I decided to try shooting film on this month’s photo walk! Loaded up the much neglected Canon AE-1 that I inherited from one of my visits back home with a roll of Ilford HP5 PLUS. Felt extremely rusty tho. Last time I shot film was just before I started work on Peanuts, so… eight years ago? At least? So I’m a bit worried about the results.
But that goes against the general vibes that I love so much about these walks.
As you can see, I still had my Fujifilm X-T20 handy, still with its disposable camera lens setup from our last walk. Which was nice because not only was the light great, the colours were amazing!
In addition to cultivating a sense of discovery and appreciation for the city, I’m finding these photo walks to also be a great way to appreciate the passage of time as I observe the city in its transitions through each season. The air was crisp, the trees shedding their golds and reds, and the sun shining bright while it still can before the rainy season hits.
A favourite thing of mine (and I think of everyone’s!) is definitely taking sneaky pics of the other photographers. Pictures of people taking pictures! So fun.
Speaking of photographers…
I got called out last week for the way I tend to talk about myself professionally, and my tendency to minimize my skills and achievements. It’s something I need to unpack, this wonky combination of having been made to feel like I need tangible results to prove myself and the fact that I absolutely can’t stand a “gros parleux, p’tit faiseux” personality, and would be horrified to ever come across that way.
Meeting new people means chatting about gear, about what you shoot, about how long you’ve been doing it… and I definitely caught myself talking in that breezy but self-effacing way again.
Do I consider myself a photographer? No. No, not at all.
I just do this for fun!
How long have I been taking pictures? I bought my first point-and-shoot film camera in middle school, and switched to digital point-and-shoots when those became a thing (and affordable) in college. Since then I’ve played a bit with medium format, with Instax, adopted my parents’ aforementioned Canon AE-1, love to play with software, invested in my first mirrorless setup a few years ago, and now have a nice little collection of lenses to go with it. Like many of us, my iPhone became my main camera out of pure convenience. It still feels like a relatively recent thing.
I guess I’ve been at it for a while.
And I may feel like I still have a lot to learn, but that seems to be my default in life. And it’s no reason for me to downplay myself. And while photography isn’t something I do professionally, my animation and directing backgrounds are very much present every time I pick up a camera.
Transferrable skills, yo!
Shoutout and big thanks to this month’s hosts, Hayley and their adorable puppy Billie!
