I am starting this series of posts because I still shoot alot of film. Quite a few people ask me about it, and I truly love the whole process of film photography. Feeling like this is a bit of a lost art among modern photographers, I embrace its far departure from the iDevice age. Now on to my story for the day. If there is a place many Tucson residents hold dear, it has to be Mt. Lemmon. Nestled in the north east side of town, it's not very far from any part of the city. What you first noitice upon the ascent up the mountain, this is clearly desert land. Saguaro cactus and other desert plans scatter the scenery to provide a stark contrast to the environment waiting at 9,000 feet. As you travel further up, the temperature drops in comparison to the scorching hot city of Tucson during summer. The day I shot these photos, it was 106 degrees in Tucson, I gladly accepted the 80 degree temp upon arrival. I would be working with Alexa that day, her edgy yet classy look would work well with what nature provided as a back drop. After some exploring we found a cool place to set up and snap off photos. She was wearing a vibrant blue dress that day, so I knew it would pop against the leafy greens and various browns. Shooting on such an old film camera is a whole different feel to using digital. The emphasis is the same, create stunning photos, but the manner in which they are achieved couldn't be any more different. First of all, you can't see what you just shot. Want to look at the back and see if your exposure was spot on? Sorry, no can do, you should have paid attention to your built in light meter before you even pushed that shutter button. I completely understand this style of shooting isn't for everyone, and that's just fine by me. It takes alot of patience and actual knowledge of the basics (shutter speed and aperture, ISO is a fixed value on film) to nail a shot as you imagined it in your head. If all you've shot is digital, I strongly encourage you to hit up craigslist and buy either a Pentax K1000, Canon AE-1, Mintola OM-1, or any of the other iconic 35mm film cameras that can be had for about $50 or less. Don't be afraid to mess it up, because you will, but that's one of the best parts of learning. I can promise you you'll never forget missing a great shot because you messed it up a bit. That should serve as your motivation to progress and when you do nail it, it's really that much more enjoyable. There is something so refreshing about making the art with your own hands and not having a computer chip decide everything for you. Give it a shot, you might like it.
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