren’t as finicky as other film stocks.
2. Don’t shoot color film at box speed
Fun fact: shooting color film at box speed is a really good way to get underexposed photos! A good rule of thumb is to cut your box speed in half. So if the box speed is 400, shoot it at 200 ISO. This overexposes your film, which sounds risky if you come from a digital background, but it’s actually a lot easier to underexpose film than it is to overexpose it. Some film stocks need even more overexposure. For example, Portra 800 does really well at 200 ISO.
3. Download a light meter app
Some camera internal meters aren’t very reliable, so downloading a free smartphone light meter app is an easy way to avoid exposure mistakes when starting out. I use Lux with my camera that doesn’t have a working meter: I set my ISO in the app, choose my aperture, then tap my phone screen so that the yellow box highlights the most important shadow in my scene. Then I adjust my camera settings to match the app readings. Just make sure your shutter speed is 1/60 or faster (anything slower than 1/60 while hand-holding a camera can cause blurry images). If you need to, you can adjust your aperture in the app so that it gives you a faster shutter speed.
4. Try to shoot mostly in open sunlight
Film THRIVES in open light. There are definitely ways to get good results in overcast light or indoors, but I’d just avoid tricky lighting scenarios altogether when you’re first starting out and opt to shoot outdoors under blue skies. This will help eliminate some of the factors that lead to underexposure and color shifts, so that you can focus on learning the basics.
5. Keep notes of your settings
I was required to keep notes on my first rolls of film in school and it felt a little tedious, but in retrospect, it was so helpful. Even now I wish I had taken better notes on rolls I’ve shot and loved so that I could more easily replicate those results again. In photo school I kept notes by hand in a worksheet format with the ISO and film stock at the top of the paper, and spots to record my aperture, shutter speed, and notes about lighting conditions for each frame. You could do something similar with a note on your phone. Then when you get your images back after development, you can go back and see what your settings were and how they might have influenced shots you loved or frames that didn’t turn out how you hoped.
It can be easy to get paralyzed by all the do’s and don’ts of film and be too afraid to start. It’s scary shooting without being able to look at an image right after you’ve taken it, especially when each frame is costing you money! But film photography is really one of those things you learn by doing. Plan to shoot a roll of film on your next vacation or weekend out, dedicate an afternoon to taking photos of your kids playing outside, or ask a friend if they’ll model for a practice shoot. Keep your expectations low and just look at it like a learning experience! You’ll only get better with practice.