The Road to Discovery Posted On 7th July 2017 To Magazine, Stories & Film specific

The last six years

I picked up my first camera about six years ago, and I haven't looked back since. Well, not on my choice of beginning Photography, but I have looked back on my choice of cameras.

Over the past six years, I've achieved quite a bit, and I've enjoyed every moment of it - from my first exhibition to running my own photography gallery. However, I'd always felt that there was something that I was missing out on. Photography, for me, is an art form that allows you to be creative and passionate. It's an emotive medium that I connect with; feeling each picture I take.

I wanted more from my images; more from the experience. I craved a deeper connection with the equipment. I wanted to be more involved in the process from start to finish. I needed it to be tactile; hands on. In short, I needed to shoot with film.

With technology getting more advanced in cameras, and the pixel war raging between companies, I made a conscious decision, based on what I think as an artist is correct for my style of work. I decided to backtrack on some of my early camera choices and start my journey afresh this time with film based cameras.

Being self-taught when I started I jumped straight into the most megapixels I could afford. After all, digital is at the fast edge of technology, right? Sure, but the fast edge isn't always the sharpest, and I want to produce photographs that leave a mark.

I've always practised the art of slow photography, even with my digital cameras. I'll wait patiently for the right shot to come to me, immersing myself in the subject until it unfolds then I'll capture it.

Film was a foreign land

Film was a foreign land to me, but one that I knew held great vistas. I set off on my journey, on the road to understanding every principle of film; from loading the cassette to printing in the darkroom.

As soon as I set off, I felt like I was on the road to discovery, like being a kid again, at the start of the long summer holidays, with endless possibilities for adventure in front of me.

And, like all those long hot childhood summers, it's not just about the enjoyment that I get from shooting on film, it's also about the process; the learning, creating, evolution, and mastery of the image. It’s exciting.

I built a darkroom, my own den, where the images that I captured on my adventures in film would come to life. I learnt about chemicals, how to mix them, how to warm them, how to get them right (and how to get them wrong).

I can't explain how I felt the first time I developed a reel of negatives. Excited, yes, but there was something else too; connection. I felt a strong correlation between me and the film, as it I had imprinted part of myself into the negative.

As I held them up to the light I saw what I had made, I saw they were not just photographs; they were something more. I held the strip of images in my hand and they felt more real to me than any of the images I had ever shot on digital.

Developing the photograph made me feel like an alchemist, a wizard, and when I developed my first image; standing there in the dark watching my art bloom and grow, shapes and shades of grey where moments before only white glossy paper had been, it felt like more than magic; it felt real.

I had created something special. From capturing the photons of light in the emulsion on the film that I bulk loaded on the canister myself, to developing it into the image in front of me, I had been present during the whole process; present and connected.

Always learning

I'm still learning; I hope I always will be. I hope I will never lose the feeling of wonder and never stop pushing the boundaries of my art. Experimenting with film has become my new favourite pastime.

Panoramica landscape imge by Jason Avery, shot on ILFORD film for Road to Discovery blog

However, one thing I know will always stay consistent is my choice of products. I know I'm in safe hands with ILFORD. I rely on their years of experience and knowing that they've got my back allows me the freedom to explore and have fun with film.