35mm Film vs 35mm Digital Photography

Updated: Feb 19, 2022

Like many older photographers, I started leaning photography shooting as a child with my parents Brownie Camera using 120 roll film and the film size 2-1/4 by 3-1/4 inch. Brownie cameras were box cameras was simple in design and easy to use.

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120 is a film format for still photography introduced by Kodak for their Brownie No. 2 in 1901. It was originally intended for amateur photography but was later superseded in this role by 135 film. 120 film and its close relative, 220 film, survive to this day as the only medium format films that are readily available to both professionals and amateur enthusiasts. As of December 2018, all production of 220 film has stopped/paused worldwide. The only remaining stocks are from the last Fujifilm production run and they are mostly found in Japan.

The first camera that I bought for myself was a Kodak 110 Camera. It used 110 film and a flash bar. They came out in 1972. The small negative size of 110 film makes it difficult to enlarge successfully. For this reason, the 110 format is associated with prints that are often rather grainy and not sharp. The camera its self had a very weird viewfinder, and it took a while to get use to it and my first batch of photos had the heads cut off.

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110 is a cartridge-based film format used in still photography. It was introduced by Kodak in 1972. 110 is essentially a miniaturized version of Kodak's earlier 126 film formats. Each frame was 13 mm × 17 mm (0.51 in × 0.67 in), with one registration hole. Cartridges came in 12 or 24 frames.

The next camera I purchased was a point and shoot 35mm film camera. It was compact, had a built-in flash. Used 35mm film and the better optics allowed for sharper images. But it lacked any creative control.

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35 mm film is a film gauge used in filmmaking, and the film standard. In motion pictures that record on film, 35 mm is the most commonly used gauge. The name of the gauge is not a direct measurement and refers to the nominal width of the 35mm format photographic film, which consists of strips 1.377 ± 0.001 inches (34.976 ± 0.025 mm) wide.

To get over the issue of creative control and the ability to change lenses I bought a 35mm SLR. It came with a 50mm 1.2 prime lens and I purchased both a 24 to 70mm and 70 to 200mm lens. I added a portable flash unit, and I was off to the races.

I shot 1000’s of rolls of film with this camera. Made lots of mistakes and learned what I like in certain films and how I wanted to develop my work to get the style I was looking for. My go to colour film was Fuji and black & white was Ilford. Slide film was Kodak.

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Today, I am shooting with a medium price DSLR my go to lenses 50mm prime lens, 24 to 70mm and 70 to 300mm. for some photography I use the built-in flash and for other photography I use a portable flash. Don’t forget your memory cards. I use 64GB and 128GB cards. Keep in mind that if you are doing video then a faster memory card with more space is needed.

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So now we have a fairly good DSLR camera and nice lenses. It is also important to invest in the best memory card for DSLR digital camera to ensure that you’d have enough storage at all times whenever you're out for a photo shoot.

However, picking the best-suited memory card might be takes a little time and research. Memory cards are no longer just about storage capacity but also include the type of memory card, the card speed ratings, and the brand.

And the debate Is: 35mm Film vs 35mm Digital

Let’s keep in mind that they each serve a different purpose. Film and digital capture the image in completely different ways. They are used for similar purposes but are different animals. Like comparing apples and oranges.

What?

A film SLR camera is like a 1950’s car. It gets you from point A to point B. Under the hood it is basic with not a lot of options. Depending on the model, brand, and your experience you can get great results.

A DSLR camera is like a 2020 car. Again, it gets you from point A to point B. Under the hood it is a computer with lots of options even at low price points. Even with little experience and a basic model you should get good results.

The choice of 35mm SLR film or DSLR depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Each format has its pluses and minuses.

3 Advantages of Film

Familiarity – People who grew up using film have a comfort level with it
Resolution – Film tends to keep its quality when doing larger size prints
Longevity – Traditional Black & White prints will outlast all of us.

3 Advantages of Digital

Convenience – Digital is easier for beginning photographers
Instant Gratification – We instantly see the results of the shot
Storage – We can shoot as much as we want, and store the images on flash drives, computers, the cloud, or upload to social media

My suggestion is to do your research, decide what type of photography interests you. What camera type best meets those needs in your price range. Keep in mind the other costs associated such as film developing/prints or memory cards/photography software.

People like me who learned photography on film have embraced digital photography. Younger photographers who learned photography thru digital are the largest segment that are now exploring film photography