Digital Vs. Film, points to consider!

Film technology has been here for over 100 years! Digital photography is new! Photographs made from photographic paper should last for up to 100 years! Many labs you have photos made from your digital images are "dry" and do not use traditional photo paper, processed in photo chemicals any longer. You can tell apart by looking at them from an angle as you can "see" the layered effect with "dry" processed prints.

Do you have any old photos from the days when color first came out? (Check out "About Our Company" and see one) The color photos of the 1960’s faded away into yellow and red colors! A whole generation “disappeared” as the "color" process was new and not proven. Digital prints made with ink or dye sub printers may do the same! Take a print made with an ink jet printer and photo paper. Cover only half of it. Leave them in the sun for just a few days. Regular photo paper will fade as well, but not this fast! This technology has yet to be proven with archival requirements. Will your wedding photos shot with digital end up the same as the photos of the 60’s?

Digital prints have a different "look" than the quality of "film" technology. Today's movies made in Hollywood are all shot on 35mm film. Have you ever watched a movie clip shot on film, then a video (digital) shot taken behind the film cameras? There is a very real difference in the tones and the way light on the set is recorded. The video has a "sharp" surreal look. Many theaters now show "digital" movies that are projected electronically. You can see the diference.The film is soft and looks true to what your eye sees. Shooting film as the original media, then scanning the film keeps much of the same qualities. Digital is much cheaper (no film costs and developing fees) as the digital media can be reused. Digital cameras make it easy for anyone to be a "professional" without the training a true Master of Photography goes through to earn the degree. Beware of photographers that have never been trained in the art of shooting with a film camera. Many cling to Photo Shop as they are not able to correctly make an image "in camera" as it has been done (remember Ansel Adams?) for over 100 years! A fair digital photographer must be a excellent film photographer to compare! If you do not properly light and expose a digital image, the highlights "blow out" and have no detail (pure white) because there is no "information" in the white area for the camera to process. There is nothing that can be done, including Photoshop to bring back full detail.

One barrier with digital, mega-pixels vs. lines per millimeter of resolution in film (lpmm) has been matched. Think of it as you needing a camera that can record 25 mega-pixels to reach the quality of large format film. The technologies are very close, (as of this printing Nikon’s best is at about 24 mega-pixles). A camera at 24 mega-pixels may be "too sharp" for weddings, as digital does not have the "softening" effect film does! This brings up the next problem with digital; pixelation. Pixelation refers to being able to see the pixels, which is a giveaway that the image is digital. If you can see pixelation in the photograph, it detracts significantly from the image.This problem is very noticeable with large prints, like a 16x20 and larger. The larger file made by a 24 mega-pixel camera produces a file size that can print a very large print. If the photographer is forced to increase the sensitivity due to low light, (like at a wedding) the “noise” will be increased which often creates an obvious pixilated look in the final prints, generally in the blacks or shadow details. Because the sensors use specialized masks to accurately read color, you can also get moiré patterns. Using processing software in the camera and compression of image files can also degrade quality.

Technology has improved now to a point where the "perfect" camera for a wedding is now available. Nikon introduced the digital "D-700" which has the best of both worlds. The camera can be pushed up to high ISO settings to be able to produce images in a church with no flash. The quality is excellent! The camera uses a combination of a large sensor that matches a 35mm frame, and has low noise at high settings. This camera has "reached" 35mm film. Combined with software, amazing images can be made.

There are many advantages to take a "digital" image over film. There are many more creative images that can be made now, with digital. As an example, using this camera with "new technology" flash equipment, images can be taken very quickly at a wedding or event. There is no delay in writing images, and the flash recycles instantly. This results in the ability to shoot many frames to capture a bride and groom cutting the cake. The split second they smash cake can be recorder in many frames, in contrast to only several due to the film advance. Images can be captures as a tear comes from the eye of the bride as she hugs her dad as they dance (I have done it). Amazing candid images can be made as there is so much more control over the lighting due to new technology! The photographer still needs formal training in lighting and composition. By combining all of these benefits, the results are endless! Combining the two technologies can produce the most amazing wedding album you will ever see!

Archival Issues

As you can now realize, we believe digital does have an important place in the wedding industry. We have a high demand for quality and want our work to last for many generations of your family. The day is approaching where the digital world, like color film and paper, are perfected, proven and are better than "film" technoligy.We will continue to offer film for weddings, which are a once in a lifetime event. If you have the budget, and can afford the cost of film combined with digital, you may find it a wise and beautiful investment for the lover of true art. Depending on the service, our photographic prints are made on photographic paper. All our "Event" priced prints, 10x12 or smaller are printed on photographic paper, processed in photo chemicals. Our "Portrait" priced prints, including enlargements, are all produced on photo paper.