As a lab technician, my soul was permeated with the smell of fixer and the grain of film. For over twenty years, I had traveled the world, capturing fleeting moments with my Pentax P30 and film rolls.
To me, the darkroom was a sanctuary, the place where light and chemistry transformed a latent image into a tangible piece of work.
The Temple of Film Photography
I was a purist. I hated the idea of change, viewing digital as a heresy: an ease, a loss of soul. I believed that the wait for development, the surprise of the contact sheet, and the craftsmanship of the print gave photography its true value.
Then, the world shifted.
The Breaking Point
One winter morning, an event marked a turning point. I had spent three days documenting an important trip from my last holidays. Through a tragic accident, the heat from a faulty light bulb ruined a crucial batch of my negatives, rendering a series of essential shots completely irretrievable.
I was furious.
The Digital Renaissance
A few weeks later, my wife, gave me a gift: a digital camera, the Canon EOS Digital Rebel.
The Canon EOS Rebel was a perfect “first real camera” for students, travelers, or casual hobbyists who want to learn the fundamentals of photography using an optical viewfinder and wanted consistently good stills on a budget.
At first, I struggled. I understood nothing about the menus, the pixels, or the white balance. It was a foreign language.
Little by little, I discovered the hidden magic:
- The immediacy of the preview, allowing me to correct a mistake before it became a disaster.
- The ability to capture thousands of images without the stress of film cost.
- The power of post-production: I discovered I could retrieve the mood and texture of my favorite prints using software, recreating the grainy look of my old film without the smell of fixer.
The real shock came when I photographed a lunar eclipse. With film, this would have required complex technique, long exposure times, and a high risk of failure. With my new camera, I captured the moon with stellar precision. I could see the image instantly, adjust, and start over.
The Final Flash
I didn’t abandon film—I still practiced it for pleasure. But digital became my professional tool.
I learned to see digital not as a replacement, but as an extension: a more sophisticated brush. I discovered a new passion for video and timelapse, areas inaccessible with my old equipment.
The darkroom became a high-quality inkjet printing studio, and the film storage was replaced by a large computer screen where I edited my images.
The change saved my art. In my fithties, I felt the excitement of a young beginner. I was no longer the nostalgic purist, but the re-invented photographer, proving that the true soul of the artist lies in their eye, not in the medium they use.
I now use numerous cameras depending on my needs. DSLR and mirrorless for landscape photography, compact expert for street photography, action camera to illustrate my videos, and even a drone to provide a previously inaccessible viewpoint.
It is also with great passion that I settle at my desk for the selection and retouching phase.
I will soon offer you a series of courses that detail my creative process, from shooting to printing, including editing, retouching, and archiving. Feel free to subscribe so you don’t miss anything.
What do you think? Do you feel that digital has brought more possibilities or has it led to a loss of photographic craftsmanship?
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