See the story on Lomography Magazine HERE

Just because digital cameras have completely saturated the photo market and nearly every cell phone has a camera that can rival the quality of a point-and-shoot; just because movie theaters advertise their new digital experience with better sound and better picture doesn’t mean that film is dead. Film is very much alive and has a specific role in our society today.

When I asked Daniel George, a photography professor at Brigham Young University—Idaho, who at 31-years-old, has both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in fine art with an emphasis in photography, what advice he would like to give someone who thinks film is dead, he said, “I don’t know if I’d give them any advice but just to tell them that they’re flat out wrong.

“It’s just a naïve statement, ‘film is dead.’ Well, maybe to you… Kodak is still making film, so obviously it’s not dead if a company like Kodak, even after they’ve gone through their bankruptcy… are still making film, they see that there is still a market for it. ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about,’ that’s what I’d say.”

I asked the same question of BYU-Idaho photography Professor Brian Atkinson and he said, “Well, the first thing I would say is ‘have you used it? Are you speaking from an informed opinion or an ignorant opinion?’

“I would agree in some regards, but only because film is dead in some aspects; in art, it isn’t dead. It’s thriving. In commercial, it’s not preferred but [that’s] because in commercial time is money.

“Unless you are established enough that people are going to wait on your images, you are competing with other photographers and I don’t think film is very viable there. Not that it’s dead, but it’s using the wrong tool in that application.”

I finally asked the Chair of the Art Department at BYU-Idaho, Darren Clark, what he thought about it and he said very concisely, “Keep shooting digital. I don’t really care. I think it’s good if more people are interested in film just because then Kodak will make film for people who shoot it. Digital and film are two different tools that are available to you like painting vs. sculpture vs. ceramics, I mean it doesn’t really matter as long as you have something to say.”

His answer shocked me. I’m a photographer and I have shot film my whole life. I also use digital for certain things, but if I had my preference I would shoot black and white Kodak Tri-X 400 speed film. I interviewed these professors to show to the world that film was better and if the populous continued to forget about film it might be lost forever.

I was humbled in my “holy war” against digital by these three professionals who know from experience that film isn’t going anywhere; there will always be those who will shoot it.

“I think there will always be film, but it may be that artists have to start making their own film,” Clark said. “The motion picture industry is partly responsible for continuing film processing. There are still some directors or cinematographers that like to use film and we should be grateful for them because that used to be the driving force behind the film industry and still is to a certain degree.”

I didn’t like the idea that I might eventually need to make my own film; that sounds like a serious undertaking. Like Clark said though, the movie industry is doing great things in supporting the film industry and especially Kodak.

According to a news release that was posted to Kodak’s Newsroom on June 15, 2015, there has been yet another new development in the world of large scale motion pictures.

A company called Alpha Grip, which is based out of London, England, has just developed what they are calling the Alpha1 Lab.

“Operated by experienced and professional lab personnel, the Alpha1 Lab [which is a mobile film processing lab in a semi-truck] measures 42 feet long and transforms into a state-of-the-art film processing trailer capable of deployment to any film set or studio around the world,” according to the news release.

“Complete with a dark room, workshop, 4k scanning capabilities and the ability to develop film at a rate of 50 ft./minute and up to 20,000 feet of film during an eight-hour shift, the Alpha1 Lab also works in conjunction with digital dailies companies, making post production more streamlined than ever before.”

This will enable film makers such as Christopher Nolan, Quentin Tarantino and JJ Abrams, who shoot most, if not all, their movies on Kodak film to continue to do so with ease. (What New Movies Have Been Shot on Kodak Film?)

Also according to the news release about the Alpha 1 Lab, “Fully functional within two hours of arriving, filmmakers do not need to worry about power outages as the Alpha1 Lab is generator powered when docked. Additionally, the Alpha1 is an eco-friendly, Thames Water-licensed facility, featuring an onboard electronic chemical mixing lab through Kodak Kit chemistry, and houses all of its chemical waste for proper disposal at off-site facilities.”

This is truly a step in the right direction to keep film alive and, like Clark said, as still-photographers who use film to make photographs, we should be grateful.

Yes, digital photography is convenient, the cameras are easy to use, it can be more cost effective, you can shoot for days and not worry about paying a fortune in processing. There are so many positive qualities of digital that are pertinent for consumers and professionals today.

Yet the fact still remains, film is also relevant for students, some professionals utilizing a niche, among the art world or enthusiasts who want a vintage feel and look that brings nostalgia.

“I imagine that there will always be certain cultures that still use it, especially in the world of fine art,” said George. “I think there will always be some level of interest; it might change and evolve but I think it will still go on.”

“If someone’s shot it and they just don’t like it or want to do it, it isn’t the thing for them, OK. I like to tease and say film is dead, because I have gone more into the digital side,” said Atkinson, “but it’s not.”

“As far as the consumer is concerned and the average person taking family snapshots or even for, I would say, 99 percent of the professional working photographers it’s probably dead,” said Clark. “But I think in the art world film is thriving and in certain small aspects of the professional world, film is thriving, I don’t think it will ever go away.”

The role of film in society today doesn’t need to answer the question, “What’s better, film or digital?” but rather “What is the best tool for the job?”

“Why do you use a socket wrench sometimes and pliers another time,” said Clark. “Sometimes something can do the job better.”