Digital Photography Tops Film Photography
Before the recent digital photography revolution, mainly over the last five years, film ruled the roost. And while film photography still has its advocates it’s largely fine art photographers that still use film. Basicallly, digital photography has taken over.
That is not to say that there are no issues with digital photography. Some say there is a qualitative deficit when comparing film to digital. However, software has become so refined that the shortcomings can be addressed, and some might say, eliminated. With CDs, for example, while they don’t have the dynamic range of vinyl, they also don’t succumb to scratching and static sounds.
Many photographers stayed loyal to film waiting for digital to equal the excellence of film. Now, all but the fiercest diehards will admit that for most kinds of photography, including modern wedding photography and commercial photography, digital has not only arrived, but has surpassed film.
For years digital has had an advantage over film when it comes to convenience. With film, you have to process the film and afterwards if you want to adjust the pictures in Photoshop you must scan the negatives – a tiresome process. With digital you take your shots, upload them right away and get on with it. That alone is redefines workflow. Some of the best wedding photographers, for example, upload pictures from earlier in the day onto their laptop for guests to see during the reception.
One noteworthy drawback to digital concerns the ability to shoot an almost unlimited number images. Needless to say, this is great, especially for candid wedding photography. Alas, it also means that some digital photographers believe that the only good shutter is one that is repeatedly pressed. This unconscious photography requires them to keep shooting so they don’t overlook anything – this not only makes them more obtrusive, but often ends in capturing a boatload of shots, while somehow managing to not get the enchanting moments. As is often the case, less if often more. Those photographers who come from film learned to look for those ‘moments’ and not shoot willy-nilly like there is a revolver to their head. Of course, they were also cognizant that more pictures led to more rolls, which meant more processing and increased expense. In other words, there was a self-limiting mechanism in place, which perhaps resulted in a more aware photographer. So, though digital offers the chance to get lots of shots, the creative photographers always pick their spots.
At any rate, the last two years have seen additional advances in digital camera technology that are rendering film photography purely niche (except for rather limited uses). Firstly, the image quality is now on par with film. Secondly, the low-light ability of the new higher-end cameras is mind-boggling. The fastest film is 3200 ISO and it is awfully grainy. Only photographers specifically after this look decide on this film. Of course, sometimes they have to use this grainy film, even if they don’t want to because they are going to be shooting in a low-light situation without the use of flash or lighting. It’s almost incomprehensible how capable the latest digital cameras are in this regard. Top Nikon and Canon cameras can shoot up to 102,000 ISO. Ridiculous. Now, it’s totally grainy at that max level, but the upshot is that you will get useful pix at even 12,000 ISO. This is a god-send, especially for photographers who shoot with natural light and often find themselves in low-light. Remember when you had to compromise your images just to make things work? – no longer.
When utilized effectively, digital photography represents the new standard. Salute the new king.
