Recent Film Photography Articles

The Rising Of A Blockbuster: Making Of The Dark Knight Rises

Probably the most anticipated movie of the summer, The Dark Knight Rises, is sure not to disappoint. I have always been a long time fan of Christopher Nolan's style of film-making and his practical approach to filming special effect scenes. In this in-depth 13 minute making of featurette Christopher Nolan and his crew talk about the scope of filming a movie this size, the scale of the locations and how important it is to them to try to film all of their special effects in camera decreasing the amount of CGI used in post.

Photoshop Brought Back My Grandfather

In November 2015, my mom came up with some old photos of my deceased grandfather, which were negatives printed on film. She said that she had asked several photography studios if it was possible to get normal prints from the printed negatives, but the answer was always no. As those were some of the only photographs left of him, she had kept all of them with a hope. Years after, it was my turn to try. The process to get some decent prints and move my mom to tears was ever so easy.

A Review of One of the Weirdest Cameras of Yesteryear

Fujifilm has a storied history with film cameras, having created some bodies that are still beloved by photographers even to this day. This great review takes a look at one of the most unique of those cameras: the GA645.

An In-Depth Analysis of The Hateful Eight's Cinematography

Matt Workman is a cinematographer and the founder and host of the Cinematography Database Show. On this particular episode he offers an in-depth analysis of the cinematography of Quentin Tarantino’s "The Hateful Eight," shot by Director of Photography Robert Richardson.

Head-to-Head Comparison: Kodak Portra 400 Versus Kodak Ektar

As a film photographer myself, one of the biggest struggles when going out to shoot is deciding on the right film. Considerations of film speed and color rendering are two of the most important and these are two that differ considerably between Portra and Ektar.

Shanks FX Attempts to Recreate Aurora Borealis with Household Items

Joey Shanks, better known by his YouTube handle Shanks FX, has released another YouTube video based around the idea that Hollywood effects can be achieved by anyone and with only household items. This time he attempts to recreate the legendary Aurora Borealis (or Northern Lights), one of the seven wonders of the world, with just some sheets of fabric and a handful of fans. Combining those few fans, fabric, and just a little bit of precise lighting with just a touch of videography editing magic, he suddenly has one of the world wonders in his garage. Check it out!

Is Fujifilm Acros II Worth the Extra Cost?

There's been a lot of doom and gloom about film and its viability as a photographic medium in the last few years. Film stocks seemed to be fading away faster than ever. However, this past year, Fujifilm decided to bring back one of their most beloved modern films, Acros, in a new formulation: Acros II. In this great video, Roger from Shoot Film Like a Boss puts the film through its paces and gives his thoughts.

Develop Your Own Color Film at Home: What You Need to Succeed

I love color. Black and white photography holds a special place in my heart, but 90 percent of the time I gravitate toward color imagery in my own work. When I started shooting film again, I decided that I would most definitely learn to develop my own black and white film. From choosing your film stock to mixing super-secret developer cocktails guaranteed to make your images sing, there are tons of resources out there for the aspiring hobbyist. When it comes to color, however, I had always heard that the machines needed were expensive, the process complicated, and the chemicals harmful. Not so!

Achieving the Film Look With Digital Tools

The desire to capture the unique aesthetic of film photography remains strong among photographers, even in our digital age. While the convenience and flexibility of digital cameras are undeniable, the distinct colors, grain, and overall feel of film hold a certain allure.

Beautiful Behind-the-Scenes Video from 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' at Comic Con

With Comic Con in full swing this week we are all waiting patiently for the next big reveal in the world of cinema and sci-fi. Today is that day as we are brought through an outstanding BTS video from "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Blasting onto the scene with never before seen footage of Han, Chewbacca, Leia, and many more as they show us what delicate hands of J.J. Abrams we are in. Seeing the combination of practical and visual effects we are sure to find a true sequel to the original trilogy that was released almost four decades prior.

The Making of a Viral Video Featuring the Apple Watch With Casey Neistat

The creative genius that is Casey Neistat, for me, is next to none. The pure drive and passion this man has for what he does brings inspiration and motivation to my career and even my daily life. Late last week, Neistat decided to up and create his own viral video around the launch of the Apple Watch, and this is how he did it!

Some of the Best Cinematic Showreels of 2016

An attention-grabbing showreel can be one of best ways for you to put your video work out there. Whether you shoot weddings, commercials, narrative films, or wildlife, putting together a short, visually appealing montage of your best work is essential for your clients to see your abilities and quality.
One of the Weirdest Medium Format Cameras Ever Made

Before gaining popularity with the highly respected X Series and GFX Series, Fujifilm was quite active in the film industry, making some fantastic cameras that are still popular with enthusiasts today. One of the most interesting cameras they made was the GA645Zi, and this great video takes a look at what it is like to shoot with a medium format point and shoot.

Surprising Words of Wisdom on Choosing the Right Film Camera

Hamish Gill, who runs a fantastic film-centric blog, 35mmc, has a great article up that addresses an often-asked question he receives: "Which film camera should I buy?" The spoiler is he doesn't have an answer.

Iconic Rock Photographer Norman Seef's Stories Behind the Photos

You may not have known it, but I'm certain you've seen a Norman Seef photograph. What photo do you think of when you think of Ray Charles? He shot that. Carly Simon? Yup. Steve Jobs? Seef again. After reading our own Douglas Sonders' article on how short the window of time is when working with celebrities, seeing how much Seef could get out of his subjects is awe-inspiring.

A Fully Automatic Film Lab For Your Home

Film use is definitely on the rise. However, when you start to play around with this admittedly archaic technology, one fact of life rears its head very quickly: the film needs to be processed. Although you can go the lab route, I've always found a certain satisfaction in processing my film myself. For those of us with means, however, there may be another option: The Filmomat!

Michael Ash Smith Photographs an Entire Wedding on Instant Film

Michael Ash Smith is a commercial wedding, portrait, and lifestyle photographer based out of Barto, PA. As a hybrid photographer, much of Michael's work is done on 35mm and medium format film with some instant film here and there for special occasions. He recently shared images from a wedding he shot over on the Junebug Weddings blog. The difference? Everything he shot that day was with instant film.

Does Shooting Film Make You a Better Photographer?

The film versus digital debate has raged on for over a decade now. Digital cameras are so capable that it seems silly for anyone to go back to an archaic medium like film. Film is slow, expensive (sort of), lacks many game-changing features found in today's digital cameras, and has lower resolution (sort of). But it has some qualities to it that make it an entirely viable medium for working photographers and enthusiasts alike. One of which that I firmly believe in is that it will make you a better photographer.

Using Marbles to Represent Planets, This Is the First Timelapse of the Solar System to Scale

If you Google the solar system, you will be shown images of all the planets in our solar system laid out in the order they rotate around the sun. The problem with these images is that each planet's respective distance to the sun is not shown to true scale. This leaves the viewer without a true understanding of just how far away each planet is from another. That’s why Alex Gorosh and Wylie Overstreet set out to make a true-to-scale representation of the solar system.

craft camera video videography videographer film

For a few years, the names in the game of digital video technologies have remained pretty constant, especially in the professional or prosumer category. It’s not often you have a company jump onto the scene swinging, promising to release what could be one of the most versatile systems to hit the market in a while; this is exactly what Craft Camera has done. Purchasing isn’t available yet but they are taking reservations now and shipping out the first units off the line as early as December.

'The Colourful Mr. Eggleston' - One of the Most Influential Photographers Alive Today

"40 years ago [William Eggleston] dragged color, kicking and screaming, into the world of art photography." In this fascinating documentary from BBC's Imagine, we get a small glimpse at a photographic icon. William Eggleston was born in Tennessee in 1939 and raised in Mississippi. Inspired by Robert Frank and Henri Cartier-Bresson, Eggleston is credited with being the first photographer to give serious artistic credibility to color film.

How a Photographer Shot an Entire Wedding on Film

Wedding photography is one of the most challenging genres out there, and given the pressure and lack of second chances, most photographers opt for high-end digital equipment to ensure the best chances of getting the shots they need. Given today's client expectations, can you still shoot a wedding on film? This neat video features a photographer taking you through his entire film photography kit for a wedding.

How to Take Photographs Like Joel Meyerowitz

Street photography has been a staple genre of our craft since the camera's inception, and some of the most iconic images — and photographers — in history, were made on the street. Here's how you can emulate one of the greats.

The Story Behind The 1948 Photograph 'Dali Atomicus'

In 1948, far before Photoshop was introduced to mankind, there was a painter and photographer dynamic duo that created outlandish portraits. Of course I'm talking about Salvador Dali and Philippe Halsman. Time Magazine recently released this awesome video explaining just how the team was able to get these great shots.

A Review of the Olympus XA

Few cameras have been able to reach the same level of cult following that the Olympus XA has built up in recent years. Does the camera deserve the hype?