I recently read a terrific piece written by the great Dan Milnor entitled It Doesn’t Matter. You can check it out on his website at https://shifter.media/creative-it-doesnt-matter/.  In it he makes a persuasive argument that what really matters is the picture, not whether it was created by film or digital means, and those of us who think about or promote our work as film-based first are barking up the wrong tree.

Here is a portion of what Dan says and as much as I support film and all analogue processes I think he pretty much nails it.

“Speaking of today, all these years later, we still have people trying to sell us on their use of film. Let me be the first and last to say, “Nobody cares.” This is such an old, tired, dead story. The same can be said of those hyping the fact they made their photobook from iPhone images. There is NOTHING novel about this. NOTHING. If you are leading your conversation with your camera brand, or the fact you are using film, or that you are using an iPhone, you are screaming from the rooftops that you, my friend, are an amateur. (Nothing wrong with being an amateur but talking about this nonsense isn’t helping you.)

The vast majority, I’m talking 90% of all the film photography I see today, is subpar. Based more on the fact it was made on film than the light, timing and composition of the work itself. These essential building blocks of good photography often ignored entirely as the geeks orgy out over emulsion cliches. The vast majority of film work I see is static. Frozen. Derivative. …. Film photography has brought us the blizzard of mundane. However, before you go putting a nail in the coffin of film photography, there are exceptions to this rule. One of the best portrait photographers working in the celebrity space shoots film but you would never know it. He doesn’t talk about it. He just makes great work. He’s a professional. There are good photographers using film who focus on what matters; the work. Prosumers focus on materials. Pros focus on the take.”

Harsh? Yes. Accurate? Pretty much so.

I think the worst culprits are the technically perfect and/or extremely large black and white analog pictures. Both that are devoid of any heart and soul and are mediocre at best. I know this and so do you, and I can think of a number of photographers whose work falls in this category.

All the above having been said, does it mean black and white analog photography doesn’t matter anymore? Of course not!  It does matter for the many reasons I’ve discussed here over the years and continue to believe are true. Here are a few. The look and feel of the print that you can see into, the craft that goes into making it, the total effort it takes to produce great analog images in a world of digitalia gone mad.  Yes it matters!  But … what matters most is the picture itself. Is it meaningful to you? If not, it won’t be to anyone else who sees it. Does it speak to you? When you look at it does it make you smile, laugh or cry? Do you care about it? If not, well find another way to spend your time.

Think about it. I haven’t stopped since I read Dan’s piece.

Stay well,

Michael