What do you love most about shooting film?
The permanence of it. When the world ends (soon) and the internet doesn't work all my negs and slides will still exist and not rely on the cloud to keep them safe. I've been doing some prints recently from found negs from the 40s and 50s. I hope in 70 years people find my negs and enjoy making stuff from them the way I do. Also I think film more accurately reflects the moment/condition/atmosphere compared to digital.
What is your favourite film stock to use and why?
Kodak Portra 400 - Love the tolerance and versatility, great in most light conditions and settings & Kodak Tri-x 400, good balance of grain, tone, depth and contrast.
Favourite camera to use and why?
Voigtlander Bessa L - A poor man's Leica, 5th of the price, half the weight, Leica screw mount lens. Feels really great to use, quick and intuitive, TTL metering but using LEDs on the camera body so I can meter quickly before raising the camera to my eye
What's your favourite photo you’ve shot on film?
Either a photo of my dog attacking my girlfriend's NYE party hat, or 2 men wearing man u tops and hats walking synchronised with walking sticks. Both for the reason they are well timed. The first was slightly staged as I goaded the dog, the second was just one of those moments when there is a glitch in the matrix
Any tips for someone who's wanting to start shooting on film?
Be prepared to fuck shots up and waste film, especially if you are new to using a camera and are using something that is manual opposed to something automatic
Best and worst thing about shooting on film?
Worst thing is the cost, and having several cameras all loaded with different stocks/speeds at any one time.
Best thing is getting good photos back that you forgot you had taken or you had taken them without much expectation of them being good.
If you could shadow any photographer for a day, who would it be? Doesn't have to be famous or alive!
Joel Meyerowitz - his 1981 street photography doc is great but it would be better to watch him work even closer.
Do you work in photography or is it more of a hobby / passion of yours?
Definitely a hobby/passion, although I do occasionally 'work' with friends if they have any fun projects but am quite selective about who or what I will do. I've turned down lots of generic band photo stuff. I don't think I would find it fun if i relied on it to be a source of income
If money was no object, what camera would you own?
Gold plated Leica used by Saddam Hussein.
Do you shoot colour, black and white or both? Which do you prefer?
A mixture, mainly colour but I'll get through a couple BW rolls a month. It depends what i'm shooting or if it's something I will want to print in the darkroom.
Sometimes I'll take a couple shooters out, one loaded with colour, one with BW. Then I've got all bases covered but I find it hard to keep switching between the two because different things contribute to a good BW photo than colour so it means being more aware and receptive and thinking about both colour and BW at the same time.