My uncle is an Orthopaedic, with a PhD degree. Like that’s not enough, he also likes to discuss bones at countless symposiums, teach about bones at a university, and had invented new techniques on how to fix some bones.

He’s a man of science. He walks side by side with objective judgement and technology.

At one night over dinner with him, I brought out what I thought would be a light topic. “I like to shoot with film,” I said, and expected a simple answer like, “Oh, cool!” or, “Okay.” How could I have foreseen, he found the topic was actually interesting and started firing torrents of questions and arguments.

He recapped that the more advanced technology applied to the camera, the better the results would be compared to the ones using method several hundred years backwards. Even if there is a difference in the results, it is teeny beanies minor and not worth struggling. He also argued that the beautiful sentiments in film photography is nothing else than the successful branding strategy from the film manufacturers.

I tried to defend my ground, but then I realised, debating over digital versus film would be as never ending as sorting out Middle East.

Because technology fails to understand one thing: the soul.

Yes, with the latest technology, you can conclude an entire orchestra in a single keyboard, and then jam it with the latest R&B tunes, perfectly. But Martha Argerich would play a simple Sonata on an old piano - the kind of piano that has no cords attached - and people would pay thousands of dollars just to listen to each soulful tunes.

You might feel like you’re piloting a futuristic spacecraft inside an SLR McLaren but then cruising along the motorways in a naked Alfa Romeo would let you feel nothing but classic.

The market is niche, I admit. But there are people who live that life.

Alex and Ruth are two of those people. They were so excited when I told them that I’d shoot their session solely on film. The lovely couple enjoyed the slow paced photo shoot so much and anticipated the outcome dearly. Therefore the series below is very special for me indeed.

And while scrolling down the photos, there’s gonna be at least one of you who would argue that the same results could be achieved with a dSLR camera and a proper editing process. I believe that. However, one thing I should point out is that the session took place right under the fierce midday sun, and these pictures were fresh from the film developer’s mailbox. No tones enhancements in any ways.

I fall deeper in love with film. The dynamic range, the light it captured, the mood, the mystery, the beautiful mistakes, and most importantly, the soul.

Cheers,

Adi.