There’s a reason so many people are drawn to 35mm film. The colours feel instantly nostalgic. Black and white film has this texture, grain and soul compared to a sharp but digital colour image that's been converted to black and white in Photoshop. But I don't shoot 35mm film at weddings!
Honestly, with the way I shoot digitally - using a Retropia lens and 35mm grain filters in Adobe Lighroom - most people would struggle to tell the difference.
Look at these examples of a 35mm colour wedding and a 35mm black and white wedding that I've photographed. I think only a very trained eye can tell it's actually digital.
So if I love the look, why don’t I shoot weddings on actual 35mm film?
Film is expensive
Shooting on film involved direct expenditure on film, processing and scanning, and that cost has to be passed on to the couple. A single roll of 35mm gives you 36 exposures. Once you’ve bought the film, had it developed and scanned, that’s usually about £50 gone.
And that’s just one roll of 36 exposures.
You don’t get 36 keepers
If you hear “36 exposures” you'd be forgiven for assuming this means you will get 36 finished photographs. But even the best wedding photographers will usually get a max of 10-15 genuinely strong images from a roll. That means the real cost of each finished image goes up dramatically.
To shoot a full wedding on film properly, couples would be paying significantly more (upwards of £750 more) for something that, visually, can be recreated incredibly well with the right digital setup.
Film struggles in low light
Film is beautiful when the light is right. But weddings aren’t always flooded with bright natural light.
Churches and town halls are often dim. Winter afternoons disappear fast. Reception venues can be dark. Even fast film struggles in those conditions.
Sometimes that gives you atmosphere. But more likely it will gives you muddy shadows and missed moments. Digital gives me far more flexibility in difficult light while still letting me create that same film-like feel afterwards.
I need to know I’ve nailed the shot
This is probably the biggest reason. With digital, I can check that I’ve got it.
I know the focus is right. I know the expression landed. I know I’ve got a great photo of Aunty Mabel and can move on confidently.
With film, you don’t know until it’s developed.
To be clear, when I shoot film for myself, that unknown is part of what makes it special. But when it’s your wedding, I don’t want to take that chance.
So why digital?
Because it gives me the best of both worlds.
I can create that soft, grainy, timeless 35mm look using my Retropia lens and carefully built grain profiles - but with the reliability, flexibility and confidence that digital gives me.
You get photographs that feel like film.
I get the certainty that I’ve captured your day properly.
And that feels like the right trade-off.