film tales from the forest city
AN UNLIKELY HUB FOR A FILM PHOTOGRAPHY REVIVAL
The invention of the digital camera provided photographers with a cheap way to capture thousands of photos ready for export and print in less than a second.
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But despite the quick turn-around time and versatility of digital, many are making the conscious return to film.
It's a trend that Maureen and Ron Tucker of the London Vintage Camera Show say is intergenerational, drawing in both new and seasoned photographers from all demographics.
I grew up in the late 90s and early 2000s, and my first photography experiments were on disposable film cameras. Few things are more devastating than waiting three weeks for your prints, only to spot the shy intrusion of a blurry thumb marring each one.
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Beyond thumb cameos and expensive film rolls, the business of film photography is a messy one, and is certainly not for photographers seeking perfection.
It's an undertaking that requires patience and skill, enabling a level of craftsmanship that only the most dedicated picture producers can master.
a 2000+ year history
Digital cameras—in some form or another—have been around for about 45 years, though the first consumer-marketed ones became popular in the late 90s.
But the digital camera revolution is the product of over 2000 years of photographic
Theory, Invention and Discovery
While the technology behind the pictures has changed throughout the years, photography's pursuit—capturing the world as we live, breathe and see it—has not.
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maureen and ron's story
VINTAGE CAMERAS, BEARDED DRAGONS AND THE YARD SALE CIRCUIT
Maureen and Ron Tucker are the masterminds behind the London Vintage Camera Show, the semi-annual gathering of the city’s quirkiest film photography fanatics.
Regularly drawing over 400 attendees, the London Vintage Camera Show is the second largest in North America—its growth only constrained by the capacity limits of the venue, Carling Heights Optimist Community Centre.
Galleries in both London and Toronto have exhibited Ron Tucker's work. (Jade Prévost-Manuel)
The Tuckers’ are retired wedding photographers, whose combined 25 years in the business ended around the same time that photography went digital.
The show came from humble beginnings, when Ron began rummaging through garage sale bins for additions to his personal collection of film cameras.
“A few years ago, all the stuff I’d drooled over back in the 80s was selling for dirt cheap, so I started scooping that up,” he said. “And when you buy, buy, buy for 20 years, eventually you have to sell.”
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THE TUCKER GALLERY
Snapshots of the Tuckers' personal collection of film cameras.
One of the Tuckers' vintage Nikon film cameras.
Over a three-year period, Ron Tucker won photographer of the year, printer of the year and travel photographer of the year awards in Black and White Photography magazine.
Snapshots of the Tuckers' personal collection of film cameras.
That’s when the Tuckers' collection became a film camera gold mine for the city of London.
“We saw a film resurgence, and no camera stores in the city sell film equipment,” said Maureen. “People were Kijiji’ing each other and we saw an opportunity to make some money. [Cameras] have always been Ron’s passion."
Initially dealing at Toronto vintage film shows, they made the switch to the Forest City when Maureen spotted an opportunity to develop a new brand of show in an untapped market.
“As one of two female dealers [at the Toronto shows], I felt really excluded,” she said. “So we thought ‘Hey, we’ll just have our own show in London. How hard can that be?’”
Attendees of the film show are varied and diverse. Maureen says that a third of their attendees are under the age of 25 and new to film, with 40 per cent being women. Far from being a carbon copy of a Toronto show, the Tuckers’ event attracts the odd and eccentric.
“It’s a quirky, weird show,” she said. “I mean, we have someone that walks around with a bearded dragon.”
The Tuckers wanted their show to be women-friendly, beginner-friendly and student-friendly. Having just wrapped up their fall show, the next one is set to happen in the spring. They say they designed the show as an interactive space for show-goers, buyers, dealers and sellers to forge friendships regardless of age.
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“You’ll have this 80-year-old camera dealer showing a 20-year-old guy how to load the camera," said Maureen. "And they’re, you know, united in their love of photography. I think that’s so cool.”
JOEL'S STORY
ACCORDIAN CAMERAS, TUMBLRS AND ANNE OF GREEN GABLES
Not many 21-year-olds can say their first camera was an accordion style Kodak from the 1940s. Now a collector camera, the gadget serves as a glimpse into Western student Joel Crane’s unique introduction to the world of photography.
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Today, he shoots on a 1980s introductory film camera—a Canon 81. But the old accordion camera is a memento of the hobby he grew up sharing with his grandfather, who gifted Crane the Kodak when he was 11.
“My grandpa taught me how to develop film,” said Crane. “All I had to do was buy the rolls, put them in and develop them whenever I had time.”
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Crane made the shift back to film when digital photography didn't stimulate his creativity. (Jade Prévost-Manuel)
A fourth-year medical sciences student with a busy schedule as a research assistant in Western's surgery department, Crane doesn't shoot regularly. But when he has the chance, he says he'll pick film over digital any day. For him, there’s a certain level of authenticity and craftsmanship that’s drawn him to the medium and that people tend to appreciate.
“I always really liked the grainy look, and I think people notice it,” he said. “It’s different.”
Though there are start-up costs involved when it comes to purchasing film rolls and dark room chemicals, film in the long-term still beats the cost of digital making it popular among students. While the average price of a DSLR camera today ranges anywhere from $500 to $3000, a vintage film camera could cost you less than $100.
“At Attic Books or City Lights Bookshop in London this body is probably going to be there for $30,” he said, handling his Canon 81. “No joke. [And] I got this lens off eBay for maybe 50 bucks.”
THE Crane GALLERY
An image Crane shot that was featured on National Geographic's socials, spotlighting beautiful places in Ontario.
A shot of Crane's 1940s Kodak Monitor.
Crane sold his professional digital camera, a Canon EOS 5D Mark III. For him, nothing matches the creativity of shooting on his 1980s era film camera.
An image Crane shot that was featured on National Geographic's socials, spotlighting beautiful places in Ontario.
Anonymity has been the hallmark of Crane's photographer identity, though it's been hard for him to come by. Back in high school, he ran a Tumblr blog showcasing his vintage film work that amassed 400,000 followers. Crane's work has also been featured on National Geographic's social media channels and in their magazine in 2014.
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But the priority for him has always been about the art—a method of capturing a world in ways otherwise unseen.
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"[Eventually] somebody recognized my Tumblr account, and I thought that was weird so I stopped," said Crane. "But it was fun at the time—they were just photos I was taking that I wanted to show somebody."
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Crane's been shooting on film for a long time—long before the revival became prevalent among millennials and Gen Zers. But for many in his demographic, film photography is thriving in an ironically digital environment, thanks to photo sharing sites like Instagram and Tumblr.
And why wouldn't it be? The cameras are affordable, the grainy look is back in vogue and it's enabling a shift back to a simpler time—one that focused less on the doctoring of photos and more on the acceptance of perfect imperfections.
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Crane says that maybe five out of 24 shots on a film roll will turn out. He points to a photo he took of the Green Gables Heritage Place on his trip to the East Coast, describing how he watched how the sun moved throughout the day to get the perfect light.
"It’s not like you see this, snap the photo, and then it looks good," said Crane. "It does require a kind of sixth sense when you shoot film."
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"Oh. And I’m really patient."