If you missed Part 1 last week (Why [and When] I don’t shoot film), make sure to give that a read first! It’ll put all of this in context!

I don’t really know anyone else who runs their business the way I do when it comes to film vs. digital- for the most part, you have your folks who are either all film, then you have your “hybrid” photographers (those who shoot a combination of both with every event/session they’re hired for), and then the people who are strictly digital. I’m the only person I know of who does digital for one type of event, and film for another. And I used to think there was something the matter with me because of it, but then I realized I’m my own boss and as long as I’m serving my couples/clients well, I can choose whatever medium I want. #bosslady, amiright?

First things first:

When DO I shoot film? All personal travel work, anniversaries, and ballerinas (sometimes).

Why? Well, for my personal travel work, it’s what helps me slow down and really absorb the place I’m in. Rather than firing off 10-15 digital shots, I take one or two on film. And I have to really WANT to take a photo of whatever it is I’m capturing. With digital, my tendency is to shoot for the “just in case.” Like “I’ll take 4-5 different photos of that gargoyle atop that random Parisian building just in case I ever need it for a blog post.” And do I ever do anything with that photo of that random gargoyle? No. No I do not. Which means I wasted shutter counts and storage space for no reason. I tend to have a bit of a hoarder’s mentality when it comes to my digital camera.

Whereas when I’m shooting with film, if something doesn’t really call to me, I don’t take a photograph of it. It’s that easy. It means I spend less time searching for and capturing photos of things that would simply make for good blog- or Instagram-fodder, and am able to spend more time basking in the glory of the things that really and truly inspire me as an artist. Which is the whole reason behind my personal travel work in the first place.

When it comes to anniversaries, the reasoning is similar- because of the mission statement behind my anniversaries, my focus and desire is to give my couples the opportunity to savor their time in front of my lens. So I’m ok with taking a little longer to compose, focus, and click the shutter. Because when I slow down, so do they. My shooting style is a bit different during anniversaries than it is for engagements, and that’s ok. It’s more than ok, actually- it’s what I’m known for.

With ballerinas, it forces me to be more intentional with every shot. As with anniversaries, I bring my digital with me as a back-up/warm-up/alternative if it’s too dark for film, but since my ballerina work was purely born from a place of inspiration, I need it to be intentional instead of haphazard. Instead of clicking my shutter 300-400 times in the hopes that something will turn out to be what I’m hoping, I may only shoot four rolls of film. But those four rolls will each be full of photos that I meticulously composed to be inspirational.

And that’s about it! I decided a couple of years ago to stop self-imposing silly rules that have no place in a creative business- who said I ever had to choose between being an all-film, hybrid, or all-digital photographer? No one. I love playing by my own rules, and choosing digital for one situation and film for another is just one of the many rules I’ve made up for myself!