Film is dead. Long live film.

Location: Kentmere Valley. Cumbria

Very many of the talented people I follow on this platform deserve a mention for their commitment to a process I moved on from years ago.

Justin Allen- Photographer

,

Hanz

,

Giulia Hepburn

,

Susanne Helmert

,

perfectlight

to name a few, are all in some shape or form dabbling with the effects of light falling onto silver halide crystals held in a gellatin suspension.

Film, to the uninitiated.

It is a noble endeavour indeed, often involving out of date film stocks lovingly sourced and coaxed through vintage kit. I admire them for it, and am genuinely happy to see film photography holding its head above water. I cut my teeth and learned my craft using film. Lots of film. Don’t get me wrong, I fully acknowledge the intoxicating aesthetic of film and totally understand from experience the buzz you experience when you make a well exposed negative in difficult light. I am however fully committed to the pixel with my own practice. As far as film is concerned, it is safe to say I am done with it.

That last sentence was a lie, obviously. I still own a film camera. Admittedly it is gathering dust on a shelf, but I maintain the option to load a roll of FP4 and shoot. I am however utterly invested in the dark arts and ways of the electronic image. And not to put too fine a point on it, I love digital photography. My new camera can replicate the look of both the colour and black and white film stocks I used at college and as a professional. And does it well. My advancing years and the attraction of an easy life after years of freelance grind are possibly a major contributing factor here, but I now think “why bother” when weighing up the ease of digital compared to the considerable hassle in choosing a film option. Also, I am shooting for me now. I am my only client. I although I love people seeing my images and cherish greatly the positive feedback I receive, analogue image production for me personally is too cumbersome an undertaking. I am all ears when it comes to a rapid, effort free workflow. Film is the opposite, so I will happily leave it to the growing list of creatives embracing film. And good on them.

This post is therefore two-fold. It is firstly a look at how my brand new camera coped on its first real outing. Through images though, rather than crushingly boring technical data.

It is also a sort of homage to all who are exploring film photography. Fitting then, that the images on display are of the Kentmere Valley, a twenty minute drive from my home. And for those who are asking “what, Kentmere like the film?”. Well, yes it is that Kentmere!

I’m not entirely sure why a tiny village in a lesser know part of the Lake District in northwest England was chosen as a location for the production of high quality film and paper, but it was. It’s a gorgeous place; a classic glacial ‘horseshoe’ valley surrounded on three sides by rugged crags. The walker has the choice of hugging the valley floor or climbing onto the ridge line. Having already traversed the higher route I chose the former. It’s a six mile round trip that follows the valley bottom along lanes and then footpaths to Kentmere Reservoir at the head of the valley. The return trek follows the course of the River Kent as it tumbles gently towards Kendal, my adopted home town that lies fifteen miles down stream.

It’s a post industrial landscape. The detritus of slate mining is still very much in evidence. My fascination with the jarring juxtaposition of industrial exploitation of a natural resource from an area of such beauty is something I will be exploring in future posts. In the mean time, I will let the images do the talking.