A New Obsession – Analog Photography – A One Shot Story

Last year, I planned a trip for Europe in the month of May. I knew ahead of time that I wanted to record this adventure with a film camera, in part because I thought it would be neat, in part because I didn’t want to pull out my phone every 2 seconds when I saw something cool. In anticipation for this, I purchased a Minolta SRT-102, and initially planned to take this on the trip, so I decided to get some practice reps with this unit so I can, at the very minimum, understand how the mechanics of a film camera works.

The first roll I used was on a trip with a woman to Sedona. There I found the camera enjoyable, especially with the ease of matching the light meter exclusively with shutter speed. I spent the entire trip using my right index finger lining up every image, from cows and desertscapes, to this woman, capturing their respective beauties through the viewfinder. Surely, these photos were going to be the start of remarkable work that demonstrated my photographic prowess to anyone willing to look.

Until I got my film back from development.

There are many failures in my life; it seems to be the only way I learn. I am okay with the majority of them, as I have learned the best through this method. Friends and family, my parents, have all given me advice, but it isn’t until personal trial-and-error that one can realize the mistakes they make and learn how to overcome and avoid obstacles, such as using slow shutter speeds with the blistering Arizona sun beaming down on the canvas that my frame would capture. With the roll back, I realized that I had made a huge mistake and all of my images came back overexposed. There was a couple pictures that came out okay, but it wasn’t until I shot my next roll was developed that my confidence returned.

I put in some ACROS 100 and roamed Tucson with my daughter, and I was able to take much better pictures with my new lessons learned. I used the aperture to get the pictures, while the shutter speed was closer to the ISO. This picture of my daughter captures the stoke that I felt when I finally got some decent photos. The ACROS was so soft, and gentle and innocent, that it reflected the sweet child o mine in a way that personifies the tender childhood that I am attempting to provide to her.

I honestly was not feeling one with this camera, however, and began to have a wandering eye for other 35mm cameras to use as the weapon on choice. This is where I will leave the cliffhanger that will lead to the aforementioned euro trip and my new obsession: Analog Photography.

Ciao

Share this post: