I’ve always liked photos. From uploading a full digital camera’s worth of photos from a random day to Facebook, to spamming early 10s Instagram with heavily filtered #sunset #photos, to my phone holding nearly 10,000 photos in the year of our lord 2022, it’s fair to say I don’t shy away from them.
In the last few years, I’ve also taken a liking to film photography. I’ve written about how much I love wedding photos shot on film. I’ve followed incredible creatives whose work on film blows me away. I’ve roped in my wonderfully talented friend Lisa Jane to immortalise the VORACIOUS launch party in film:
It was only natural, then, that I would turn my hand to trying it myself. I pored eBay for a second hand film camera (and badgered Lisa with lots of questions, because I have to consider every single thing whenever I make a purchase - something known as ‘maximisation’, which I talk more about in VORACIOUS Issue 2). When the camera finally arrived, I loaded the batteries, inserted the film, and set about to capture the world.
One day — this day, in fact, where the skies were cornflower blue and candyfloss-coloured, so beautiful that I’d run outside with no shoes on, bare feet slapping against the pavement to capture the sky before it darkened — I finally finished the roll. I was exuberant, already SO excited to see what I’d captured.
In my excitement — nay, my enthusiasm — I opened up the back of the camera to retrieve the film to send it off.
As I talk to you now, I know that there’s a little button or crank on the body of the camera that rewinds the spool for you. I did not know this at the time.
Which, of course, means that I manually rewound it with the back open, immediately exposing all 36 frames to the harsh white light of my budget bedroom bulb and erasing all of my hard work.
Ever the optimist, I sent it off to the lab to see if by any magic they’d manage to retrieve any. Ever the polite people, they replied back and said they were really sorry, but the film seemed to be blank, and they’d refund me the fee I’d paid to have the photos scanned and sent back. Oh, that’s funny! I replied. No idea what happened there! Thanks anyway!
In reality, we all know exactly what happened. I’d plunged in with bags of enthusiasm but little regard to the skill, patience, or technicality required of film photography, and had ruined a good couple of months’ worth of work in the process.
Half a year later, I’m back in the saddle. Today, I sat with the (long-suffering) Lisa as she showed me how to correctly insert the film and use the Point and Shoot. Most importantly, she explained to me in no uncertain terms how to remove the film safely. Armed with enthusiasm (as ever), but this time with the all-important technical know-how too, I’m ready to set off and try my hand at capturing the world…again.
I’m still sad about those images I lost — I mean, look at that sky!!!! I could have won a Photographic Pulitzer!!!! — but it was also an excellent reminder. A reminder that whilst I will always maintain that enthusiasm is what makes the world go round, it sometimes needs other things to shine, and that’s ok. (Of course, it’s easy to argue that enthusiasm itself is what means I’m trying again. I’m inclined to agree.)
Here’s a little window into what I’m enthusiastic about at the mo…
01 lusting after
this sunken bath tub situation. Please do not tell me it’s impractical - I simply do not care!
02 currently reading
Funny You Should Ask, by Elissa Sussman (affiliate link). I was sold by a reel from @eiffeltyler earlier this year, where she said if you loved the whole saga about that 2011 Chris Evans GQ interview, you’d love this. She was not wrong: I did and I do.
03 wishing I wrote
…erm, that GQ interview from 2011? (Obviously, not as my 16 year old self…)
04 whipping up
I was staying in Edinburgh without access to a kitchen last week, so I’ve not got loads of cooking inspo for you I’m afraid: I have, however, just made this nice Marmite risotto. For someone who can’t handle any real spice, I also can’t stop putting crispy chilli oil on everything.
05 listening to
on repeat. I tell you what, that song is some fucking wizardry.
Ordinarily, this is the bit where I’d remind you that my shop has opened for preorders, but I’ve decided not to open preorders this month. They’ll be back in October (last time to order with a guarantee for Christmas!) but in the meantime, spliced sweatshirts, VORACIOUS Issue 2, mugs and some other tees are available to ship in a couple of days. :)