You know film photography has really made a comeback when it appears on mainstream news like NBC. Not only did they cover this story, but they even went as far as capturing the footage entirely on film. Something they hadn’t done in almost 44 years.
This isn’t the first time however that analog photography has caught the eye of reporters over at NBC news. Two years ago they featured analog’s poster boy Willem Verbeeck, who made his name by posting videos on YouTube about his experience with film photography. He now has a popular camera bag company, Long Weekend, and is living the dream of making work he is passionate about. This segment 2 years ago did not go as far as this recent story though.
Shooting a news story on film in 2022 seems kind of crazy. This decision is a testament to the widespread appeal of film photography, and the way it’s capturing Millennials and Gen z individuals who are yearning for a tactile, and interactive photography experience. In this video we hear from another LA-based film enthusiast, Jason Kummerfeldt, who has also made a full-time career out of uploading videos, leaving his job in the movie industry to pursue his love for film, and sharing it with the growing community.
NBC follows Jason (otherwise known as “Grainy Days”) around LA shooting his favorite spots, and waxing poetic about how film is the only medium for him. It’s worth a watch purely for its nostalgic look, and how this feature will mark a moment in time when something we thought was dead forever is now back with full force. Even Kodak can’t keep up.
All the people hoping that Dall-E and sky replacement are going to be the ticket ought to be thinking that at some point "authenticity" will be all that photographers can sell. Everything else will be available right off the shelf.
Sad part is that NBC made the segment look "vintage" and looks like they used some handheld 8mm. NBC should use film as they would have 40 years ago with a dedicated pro rig from that era. One could see how vivid and great the colors look.