My love and fascination with film started when I would watch many film enthusiasts on YouTube and followed many local film photographers on Instagram. I started shooting with film about three or four years ago and I am still developing new knowledge and fascination about this hobby and community. On YouTube, a film enthusiast by the channel name of King Jvpes dedicates his whole channel in talking about tips on how to use this type of camera correctly and showing off different types of cameras that may be used. In a specific video that he uploaded, he is at a camera convention where he meets other film photographers and asked them what camera will they be shooting on. This video brings me the most joy because it really shows the appreciation and love people have for this type of photography. It demonstrates that having a hobby or a liking like this one creates a huge community of great individuals that are just excited to demonstrate their skills and passion for film.
King Jvpes YouTube video
Photography for the culture
The art of shooting with film creates such a wonderful way of bringing appreciation to a culture and even sometimes awareness of social issues in the form of photography. For example, one of my favorite photographers in San Diego that I found on Instagram @checka619 captures the essence and beauty of what it is like to be a latino in San Diego. Her whole instagram is dedicated in capturing parts of the city that are part of the latino community, and bringing awareness that latinos make up a great percentage and this city while showing appreciation for the culture. As a Latina myself it makes me proud and somewhat emotional to see latinos being represented. Mexican culture is already beautiful as it is but combining both film photography with latino America gives the pictures its self a more connecting and heart warming feeling rather than it just being a regular photo. With the vintage look that film photography gives, it makes the photos she captures look like they come from our Mexican ancestors when in reality it was taken in 2025. These type of films remind me of the type of pictures my grandpa would pull out of a box to show me and bring a nostalgic feeling.
San Ysidro captured by @Checka619 on insta. Barrio Logan captured by @Checka619 on instagram
Development of film in 2025
One particular element of this community that I find interesting would be the development in film itself. Unlike other cameras, in order to receive the photo you took you must take it to a dark lab room. There is a great appreciation for people who dedicate themselves to the development of film, because it is not as common anymore. The process is very tedious and time consuming because there's certain things that must be ensured such as having a dark room in order to not over expose the film; developer chemicals for submerging in order to reduce the exposed silver crystals to form a visible image; and stop bath for after the submerge. There are only a couple shops in this city that dedicate themselves to this process, and one of my personal favorites is a shop in National City called "Im still developing" . It is an interesting process to me and I find it so fascinating that pictures like these could be developed by following all these steps. I personally would never be the developer because of how tedious it is but I have a great appreciation for it. I love the feeling and excitement I get to receive the photos I forgot I took and feel like I just got back a time capsule.
My Discovery An interest that I am connected to is film photography. I have always had an interest in photography, whether that is taking pictures myself or getting behind the camera and getting my picture taken. My family members have gifted me many cameras like digital, go pro, and point and shoot camera. One day my grandpa asked me to come to his house in Mexico so I can pick out some of his old cameras that he had in storage. That was when I found and picked up my mom's old Canon sureshot zoom 105 film camera from the 90s. I haven't yet dabbled with film photography then other than just a disposable camera that I got developed. But I have followed many film photographers from San Diego and L.A. for years so this was very exciting and motivating for me to begin my film journey. If I am being quite honest, film photographer can be quite expensive because a 35mm film now a days will cost you up to 15$ or even more and you have to go to a specific shop to get your film de...
Film Community Experience Today pictures are mostly taken on a smartphone or digitally. When I discovered my love and appreciation for film photography it made me wonder if there were any others out there that share the same interests as me. That was when I discovered that there are many different local groups and communities that share the practice of film photography with others no matter the level of practice they are in. For example, some local communities that share the same practice are Not Your Grandma's Camera Club; I'm Still Developing; or Darkroomers. These discourse community dedicates itself to expressing inclusivity and values through its practices, communication, and values. Their shared practices strengthens community bonds and inspire the members to grow artistically and emotionally. Members of the Community All these camera clubs are very diverse when it comes to their members. The types of people that ...
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