I was never a fan of chemistry class

I shoot film but I do not develop my own film. I never really liked chemistry class in school so I figure why bother with mixing, storing, and disposing of chemicals. Making a dark space in my home to load reels and pour chems and watch a timer is not the fun part to me. I gladly add lab costs to my shooting budget and leave it to the folks that do it for a living. I like supporting small businesses and photo labs are often small and passionate about the service they provide. I love being a part of that and resting assured that my latest film adventure is in good hands. If it's fucked up, it's because of something i did or some bright idea I decided to try, not because I didn't load my reel correctly or my chemicals were out of date or I used the wrong recipe or I fouled up the order of things. I just want to do the fun part. That is the point of the hobby for me, the fun part. How often in our lives do we simply get to do only the fun part? I love the brainstorming, the shopping for film, the thrill of finding a bargain online, talking over concepts for a shoot with friends, traveling to new places and old places I've seen a thousand times and coming up with ways to see it anew with film. That's the fun part. What's s the fun part for you? What do you love most about photography?

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  1. Hi, Denise! Jim Melcher here (desertowl). You're making me wonder why I develop my own film. Seriously! I need to rethink it. I already stopped developing E6, because I haven't mastered it, and don't really intend to.

    The fun part for me is very similar to what you list: getting out and getting in the zone shooting a new or familiar location. Seeing the results for the first time on the scanner (I'm not particularly good yet at "seeing" the results in the negative).

    I also really enjoy wet-printing. As I near the final result, with corrected contrast, exposure, burning and dodging, and I see the best rendition of my vision in a physical object--that's a really uniquely rewarding part of the hobby for me.

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    1. Jim! Thanks for stopping by! I mainly wrote this in response to all of the shaming that occurs in the film community against those that choose to use labs. I just feel like we should do what makes sense to us, spiritually as well as financially. Haha!
      And wow, wet printing! Your home must be your own gallery then which is very cool.

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