I’m over it now, the crushing disappointment that is. And there’s a caveat – the film was expired.
This was the brief: twelve shots consisting of three portraits, three urban landscapes, three landmarks and three animals. And this is the background:
The Two Photographers
I’m Joel, a Royal Navy photographer and travel blogger at thebumpercrew.com, and my colleague is Jimmy, a Royal Air Force photographer. Collectively, we have 37 years of experience as military photographers and have covered operations in the Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan, Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief in the Caribbean, and even worked as the Official Photographer to the UK Prime Minster.
Jimmy and I learned our trades at the Defence School of Photography – one of the world’s last remaining military photography schools, where we had formal training but in very different worlds. Jimmy joined the Royal Air Force as a ‘Photog’ in the days of film, whereas I joined the Royal Navy ‘Phot’ trade in the digital world.
We both have an interest in film cameras, although mine is more to do with how good they look on the shelf, so we decided to shoot a roll of film as a bit of a challenge between us. Having not shot much film, the thought was exciting for me – getting to plan the shots and facing some difficulties that no longer exist in the digital world. Jimmy happened to have a roll of expired Kodak film he’d bought at the vintage market at Covent Garden that he could put to good use.
The One Camera
Jimmy only buys film cameras that work, whereas I only buy ones that look good, working or not. So, Jimmy brought in his old Nikon FM2 for us to shoot on. The FM2 is, or was, regarded as an advanced semi-professional SLR camera, noted for its reliability and durability. However, it didn’t seem that advanced to me. There’s no autofocus, auto modes, or metering because the battery was flat. But aside from that, we were all set, apart from how unaware I was of the varying results of expired film, but I’ll come back to that.
In our day jobs, we shoot Canon R5, and in our own time, we both shoot Fujifilm X-T5. Shooting such advanced cameras for over a decade has spoiled us. With brilliant autofocus, metering modes for any situation and auto ISO, the camera makes life so much easier than shooting on film. Plus, you get more chances to get the shots you need.
There’s no doubt photography has improved since the invention of digital sensors, but it’s also possible to argue digital photography has become slightly sterile. Each new camera is one step closer to perfection, and these days we talk about the ISO range and its noise performance or how ‘pinners’ the glass is. Listening to my colleagues, who all learnt on film, talk about the character of film, the ‘chemmies’, the problems shooting a football match on a ‘Blad’, or the light leaks we now chase in the digital world is quite enjoyable for me, and clearly, something they look back fondly on.
And there’s another benefit of film besides the character and enjoyment it brings. It makes us accept the imperfections because they represent something you can’t change or control in the same way. And there are far more variables in film, as I learned – from the quality of the camera body, lens and film to how the film is stored and developed, and no doubt there are even more variables I am yet to discover.
And beyond the variables of all of this, each frame is valuable. The frames are limited, and they cost a lot of money. Somewhere in the region of 90p per frame, in this case, with developing and scanning, which is not something we consider on a digital camera, despite digital cameras, lenses, and laptops being expensive to start out. Anyway, back to the varying results of expired film and its subsequent crushing disappointment.
The Crushing Disappointment of Film
The first disappointment was discovering I’d run out of film. Another first-world problem for digital photographers. These days, you buy a memory card, stick it in your camera, and it will tell you exactly how many shots can fit on the card. That’s not the case with film, obviously. But what isn’t apparent is that even the dial on the top, which tell you how many frames you have taken, might not even be accurate, as I found out.
I thought I had five shots left. As I lined up the best shot of a pigeon I had ever taken (a female pecking a male in St James’s Park, which I’m sure many of us find somewhat relatable, Ha!), I set the exposure, unlocked the film and pressed the shutter. Nothing happened. What I had left was zero frames, not five. And then I didn’t know what to do because I couldn’t diagnose the problem. There’s no on/off switch to reset the camera. I guessed it was either a lack of film or a shutter problem. The latter was unlikely, so I messaged Jimmy to ask. It turns out there was a problem loading the film, and he had to cut some off. And that was that. Twelve frames turned into seven, and the rest of my shot list was history.
Speaking of frames left, here’s a side note – I learned that film is one continuous roll, and the frames aren’t really frames at all. The frames are created once the shutter opens and the film is exposed. But you already knew that because you’re all die-hard film fans.
The second disappointment, which was the big one, was when the email with the WeTransfer file from Snappy Snaps arrived in my inbox. Initially, I felt super excited until I opened the zip file and discovered the pictures. Never have I felt such excitement so closely followed by disappointment. Ha! The photographs were flat, milky and nothing like I expected them to be because who knew the expired film would be so rubbish? After a few minutes of considering whether the photographs were useable, I asked my wife, Stacey, if I could even submit the pictures for this article. She replied with a positive ‘yes’, as she usually would to any of my doubts. And she was right because this is the beauty of film and the subjective nature of whether you think expired film is rubbish or brilliant.
Hamish, Commander-in-Chief of 35mmc, suggested an edit on the files, which I did. However, I’m not convinced they are any better. Ha. But you can be the judge of that. Photography is subjective, after all. And if you’d like to find out what we get up to elsewhere, below are links to our Instagram channels and website:
@joelrouse
@jwisephoto
@the.bumper.crew
thebumpercrew.com
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Comments
jesse on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Julian Tanase on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Ups and downs, this is the road ahead, but it's full of interesting experiences. I hope (nay, I know) that your future ones will be much more pleasant. Looking forward to hearing more from your thoughts on film and film cameras!
Joel on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Stewart Waller on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
And to this day I shoot my Canon 5Ds and Nikon D850 for the most part manually; I try to shoot both cameras in their native ISO as much as possible, use manual focus, tripods, monopods, and studio strobes or mixed lighting over continuous artificial lighting, and other slow-speed film tricks to get really good looking, contrasty images in the box without a lot of futzing in Photoshop afterward (unless I'm making photo illustrations, but that's a whole 'nother thing).
My current much younger assistant understands analog camera settings, and how they apply to digital, but others I've tried to mentor covering events scoffed—complaining about the heavy equipment, etc.—and their pictures show it. Kids these days!
In recent years I've rediscovered film cameras as a hobby, both as a collector and user—and my former knowledge from that FM2 pays off every time I load a new 'vintage' camera with film.
Good luck to you both on your new analog journey; hopefully you will also discover the joy of film!
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Jukka Reimola on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Anyway, this was interesting little project. Thanks!
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Jalan on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
I love my digital cameras and they are amazing tools. But I also have the foundation of learning on film. I shoot wet plate now and that is a whole ocean of randomness and mistakes! But, struggling with exposure and developing builds a deep understanding of light and chemistry than no digital only photographer will ever have!
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Ken on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Joel on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Tony Wu on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Shooting expired film usually requires compensations for the aged emulsions, at least by 1 stop of exposure. The muddy and faded looks of your frames shared here is the result of severe underexposures and the scanner can’t help too much on the transparent area on the film, mainly due to the not as active as before emulsions on the film. You should have exposed this roll at ISO100 or even 50. But who ever knows how old is this roll and what it has gone through before loaded into your camera? It’s just a lesson to learn. With fresh film, you can surely make wonderful pictures as you do on your modern machines.
MichaelWPlant on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Graham Coad on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Dave on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
FishyFish on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Allan on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Black and white film is another matter; B&W emulsions can be expired by 10 years or more and not result in significant degradation of the image quality beyond a bit of loss in contrast. That can be compensated for in post processing, if you scan and then import the resulting DNG files into Lightroom/Photoshop or whatever processing software you use. Loss of contrast can also be addressed in the traditional wet printing process, too.
Color film is much more sensitive than B&W emulsions. That said, the images you have posted look like there are other causes other than expired film. They look like the film has been ruined by an airport CT scanner, or the film was developed in exhausted film developer (low quality labs will do that to maximize their profit at the cost of your negatives), or both.
If you want the highest possible developing quality for your film, you have to do it yourself at home. It's not hard to learn; I have developed my own B&W, C41 and E6 emulsions for years with excellent results. B&W is the easiest of all, while C41 and especially E6 require strict temperature control. That is easily accomplished by using the warm water bath developing method.
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Eric on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
I have a few digital options at my disposal, but just as often still use film. I also develop and scan the film myself so that adds even more potential for disappointment. Most recently I ran into a film where the development instructions on the box and canister were wrong, as confirmed by my local camera shop that sold it to me. But it works out much more often than not in the grand scheme. Went with my first thoughts on what to do instead of the manufacturer's instructions and the second roll went perfectly.
Thank you for sharing your experiences.
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Louis Sousa on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Tim Gasper on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Tony Warren on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
I often see mentioned that expired film should be rated at a stop more exposure per decade since expiry so one stop as someone suggests was clearly not enough for this one, probably should have been three at least, ISO 25? Nevertheless they have a certain quality, just not as record shots. Especially like the "You lookin' at me!" duck.
I am all for experimentation, one of the best things about film. There are so many variables affecting output compared to digital so keep soldiering on.
Comment posted: 21/09/2023
Louis Sousa on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
David Hume on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
It might be worth mentioning that the scans are not the end of the story; the job, as I see it, of scanning is to pull as much usable info as possible off the film, which you, the photographer then get to edit to taste. So - the negs are underexposed (as sensitivity decreases over time) and flat. But if you imagine a histogram of what you have there, there's no reason not to increase the contrast so there are blacks and whites. You'll have lost most of the shadow detail but some people say that's nice. "Crush the blacks" as they
say
The person who said the article is the stupidest he's ever read is perhaps making one of the most pointless comments I've ever read. Sure - if you want to get better results do your research first; is there anything to which that does not apply? But there's lots that anyone can learn and ponder from reading this. Personally, in my time I've learned a lot about the nature of film and the qualities of film that I like from shooting expired film and then trying to make nice looking images out of shitty negs.
In fact - that just gave me the idea for an article, so thanks.
Marco C on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
When you make a gamble with expired film you have to take into account more time with post processing to get something nice, at least in my experience! :)
In this case I think even just a quick luminance curve adjustment will give you usable results.
VU2BFX on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
Dave Powell on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
Stefan Wilde on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
the funny thing is that I somehow like the milkyness. I understand it's not intended, but it gives the pictures a certain mood... Distant. Faded. Like something found unexpectedly in a lost place, an echo of things past. Now that you have shown me the tool, I will put it in my box and try intentionally underexposing when this is what I want to express.
Thanks for posting!
Huss on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
I'd love it if you used a fresh roll of film in the FM2 and gave this project another go. Before you do with the F4. Also remember to get a couple of 1.5V batteries for the camera - those are super cheap and available anywhere.
To show that expired film can be ok... I recently shot this Fuji Superia 200 in my Pentax Auto 110. Yep 110 film. It's sell by date? November 2000! 23 years old.
https://www.flickr.com/gp/39133227@N08/e34A6z3742
Comment posted: 22/09/2023
Zheng Li on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 23/09/2023
Recently I had a roll of Ektachrome EPP 100 slide film, it is almost entirely faded due to age and looks like skimmed milk diluted by water 10 times. And with the right scanning settings, I was able to pull most contrast and colors out. I can offer to re-scan 1-2 frames for you, if you are interested.
Geoff Chaplin on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 23/09/2023
Louis A. Sousa on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 26/09/2023
Darren Fielding on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 02/10/2023
That again goes to show how film photography swings in roundabouts. Sometimes the shots are amazing and hit you between the eyes, and other times you're eyes wish to be ears.
Ibraar Hussain on Two Photographers, One Camera, and the Crushing Disappointment of Film
Comment posted: 15/06/2024
These things happen in the digital world as well.
Using expired film is experimentation and for artistic purposes - I’d never use it for anything I want to capture and keep.
I’ve only ever used a few rolls of expired film and E6 at that. A good camera with an excellent matrix meter works wonders for this - but you’ll still need to over expose a tad. I wrote an article recently about a Contax and expired Provia. All fun and good character
Interesting article and a learning curve. Thanks my friend
Comment posted: 15/06/2024