The convenience of digital photography has often taken away some of the learning experiences that film has to offer. Don't get me the wrong way, I shoot 99% digital, and I have nothing on my street photography portfolio that was shot in film. I wanted to change that. I started taking it to the streets about 6 months ago and on my second month I became interested in film, particularly, lomography. Lomography, for those who don't know, is a niche of people who love to shoot film and experiment by combining different film types, feature-specific(plastic or toy) cameras and a lifestyle of shooting anywhere and anytime. Some consider it a fad or a hipster-genre. I hate to admit it but I think it was only a phase for me because after I got my first lomo camera, Holga 135BC, I shot only half a dozen rolls of film until I decided to give it a rest.
One day I gave my Olympus EP-1 it's much deserved rest after being consecutively used and abused. I dusted off my Holga, fully loaded with a 35mm Fujifilm 400 color negative, and took it to Downtown LA. Never have I felt that this camera was a good investment until now. At $50 this is a fairly cheap plastic camera but what it has to offer is a tip of the iceberg experience of film photography.
One day I gave my Olympus EP-1 it's much deserved rest after being consecutively used and abused. I dusted off my Holga, fully loaded with a 35mm Fujifilm 400 color negative, and took it to Downtown LA. Never have I felt that this camera was a good investment until now. At $50 this is a fairly cheap plastic camera but what it has to offer is a tip of the iceberg experience of film photography.
Lately, my style has evolved around shooting street photography with a flash but today I gave it all a break just to slow things down and learn to wait. Shooting with a Holga means that you can only shoot in areas of bright sunlight (unless with a flash which I will probably try next time). I can safely say that I mostly know where the light is because I chase it at almost the same time and area every week.
While shooting, I tried to focus on something I've done a few times already, light and shadow. I drew inspiration from a couple of street photographers I had the privilege to learn from in person. Eric Kim and Ibarionex Parello. Specifically Eric's earlier work and Ibarionex's consistent style with light.
The first time I ever took out my Holga, my focusing, framing and clicking were severely unacceptable. And I bet this wasn't unusual to a first-timer. Now, (about 5 months, two street photography workshops and countless hours on the streets with my EP-1 later) I saw the huge improvement. I was able to incorporate the different techniques I've learned over the past months to come up with a number of shots that play with light, shadow and the decisive moment.
I think that what this experience has taught me is that with much more simpler equipment, I focused exactly on what I can capture with what I had. Although honestly there were times that I felt like a handicap after seeing so many characters and situations where my EP-1 + Flash combo would have been useful. By using film there was no trial and error, especially with composition. So i made sure I spend enough time. Once I figured I had good background, framing and lighting, I had to choose the right person/moment to capture knowing that I only had limited exposures. At the end of the day I was really happy, not because I knew I had good shots, but because I knew I had a blast shooting film that day regardless of the fact that I had no idea how my images will turn out.
A camera will always be just a tool because the composition, framing and clicking is still on you.
Here are my few more images for that day:
While shooting, I tried to focus on something I've done a few times already, light and shadow. I drew inspiration from a couple of street photographers I had the privilege to learn from in person. Eric Kim and Ibarionex Parello. Specifically Eric's earlier work and Ibarionex's consistent style with light.
The first time I ever took out my Holga, my focusing, framing and clicking were severely unacceptable. And I bet this wasn't unusual to a first-timer. Now, (about 5 months, two street photography workshops and countless hours on the streets with my EP-1 later) I saw the huge improvement. I was able to incorporate the different techniques I've learned over the past months to come up with a number of shots that play with light, shadow and the decisive moment.
I think that what this experience has taught me is that with much more simpler equipment, I focused exactly on what I can capture with what I had. Although honestly there were times that I felt like a handicap after seeing so many characters and situations where my EP-1 + Flash combo would have been useful. By using film there was no trial and error, especially with composition. So i made sure I spend enough time. Once I figured I had good background, framing and lighting, I had to choose the right person/moment to capture knowing that I only had limited exposures. At the end of the day I was really happy, not because I knew I had good shots, but because I knew I had a blast shooting film that day regardless of the fact that I had no idea how my images will turn out.
A camera will always be just a tool because the composition, framing and clicking is still on you.
Here are my few more images for that day: