When I think about learning photography I think of using my dad’s old Minolta 35mm camera. Wandering around Yellowstone National Park was an awesome place to learn the basics of exposure, composition, and focusing. I was 10, it was 1995. Since then the film camera has been buried deep in a bag somewhere in my dad’s closet. My dad was a bit of a technology geek and soon became the proud owner of an amazing .3 MP Agfa digital camera. Since then I have shot literally zero rolls of film. I never got to take a fun film class in high school, I have never experienced the magic of a darkroom. Digital has been great for me. The instant feedback that digital provides has helped me to quickly learn techniques, tips, lighting, and creative tricks which have helped me hone my style quickly (and cheaply). That being said I feel like I missed out on the whole film experience. SOOOOO I went and bought myself a medium format film camera. Behold the mighty Pentax 645.
This beast was made at some point between 1984 and 1997 so it literally could be older than I am. However this is one of those cases where the saying, “they don’t make em like they used to” definitely comes into play. I have at this moment only shot one roll of film on this thing but I am already in love. I am sooooo excited to send my film in and get it processed. There is a huge rush not knowing what I capture, the lack of instant feedback is excruciating and exciting all at the same time! I caught myself looking down at where the viewfinder should be after ever shot! Why didn’t I ever shoot film before! I think shooting film will be good for me and here’s why.
Film, developing, and scanning are expensive. We are talking between $1.50-3.00 per shot depending on where you have it processed! Now you might wonder why this is a good thing. I think it will help me slow down, breath, and really focus on my shot, composition and exposure. I admittedly over-shoot ever wedding I attend. The last four weddings have amassed a total of 17,7749 total shots. That’s an average of 4437 shots per wedding. Even though I plan on shooting digital forever, I think mixing in film will change my mindset and overall produce better image. FYI it would cost me over $8000 to process each of my last four wedding if I shot exclusively film. LOL
I am excited because I think that film images are beautiful. As I have progressed as a photographer my style and my aesthetic eye have slowly changed. For example I have been greatly influenced by photographers Zack Arias and David Beckstead whom I took a seminar from almost 7 years ago. From them I drew a lot of my off-camera lighting and dramatic style. In 2005 full frame digital cameras came out and I was immediately drawn to that look. I of course purchased the legendary D700. Lately I have been drawn to a very specific type of image. Medium format film images. Medium format film, when does skillfully, gives creamy backgrounds, lovely pastel colors, beautiful skin tones, and a super narrow depth of field. If you haven’t heard of them yet check out Jose Villa and Jonathan Canlas to get a sense for what I mean.
What will this do to my style? Don’t worry, I’m not going hipster on anyone quite yet. I wouldn’t fit into a pair of skinny jeans if I tried. I plan to use this beast to enhance and hone my style, not change it. I feel like this summer I really took a huge step forward in defining myself and where my personal style was going. This camera and its abilities I feel will really enhance what I already have been doing with digital and add a look that is artistic and beautiful at the same time.
I realize shooting film is not something you learn over night. I expect to hopefully feel confident enough to work a digital + film package into my wedding collections by next summer.
Here are some more lovely pictures of “the Beast”. The coolest and ugliest camera I have ever owned. 
This camera feels like a cousin of a Nintendo gaming system. Check out the awesome push buttons. Is that an LED, can you say hi-tech.
This grip belongs on a pistol. I love it. In 1990 this setup would have cost me ~$5000. Today it cost me $400 and included a really nice bag worth $120.
