28 22 February 2020I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113My15-year-old
daughterrecently
purchasedan
analoguecamera
(withmymoney).Shehasexpressed
aninterestfora careerinprint
magazines.I shouldperhapssither
downandhavea frankchat.Or
shouldI?
Thedigitalerahasn’tbeenas
widelyembracedasmanywould
believe.‘Slow-news’hasa renewed
levelofcredibility.Magazinesare
beingrevalued.
Likewiseanalogue.Somewho
havealwaysusedfilmareholding
on;increasingly,youngpractitioners
tooarediscoveringitsmagic.It has
becomea premiumproduct,a USP.
I shotexclusivelyonmedium-
formatrangefinderfilmbefore
goingdigitalin 2007 whenbudgets
nosedived.ThelasttimeI usedfilm
wasa fewyearsagoattherequestof
a client.I shotthefirstrollwiththe
lenscapon.It felta chorechanging
a rollafter 10 to 12 frames.I don’t
knowhowI copedforsolonghaving
toguessfocusdistancesin
nightclubsbeforeblastingina Metz
FlashthatI hopedwouldburn
somethingontothefilm’ssurface.
There’sa carrierbagofageing
undevelopedfilminmydeskdrawer
withnotesscribbledonthe
surfaces:process+1/2stop,DEV
Normal.I wasterrifiedof‘pushing’
filmaboveISO800,openingthe
camerabackindirectsunlightand
sendingfilmthroughairportx-ray
machines. Thousands of rolls of filmfutureWitharesurgenceinrecentyears,analoguephotographyisinvogueonceagain.PeterDenchspeaks to four current exponents of the craftBack to theThemistydocksof
Bristol,2019,by
Matt Walkley© TEREZA CERVENOVA© TEREZA CERVENOVA© MATT WALKLEY