Wedding Photography – FIlm vs Digital
So you’re looking for a weeding photographer but can’t decide which one to choose. A film wedding photographer or a digital wedding photographer? For a novice individual, it can be confusing.
In the wedding photography industry, most are digital wedding photographers. There are only a few film shooters left. The film shooters a more like the old fashion photographers who prefers to work with something that they can feel/touch or smell.
In the older days (I’m not that old) when I was processing films, it took a lot of time to just print one photo. One has to have a dark room to do all the processing. Here is a quick step: First step is to remove the film in the film canister, then pour several pre-measured chemicals to process the film. Once the film is processed, the film then becomes a negative where it can be placed on an enlarger. The enlarge then shines a light through the negative to make a print from it (of course, there is the test strips to figure out the timing / color). Once the paper print is exposed with the right amount of light, it then goes through a series of chemicals that is timed precisely. Finally, the print can then be hang or goes through a dryer to dry. It really is time consuming and a lot of work. When I did it, it was fun because I was excited to see the outcome. But now-a-days, it is not practical to do so due to its negative impact on my time, environment, and the final cost.
Today, I use top notch 2 professional digital camera bodies. The digital bodies are a godsend since I can view what I just shot. As a San Jose wedding photographer, this is one big reason to have a digital camera. I want to know the second I shoot the photo if it was exposed properly. Imagine, photographing your wedding with a film just to learn when you get home that it was improperly exposed!!??!!?
So what is the benefit shooting film: zero. Actually, a film wedding photographer will shot less due to the cost of processing their films. Also, if you are the type that want the negative copies, having the film in your hand is a little harder to share with your relatives since you have to have it scanned and upload to your favorite website.
What is the benefit shooting a digital camera: Immediate feedback, no chemicals or canisters to throw in the environment, easier to manipulate in Photoshop, 1000-2000 or more shots during a wedding, and many more. Moreover, you get to manipulate the negative yourself, copy it to a DVD or CD, and upload it to a website to share to your family. Also, with the digital negative, I can manipulate the photo in a way to remove unwelcome blemishes, pimples, etc. Of course this can be done with films too but it is more costly.
As a San Jose wedding photographer, my preference is digital because I like the immediate feedback that it gives me (I hate to wait in suspense). I like that fact that I can try to be more creative and push the envelope to get what I want. Lastly, I can shoot as much as I want per wedding without worrying about cost. So, choose your wedding photographer wisely.
