film {experiment in light}

This is Brett, the other half of studio3z, writing my first, hopefully not last, blog entry. Hello all!

So, we’ve decided to start shooting film again and I took my first roll of medium format film a couple of weeks ago. I’m calling this my first “film experiment in light.” There is something about film that draws us in to the images…something I can’t amply describe, but I like to call it “The Van Gogh Effect” because film grain and blur reminds me of his amazing textures and I love how it seems so much more pure, raw, and organic than digital. And, I am an organic purist at heart. There is something deeply emotional about film in that it requires more time, effort, and patience. Film also requires us to have a deeper connection with the subject that is elsewise absent. This is what I love.

Well, I decided a few months back that I wanted to get back full circle to where this all began, but was dragging my heels on it. When Jessica and I first started shooting together, I shot a lot of film. Some of those photographs are still some of my favorites to date, but I could never get past the ease and convenience of digital. This all met with a crescendo upon attending the WPPI conference this year. This is where I became friends with a kindred spirit, Gabe McClintock, the incredibly talented man behind the camera of Perspectiveye Photography. Gabe was instrumental in my decision to start shooting film again and he was very helpful and graciously in lending me his ear on this venture. If you haven’t checked out his work before, then indulge your senses and visit his blog here. He shoots a lot of film these days and was one of my biggest inspirations for this endeavor…thank you Gabe! I was also privileged to hear a couple of excellent and inspiring film artists speak at WPPI this year, Elizabeth Messina of Kiss The Groom Photography and Jose Villa.

Looking back, here is one of my 35mm film shots from the first wedding Jessica and I ever photographed:

Now, coming full circle, I’m shooting with my new (old) Contax 645 medium format camera. This frame below is one of my favorites from the first roll I ever shot a couple weeks ago:

The water and light were so wondrous that I couldn’t stop shooting, so here are a few others…

That same day, the kids and I hung out with Grandma “Nanny” Beth, my mom, at Waffle House. The vintage Waffle House feel and the beautiful light pouring through the windows all added up to what I felt was “film ready”…well, I’m actually getting addicted to it and now everything is seeming “film ready” these days: