I received disturbing news from my photo lab last week. Kodak has stopped making my favorite film, Portra 160 NC. I know, those of you that have made the transition to digital are not phased by this and probably wondering why I am still shooting film anyway?
I happen to love the medium contrast results from Portra and the warm tones. For portraits and events, anything involving photographing people, I do not believe that digital can beat the results I achieve with that film. In fact I am the proud owner of pretty much every roll in the state of Virginia, at least everyone that 15 Richmond Camera Stores possessed. The manager was most helpful in tracking down every roll and shipping them to me. He called and said this film is like cocaine to you isn’t it? “Yes, gimme my fix!” I said.
I introduce and use the latest in online video technology on a daily basis so I am no stranger to the technological changes and am all for these modern advances. . .except when it comes to giving up my Portra.
In preparation may I ask of my fellow Canon consumers, which camera do you like the best? Which lenses and flash? Has anyone switched from Portra to digital? Any suggestions from those feeling my pain? And to all you digital fans out there. . .what changes did you experience when switching?
Obviously there are instant gratification returns, such as, being able to see your photos right away and show excited subjects the crazy pose you captured them in. You can load your pictures directly into the computer, bypassing the scanning step. But I still enjoy delivering the customized album and watching my customer relive their special event, a story told through personalized finished prints that were shot, developed, and pro-printed in the traditional 100 plus year way. Wow, do I sound old and set in my ways, or what?
So I figure I have 29 rolls to decide, do I roll kicking and screaming into the digital realm or dig my heels in and hang on for a little while longer using the blue-green Fuji tinted film? That is until they too travel down the same futuristic path as Kodak.
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