I recently embarked upon a journey to my past. Where it all began. Film. It all started with a Canon EOS Rebel. I had joined the military and was home on leave. I grew up near a lot of Air Force bases so I took my freshly minted military credentials and headed to the Exchange. I walked out with the Rebel kit and it began a love affair.

I took that camera all over the world. One of the few benefits of being in the military. It’s taken pictures across Europe. Spain. France. Italy. I’ve carried it through the Middle East. Egypt. Jordan. It was a great camera and I still have it to this day. Though I’ve been shooting digital for many years now, I’ve felt a resurgence in my desire to shoot film.

I’ve been picking up film here and there and Santa (aka mom) presented me with some Ilford HP5 and Kodak Tri-X. I’ve also picked up some expired film on Etsy. Film definitely slows you down. I’m more intentional with the firing of the shutter. My son ribs me because of the work I do. Taking the picture is just the beginning. Next is countless minutes recording the details in my leather-bound journal. 😀

I don’t know that I can explain it, but I feel more connected to the things around me when I’m shooting film. This is especially true when I’m in my element which is out with nature. I love the results I get when capturing the natural world around me.

It’s an interesting walk to have a foot in each realm. I still love the speed and instant gratification of digital. Many of the images on the rolls I’m sharing from were shot in December. Even after filling the rolls I waited until I had several to mail to the lab and thanks to an issue with the USPS even that took longer than it should’ve. So let’s say 3 months from shutter to scanned image. But it still lures me back in each time I look at one of my film bodies.

I’m sure this is the first of many film posts you’ll see. I can’t believe these are the first film images I’ve created in over over 30 years. I think I’m going to have to break out the Rebel as well. It served me very well over the years.

Note: For the last images, they were all shot on my Yashica 35GX which is aperture priority only so I have no idea what shutter speed was chosen. Everything is shot at f/8.