Why you should add a roll of film to your next photo session

I don’t know about you, but the more I see AI images everywhere, the more I find myself longing make something undeniably real. That’s why, after years of dreaming about it, I am finally offering an add-on to my sessions that is dear to my heart: the option to include rolls of analog film. The imperfection and surprise from every roll delivers the photos we didn’t even realize we needed.

You may be wondering why would I bother doing this? Can’t I just make digital look like film?

The answer to that is: …kind of? But the process is a big part of the art behind it.

Mother and son maternity session on film

When I make photos with film, every click of the shutter matters. It would be wasteful to blast through a roll of 36 images without the giving each frame a thoughtful composition. It forces me to be intentional about every moment captured.

Try as photographers might, it’s very hard to emulate the magical look of 35mm or medium format film. There’s just a certain je ne sais quoi that comes with the real thing. Photographers will add a lot of extra grain to their digital images or try to mimic the colors of specific film stocks, and I’m not even mad at that approach because I’ve done it myself! But there really is no substitute for the real deal.

Some rolls come back with images that look like actual memories, and I can’t quite tell you why that is. Maybe it’s something about the blur or the vintage lens on the old cameras.

And for all of those reasons, I've decided to offer add-on rolls to my photography sessions. You’ll be able to choose black and white or color, depending on the nostalgic vibe you’re drawn to. We’ll move slowly, with intention, even if your kids are running around at full speed.

I hope you’ll join me on the adventure!