Analog People In A Digital World

Analog artisans tell their stories and discuss why they prefer analog over digital photography.
Artists:
Frank Lopez - Tintypes
Shamsy Roomiani - Cyanotypes
Photographique - Photo Restoration
Don Puckett - Custom Polaroid Camera
OFFICIAL SELECTION for Dallas VideoFest 30
Originally created for Dallas Observer digital content as a companion to a printed cover-story we pitched and photographed.
Filmed and Edited by Sarah Reyes and Daniel Driensky
See our other projects at www.exploredinary.com
Follow us on instagram @exploredinary

[@Exploredinary]

Hope you guys enjoy this piece we made in 2017 for Dallas Observer. It was a film that catapulted us into doing artist docs, and eventually led to us working with Jason Lee, and ILFORD, creating the Legends of Skateboarding series and a film factory tour (all of which can be seen on the Ilford Photo KZbin channel). Thanks for watching!

[@gianmarcomaioli]

I'm basically crying. Just got to the end of it, I'm feeling warmer, happier and more aware of how important it is to keep film alive. Thank you.

[@Exploredinary]

That's very sweet of you to say, thanks for watching. We appreciate your passion for film!

[@gianmarcomaioli]

@@Exploredinary You’re welcome! Thank you for making this video. Cheers

[@DominiKing32]

I’d like to get into this but it just seems like to much work. Salute to you guys.

[@gianmarcomaioli]

@@DominiKing32 it definitely takes some time and hassle to get the hang of it, but the first few steps are rather simple! I’m actually preparing a vid about getting into film photography, but you can find already thousands of these vids on KZbin.

[@littlejimmy2825]

What a beautiful video I'm so glad I clicked on this, God bless these people working their magic.

[@Exploredinary]

thank you! Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching!

[@GONZOFAM7]

Don is a wizard bringing those cameras back to life. I love that kind of mind. Excellent video thanks.

[@Exploredinary]

Jaime Gonzalez he’s brilliant! Thanks for watching!

[@dl3036]

Just listening to a person who knows their craft is mesmerizing alone in itself. So I’m quite certain you can take this gentleman’s word for it. Wow

[@Exploredinary]

thanks for watching! appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment!

[@iyudovich]

Its nice that some one cared to talk about "analog "photography in our such fast paced world. I shoot 4x5 and to me shooting, composing, and traveling with my analogue equipment is such a relieve from our stress filled, fast paced world !

[@Exploredinary]

Igor Yudovich thanks we’re glad you enjoyed the film. We love analog photography and I’m so happy more people are starting to shoot on film. Thank you for watching!

[@ColonyThreeMusic]

This was a fantastic work, thank you! Many of us in the music world have embarked on the pursuit of analog production to revive that almost intangible yet deeper emotional connection with our audience. There is something comforting in analog I can't quite explain, and I don't feel that need to...it just feels right.

[@Exploredinary]

Colony Three Music thanks so much for the compliment & thanks for watching!

[@ayayyur]

We are analogue players in a digital world, think smart, play it fast, technologies don't rest! From city to city, we live at night, the grass is always greener on our side!

[@ghw7192]

I set up my first darkroom over50 years ago and watching an image appear on a piece of paper is still magic.

[@Exploredinary]

ghw7192 glad to hear it! I agree. I have watched it happen many times and the magic is always there...even more so when you exposed/dodged/burned properly :)

[@whowho8470]

I just started shooting 35mm again for first time in about 15 years. I still shoot digital too but the analog process really slows you down and makes you appreciate some of the joys of photography that are lost with digital. I'm introducing my kids to photography with film and not digital. Film seems like a more organic way to start them up. No immediate gratification. They have to take notes for each frame and record their camera settings and shoot in manual mode of course. Analog is making a bit of a comeback. I heard that more vinyl LPs were sold last year in America than CDs. Crazy!

[@Exploredinary]

Daniel Swier wow! Interesting to hear that! I have started taking various film cameras on my daily walks, photographing the neighborhood. I like the experience of looking back at the roll of multiple walks. If it were digital I would care to ever see these shots again, but because they were carefully composed due to cost and limited number of shots, they become a collection of shots I want to look at it. Film is magic on many levels. Glad you’re still shooting and introducing your kids to film! Thanks for watching!

[@christinacooperfilm]

I loved watching this so much! Beautifully made! What an appreciation for analog style!

[@Exploredinary]

Christina M. Cooper Photography thank you! Thanks for watching, we’re happy you enjoyed it!

[@mateobronstein]

This was amazing, thank you so much for sharing!!!

[@Exploredinary]

Mateo Bronstein thanks for watching and thank you for your comment! We’re happy you enjoyed the film! :)

[@HayesPeterson]

Beautiful work as always. 🤘🏼🤘🏼

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks so much for watching! Just realized the other day this film was only on our Vimeo account and wanted to share it with the KZbin world!

[@tenniswerewolf8095]

I think I’ve watched this 10x already, I even shared it with my “Digital only” friends. Thank You for this ✌🏾

[@Exploredinary]

thanks for watching Simeon, we're very happy to hear that! Glad you enjoyed the film!

[@garoldcarlisle5637]

Very interesting artists. Very talented. Loved this documentary style. Keep up the good work.

[@Exploredinary]

Garold Carlisle thanks so much for the compliment! Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching!

[@dakmandotcom6682]

Glad I came across this, thank you.

[@Exploredinary]

Dakman DotCom thanks! We’re glad you did too. Much appreciated.

[@MarcS4R]

just beautiful, thank you for this amazing video.

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks for watching Marc! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@Reno_T]

Stunning talented and skilled people! Great video 👏🏻

[@Exploredinary]

Reno thanks for watching! ✌️

[@vintagephotographer]

Beautiful. More please!

[@Exploredinary]

Thank you! Will do!

[@goanheat]

I loved it, thank you for sharing.

[@Exploredinary]

Thank you! Thanks for watching! :)

[@JoydeepBose]

Such an amazing video. Thank you. I wish and pray that such artists and businesses make enough money that help them do what they love, life long.

[@Exploredinary]

Joydeep Bose thank you for your kind words. We are glad you enjoyed watching!

[@JoydeepBose]

Yea and subscribed too. Your videos are very interesting. Will be watching other of your videos too. All the best 👍🏽

[@bgcreations6995]

Thanks for sharing this video. I learned a lot.

[@Exploredinary]

BG Creations thanks for watching - glad you enjoyed it!

[@lukabinks1388]

This medium is flourishing once again but I am sad that I will never have as much taller as these people!

[@rococoblue]

😏 always nice to see my old friends again in cyberspace.👍👍

[@jamietocher629]

that was a brilliant video ! its always so much fun doing alternative process'

[@Exploredinary]

Jamie Tocher thanks so much! We’re glad you enjoyed watching, and we agree - so much fun :)

[@jamietocher629]

@@Exploredinary just keep it going you have some great videos! I'm excited for what's to come :)

[@sTekSOo]

Wonderful little film 🖤

[@Exploredinary]

sTekSOo thanks for watching! Happy you enjoyed it!

[@NoelCabana]

This is truly a masterpiece. 😍

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks for watching! Happy you enjoyed it!

[@detleframich1072]

I love peoble with passion, say thank you!!..for take a loolk in your work!❤

[@Exploredinary]

Detlef Ramich thank you for watching!

[@TheStockwell]

This is a great film about fascinating people. Me, I create cyanotypes. I still do digital photography and video work, but the son of a famous photographer once told me that while his father would've loved the convenience of digital, nothing can replace an image made by hand, that you can hold, hang on a wall, or give to someone. You can buy a loaf of bread, but when you get a loaf that was baked by hand - it just seems more real. It was created, not manufactured.

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks for watching! Beautiful comparison of film vs. digital you made with the bread! We use digital too for work because its faster for delivery, but yes there's definitely something special about making images by hand that you can hold and archive. I've always felt proud when getting back film and nailing focus/exposure/composition because you really didn't know for sure if you nailed it or not on the spot, plus there's always some unexpected surprises. My current image making obsession is an Graflex 4x5 camera with a polaroid back, shooting Fuji peel apart film!

[@TheStockwell]

@@Exploredinary I'm happy to say I'm regressing a great deal - photographically speaking. I'm sprucing up a few elderly Zeiss 9x12 glass plate cameras. J. Lane, based in New Hampshire, makes plates. I'm pretty thrilled about all the mistakes I'll be making! Even further down the rabbit hole, the George Eastman Museum has a video on making mercury-free daguerreotypes with 35mm cameras. It won't become a lifestyle, but, just once, I want to go back to the very dawn of photography. Have a safe and interesting year. 🐧

[@Exploredinary]

@@TheStockwell very cool! We have been to the George Eastman Museum and have poured plates with Nick who runs that dept. Very excited to see what you come up with! If you end up making a plate, scan it and post it here!

[@importantmancommenting9336]

Camera obscura? Love that band!

[@Exploredinary]

Important man Commenting haha so do we!

[@sutt_hero_rotj7619]

Beautiful

[@Exploredinary]

Shane Utterback thanks for watching. Glad you enjoyed it!

[@josephasghar]

This is beautiful

[@Exploredinary]

Joseph Asghar thank you, thanks for watching!

[@wstibor]

Thank you.

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks for watching!

[@vintageexposure3344]

Respect!

[@Exploredinary]

Vintage Exposure thanks for watching!

[@stefanol9272]

My reason I went over to film, actually there is many reasons but for me I go out in peace I take my time 1. 2. Then in film you guy a camera thats it yes and the lenses but I feel off the grid. I dont feel hurry up and move on. 3 no excuses not to make prints man what a feeling ! 4 When I shoot black & white digital beautiful absolutely until I got my first black & white roll developed and on prints too wooow what a difference. When I was shooting digital 1 year ago I was on the edge to quit photography then I went to film and now my passion is 100 percent back.

[@Exploredinary]

we are happy to hear your passion for photography is back after shooting with film! Thanks for watching!

[@stefanol9272]

@@Exploredinary I thank you to for your channel 🙂🙂🙂

[@fellowcitizen]

very inspiring

[@Exploredinary]

Fellow Citizen thank you! We’re glad you enjoyed it!!

[@zaharib]

Wonderful 🥰

[@Exploredinary]

Zahari Baharom thank you - thanks for watching!

[@zaharib]

@@Exploredinary Greetings from Malaysia 🇲🇾. Thank you so very much for your warm and kind greetings too 🥰

[@ivonahumpalot538]

I go to dons to get film. Thats in west dallas!!

[@ichbrauchmehrkaffee5785]

one thing worth thinking about: the reason digital photography took over had bever something to do with image quality. Almost 2 decades ago, film was still superiour to digital in terms of quality, and just now we're at a point, where one could argue that the quality of digital is competing or maybe even surpassing the quality of analog film

[@Exploredinary]

Schnapps ist gesund! Digital has had a leg up in resolution for about 10 years but you had to buy a super expensive digital back for a medium format film camera, and I don’t believe the exposure latitude was as dynamic with those as film but maybe I’m wrong. Now you are able to get 40+ mp in a small camera body, and it can out perform film, but for some people there is still something magic and more archival about shooting an image on 120 or 4x5 film. For some it’s also about the challenge and accomplishment of working harder to get a good image, as digital is “too easy”.

[@Being_Joe]

BW film still has something over digital. Though I enjoy 35mm film if I had to choose one going forward I would choose full frame or APS-C over 35mm film. Now when I shoot 120 medium format film, that beats the heck out of digital and the digital world is just catching up to 645 format. Now 4x5 that will be years until digital even comes close. Different tools and in the end they are just tools and we need to know how to use and choose our tools.

[@MprivetM]

Thank you :)

[@Exploredinary]

Marek Kacprzak thanks for watching!

[@kimdelasalas]

♥️

[@Exploredinary]

thanks for watching!

[@jimlabos]

I started before digital. I do prefer film for certain things but film is more expensive. If you are a professional it’s maybe justifiable. Digital has its advantages and do does film. Film has character and is a more personal method. Yes when you get into large format film is probably cheaper. In any case printing photographs is something that people in digital forget about. In film you have to print in order to see results. In digital you can look at a screen. The sad thing is that because of that you miss out on the best part of bc a photograph. So what happens I believe is that some artists will not experience prints from digital and be more impressed with film. Also the film process takes longer and people today are in much more of a hurry than in the past.

[@zsigmondfoldessy8785]

Although I photograph digitally, I like the analog for more. On the other hand, I listen to a cassette tape, a reel tape recorder, and a vinyl record. :-)

[@Exploredinary]

Zsigmond Földessy we agree! We shoot digital for most work assignments, but we love the translation of an image on film. It has a unique filtered beauty to it, much like the analog audio you listen to :)

[@mohomoho1]

I was a film still guy for 45 years. Purchased my first digital camera 4 years ago and then last year a Nikon Z6. Never going back to film. I was a manager/printer of a custom B/W film lab for 3 years, a professional photo assistant for 10 years NYC from 84/94'. I don't miss film at all!!! Digital is far superior in so many ways. Not to mention less expensive overall. Digital is much better for the environement also. Film is a niche market. Good luck making a living from it and shooting a pro job w. it. Polaroids are super expensive and temperamental! Every digital exposure is a polaroid. Save if you like delete if not.

[@Exploredinary]

Jay John thank you for your comment, I know many people who worked professionally in film for decades feel this way, and that’s okay. Digital is definitely easier, faster, and cheaper, but “superior” is all a matter of preference for each person. I do worry that the environmental aspect may end up killing it, but for now people are enjoying it, and new people are shooting film for the first time every day.

[@michaelsherck5099]

I'm sort of your opposite: I've been an IT professional for more than 40 years. Programmer, systems analyst, IT manager. The last thing in the world I want to do is come home from work and sit in front of another monitor/keyboard/mouse. I go into the darkroom, turn up the boom box and shift my attention from electrons to photons! I started photography by accident 30 years ago and I've done professional photography (industrial style,) with digital cameras and Photoshop and all the rest. No more! I just retired and I don't even own a digital camera any more.

[@Exploredinary]

Michael Sherck sounds amazing! Love getting lost in creation in the darkroom. Time just flies by!

[@DiviPhotos]

cool video

[@Exploredinary]

Divi Photos thanks for watching!!

[@analog_process3156]

Is this exploredinary, the people who make some of Ilford's videos?

[@Exploredinary]

Angelo C hi Angelo! 👋Yes it’s us, thanks for watching all of these years, I recognize you from the Ilford comment section!

[@analog_process3156]

@@Exploredinary awesome... I always loved the way you tell you stories. Your videos have helped me a lot during these years you know. I am just now sitting with the first picture where I did the whole process: shooting, developing, enlarging and framing. A lot of this is due to your great short movies. 👏🏼 Sure I will watch more of your content now that you have your own channel. I will give you a shout out on my Facebook group that has over 10k people and it's related to film photography. I hope it helps your channel grow. 🌟🎉🍻

[@Exploredinary]

Angelo C thank you so much for the kind words! So happy to hear that our videos inspired you, and congrats on your first analog framed print! We really appreciate you sharing our channel, thank you. We are starting to add the Ilford videos we made to our own channel, and we hope to make some new content with them this year! We also do graphic design work and just designed the packaging for Ilford’s new reusable film camera, the EZ35, which should be coming out soon!

[@dadautube]

great video! only, when are knowledgeable people capable of making works like this (both the video makers as well as the photogs) going to get rid of that totally wrong term, "analog" that CANNOT be applied to traditional 'emulsion' photography!? yes, i know it's just a common mistake and it's ok ... but ...

[@Exploredinary]

dadautube I appreciate your compliment for the creators and your distain for the word analog (lol) but looking at KZbin analytics, the search for “analog photography” was the top reason so many have seen this video, so I’m grateful people are seeing it. “Analog” is the opposite of “digital”technically, so that’s why people use it.

[@duccao8896]

The voice of the narrator seems like Jason from grainydays

[@Exploredinary]

Duc Cao I think my voice is deeper than his. Lol Cheers- thanks for watching.

[@duccao8896]

Btw both of you are very inspiring. Cheers ⚡️⚡️⚡️

[@Lavi-Aemilia-Astori]

I still do shot analog and my family thinks that i am crazy

[@Exploredinary]

Thank you for watching! What analog camera do you use?

[@Lavi-Aemilia-Astori]

@@Exploredinary the F2!

[@Exploredinary]

Hinata Ch。 星野 ひなた very good camera!! You will take some wonderful pictures with that camera and your family with be jealous :)

[@Yulfi]

Great video. I enjoyed watching it. I shoot both my professional and personal work exclusively on film, and I cannot see myself going back to digital unless it’s to a GFX 100 or something like a Leaf Aptus II 12 80 CCD sensor as my second camera. Medium-format and large-format film stocks take the win over any digital camera that’s out on the market right now, especially if you consider what you can pull out of drum-scan in terms of image quality. But I always wonder why older film photographers claim that a digital file will corrupt after two years, five years, ten years; To say that, is a bit of force. I have digital photos saved in my archive from over ten years ago, and they’re doing just fine. Like I said before, film wins, but digital isn’t as unreliable and fragile as some analog guys make it out to be. I do appreciate the passion though.

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks for watching! Sometimes digital backups can go bad, especially old spinning hard drives. I’m starting to have more faith in ssd media for storage, but I’ve definitely had some hard drives and memory cards fail.

[@Yulfi]

@@Exploredinary Hey, you’re welcome. I guess I’ve been fortunate enough to not have that happen to me often enough for it to be a real problem for me. The way I see it, one can forget to load the camera with film, a film roll can fail to latch-on and never expose any frames, you can accidentally screw up the development process, a negative can be damaged, there can be light leaks, a film camera can malfunction, a roll can be accidentally exposed to light, a roll can be accidentally left in an extremely hot environment for an extended amount of time, and a number of other things can occur on the analog side of things to render a potential photograph useless. All I’m saying is that I think film photographers can often be a bit overzealous about the analog process and are a bit hyperbolic when discussing the pitfalls of digital.

[@kamilpotato3764]

As much as analogue got it's appeal saying that film outlasts digital is a bit of stretch. For me it's hard to believe that if we put sd card and 35mm film safely somewhere for 500 years film will be still there usable

[@Exploredinary]

thanks for watching and for your comment. I've been shooting for about 15 years, and some of my hard drives when I first started are already going bad, not working with modern computers. The film will definitely outlast the digital, but I've started making prints from digital as those can last.

[@kamilpotato3764]

@@Exploredinary I think we misunderstood each other. I meant something different. Take sd card and roll of 35mm. We leave it for few centuries in same condition. Wouldn't film degenerate beyond being usable?

[@valensomm]

@@Exploredinary well you can make endless copies of the original digital photo without any quality loss and back it up to different physical media or cloud, some more reliable than others i guess. Good luck recovering a physical photo collection from a house fire. It doesn't drop the "O's and ones" over time like stated by that dude in this video.

[@Exploredinary]

kamil potatoe hard to say because photography itself isnt even two hundred years old. I guess anything could last if it was well preserved. The negatives would need to be placed in a vault or something where the elements couldn’t deteriorate it. A piece of plastic memory card will still physically be there, but will the card work and be accessible? Food for thought for sure

[@Exploredinary]

Valen S digital files/hard drives definitely do corrupt which is what he meant by dropping the 0s and 1s. I guess if you backed up on cloud it would have a better chance of being in tact, but what if that cloud went down overnight without your control? Would the cloud service still be there in 50 or 100 years? All food for thought

[@jor_r8769]

The voice over work sounds like Bukowski.

[@Exploredinary]

Thanks! We did it in-house for budget purposes, now Daniel of Exploredinary does voiceover on many of our films, including BEHIND THE FILM, the Ilford factory tour.

[@TheGoodContent37]

Why use analog in a digital world? Answer: Nostalgia

[@StephenPrunier]

Why use a hammer when you can do it with a nail gun? Would you say that it's also Nostalgia?

[@Exploredinary]

StephenPrunier wow great analogy!

[@Exploredinary]

THE GOOD CONTENT there are many reasons, the archival ability being a big one, but also some people prefer the challenge and the aesthetic characteristics of analog more than digital. Check out our Legends of Skateboarding series on the ILFORD Photo KZbin Channel. Many professional skateboarders prefer the challenge of nailing a shot on film, because digital becomes almost too easy.

[@MrGatin777]

Considering the price of entry for professional digital medium format (around $3000) compared to professional film medium format (around $500) and the fact that many professional photographers still use film in their day to day process, stating that its just due to nostalgia is not even close to true. Digital hasn't reached the quality of large format either making it the best for quality and depth compared to any digital camera.

[@Exploredinary]

Name Here certain niche coveted film cameras have significantly increased in cost too though. I have wanted a Contax 645 for years, held off back when they were $2k with lens, now they are $3k-$4k with lens :( Contax T3 35mm pocket point and shoot was $900 a few years ago now they are $2k?! Insane haha. it’s crazy, but overall I’m happy to see the love for film increasing.

[@jon8706]

They a little confused, but they got the spirit.

[@Exploredinary]

No confusion at all, they simply love what they do.

[@TrapBoiFuse561]

I’m confused how Digital don’t last 😂🤣😂🤣 WHAT it can be printed on archive paper too yall know

[@Exploredinary]

TrapBoiFuse561 the JPEG image format in general hasn’t even been around for 30 years yet, it came out in 1992. What if in 30 more years computer makers decide its an obsolete format? Your entire digital archive that you have hopefully backed up multiple times for redundancy, may not even work on the new computers. A negative or a tintype or, yes, a digital print, has a better chance of being archival, but a very small number of photographers are printing these days.

[@TrapBoiFuse561]

@@Exploredinary lol 21 years in you can archive on DNA 🧬 now or even glass. Give it up film 🎞 is over. Film look like trash 🗑 we can have a one on one best film camera vs the Less expensive Digital camera then we can print it 40x60 see which is best ? I’m going with Hahnemuehie for print.

[@MrGatin777]

@@TrapBoiFuse561 Thats not true at all, shows how little you know. How is film over if it grew exponentially through the last 5 years? How is it over if a big part of fashion magazines or magazines in general are shot with film and many professional photographers use it in their setup? Digital medium format is very expensive compared to film medium format while achieving the same results. Show me one digital camera that can match the quality and depth of a 8x10 print please. Sounds like you took some pics on a gas station disposable camera and applied it to all film photography lol

[@TrapBoiFuse561]

@@MrGatin777 one on one or what

[@TrapBoiFuse561]

@@MrGatin777 i see so call film prints there are trash 🗑 give me a Sony a7r4 and a Otus 28mm and you can grab you line up we can shoot out the old way out west style 💥

[@dpierre]

Funny the last words of a person who has lived: "Lifetime guarantee"! It reminds me of the absurdity of the flu today as enemy number 1 and the addition of all deaths that creates sudden panic. Eternity is over! Science has betrayed us! It has reduced our life expectancy: pesticides, heavy metals, radioactivity, sugar, stress… We have to approach the time allotted to us differently. One of the factors of analog is the fear of forgetting. It creates nostalgia (negatives / polaroids, vinyls, audio cassettes). More deeply, we must give ourselves the time necessary to create something tangible to transmit! It’s a return to basics. The Analog is to Art what Permaculture is to food, to life.

[@MrFreakwent]

Didier, obsession with self preservation disappears when we throw fear away. It's a creative desire depicted very well here.

[@eyeamstrongest]

boomers be like i dont know about png

[@VladimirPani]

Why all these “artists” always look the same?

[@Exploredinary]

Vlad Pani not sure what you mean

[@EclipseSound]

"spiritual" - oke... excuse for photos being blury, with bad colors