New cameras. New to me anyway. One is a mere 27 years old, and the other is pushing 43. I took the chance over Christmas to put my gift money into some new film gear. I’m about 6-months into getting serious about the analogue side of things now. Who remembers back to last summer when I wrote about the pile of undeveloped film I had been storing? I held a magazine sale to collect some funds to finally process them and get to see what was hidden in the canisters of Kodak celluloid.
I’ve been including film photos since issue 07 of Advanture. We published Old Timers, a semi-reg feature that would dive into stories form the past, and it would have been a crime to not include authentic imagery from by-gone eras. Seeing the images in print just felt right. Carefully considered photos, captured on film and printed on paper.





Fast forward, the now sold out issue 10 was the first issue of Advanture to have a film photo on the front cover. I really love the imperfections that give this image so much character. Working closely with the photographer Mat Scott gave me in-depth information about processing film photos destined for print. Many thanks Mat for sharing your vast understanding with me!
I turned the spare bathroom at home into a dark room. Carefully pouring various different chemicals, mixing powder versions, and learning to load 35mm film into a development tank transported me to a place in time that I only knew as a child.
Mixed results were seen. Most definitely due to the way I had shot the image, how old/expired the film was, and/or the numerous variables occurring during development. But it’s fun. Way more fun than digital photography!
One doesn’t need to be too interested in photography, digital or film, to know that the world is changing once again. AI is at the fingertips of the general public and it tires me to see renders of camper vans on Insta and super modified landscapes that are simply impossible to capture in-camera. Great if that excites you, but I can’t stand it and it will never be a part of this magazine.




So here I am. Smiling ear-to-ear looking at another successful batch of photos shot on film. I can hold them in negative form, embrace the imperfections of dust and grain, and appreciate the art of capturing all of this in camera and then developing it by myself.
What is your preference?
Are you already shooting on film, or maybe you have become interested lately like me? I’d love to speak to a few more people to share the simple enjoyment experienced with shooting some photographs. Drop me a line below.
See you on the road, Alex.
The B&W set featured in this newsletter were shot on a Pentax 645N, shooting 120/medium format negative. Stock: Fomapan 100 & developed in Kodak D-76.