Shooting photos is a bit like hunting. Actually, it’s a lot like hunting. You find a place to post up, position yourself, load your weapon of choice, aim and pull the trigger when the timing is right. If you’re good—or lucky—you’ll hit your intended target.
Traveling further into that metaphor, it’s more-or-less fair to say that shooting with a digital camera can be likened to hunting with an AK47. Not only do you have the ability to fire off endless rounds in a span of a few seconds, but you can do so in a given direction without much framing or composition and there’s a good chance that one, or more likely a few, will capture your subject.
And then there’s film. Shooting on film is like hunting with a bow and arrow. Your ammo quiver is limited—not a single shot can be taken without full expectation that it will hit the target in the intended manner. Shooting film well requires a little more patience, a little more concentration, a little more technique. In full truth, it takes a little, and depending on the circumstances, a lot more of everything. But the return is a sum of the means—a photo that accounts of everything that was put into it.
This past month, a groundswell brushed up the Atlantic. Not only did I opt out of surfing to post up in the snow for 2-3 hours, but I also left the digital camera in the car and decided to shoot on 120mm film. It seemed like the proper way to capture what ended up being a memorable session. Looking at all these photos—all of which are raw and unedited—I feel pretty comfortable saying had the right weapon to hunt that day.
If you’re interested in seeing more of Drew’s photos and prints that would make welcome additions on empty wall space, check out his website and Instagram.
