I still remember my first analog camera was a Minolta X-700, and of course, I shot using films at that time. I bought it when I was in art college, where photography is one of the subjects that I have to study. And I was really very crazy about photography at that time. Almost everyday, I will walk out from my home with my Minolta X-700 on hand with some films and I will capture just about anything and everything. It turned out to be one of the best times of my life!
Several years later, I halted my interest in photography when I worked as an illustrator. This went on for about 7 years. During this bout, I led a life without photography. It was not until 6 years ago that I picked it up again when I started my photography business. This time around, photography is nothing about films no more, everything has changed due to the digital era. And it was at this time, I had my hands on my first Nikon DSLR camera. As for my film camera, well, I lost it while shifting homes, unfortunately.
A year ago, encouraged by my buddies MunKeat and Sze, and also through inspirations by my favorite photographers Jose Villa, Jonathan Canlas & Elizabeth Messina, I decided to venture back into the films era. From there, I spent time shooting street photography with my film camera, and somehow, film photography made me cherish every single shot, every single moment that I capture. Well, sometimes it just takes too much time to finish off a roll of film, but this is something that I have learned; taking things slower makes one see things differently, with a deeper perspective and understanding perhaps. Nothing is lost when you learn to hold back a tad. Try living life on the slower lane, you’d be surprised with the little things you will discover in life.
For me, film photography is not just about the great old analog camera with natural and beautiful film colors or anything that has to do with skills, but it is all about appreciating life & every little thing around me. A life on the slower lane, perhaps.
– Joshua
Shot on a Nikon FM2 with 50mm lens on Fuji Pro400H @ Melbourne, Australia.
