Why is Film Photography Trending in 2020?

In the era where everyone tries their best to take aesthetic photos for social media, it seems that film photography has blown a new air and authentic inspiration for many young people.

Film photography is obviously not a new technology or photographing style. However, it feels like film photography is more popular than ever.

Kodak is back with its iconic 35mm Ektachrome film is again produced. Apparently, it stopped being created since 2011 due to low demand. Kodak has been a one-of-a-kind brand visual for photography lovers with its yellow look. The sharing of Instagram accounts and Youtube channels of how to use a film camera is rapidly increasing.

So Why Is That?

Everyone has their own taste and reasons to choose a certain style of photography. There’s no specific answer to this question, but these are just my own thoughts and observations from my current experience using one.

We are in the era where there has never has been so many photographers. Since Instagram and many other social media platforms were created, photography is considered as one of the most popular hobbies in current time. Everyone has their own DSLR cameras with crazy quality. Because the amount of photographer and good photos is huge, it gets normalized. Little amount of people will pay attention in these image when scrolling down the IG feed.

I purchased my first disposable film camera last month. There are many reasons why I wanted to spend money and try it out. This type of photography looks so fun but challenging at the same time. It’s not easy to get picture from a digital camera but it’s even harder to manage a good photo with a film one. You don’t know you do a good job until you get it back from the store. That’s the excitement I’m looking for when I do photography.

Shooting films feel very authentic and true to what has happened. It’s something that encourage us to step outside to discover the nature and take more photos. Film photography brings us back where sharpness and fancy effects don’t matter. Only the story behind each picture, the understanding of lighting are what make a good photo.