Black and White Film

After handing over £20 to get 35 6x4 photos and CD of my black and white film, I made a silent prayer that this would not be wasted and that the photos would come out well. A week later I turned up again bracing myself for the worst, but all in all, bar the few that came out blurry, I am thrilled at my first attempts of black and while film all taken on my Canon AE-1.

Somerset House - Canon AE-1

Some of these were the first photos I took on my roll of film and as you can see the top left photo was underexposed (shutter speed was too fast) meaning it has come out rather dark at the top. Some came out rather grainy but personally, I quite like this look in the photo as it adds to the aged feel of the photograph.

Somerset House

The next set of photographs were from the Secret 7" exhibition at Somerset House that I recently went to (review about it here). However from this, I have come to the conclusion that because they were such colourful pieces of art that they would have worked best on colour film as black and white doesn't quite capture quite how bright and unique they are and that black and white is better suited to people and buildings.

Below is a photo of just some shots I took when travelling around London one night - surprisingly film is perfect for capturing night time scenes as everything looks more atmospheric. 

London at night - (from top left clockwise - Albert Bridge, Piccadilly Circus tube station, Piccadilly Square and London Victoria station platform 10)

My final photos are from a lovely day that felt like summer when myself and Anna went around the park on our bikes. It was a beautiful day and makes me excited for more days like this in the future.

I love the lack of colour in these photos, particularly this photo to the left, as it increases the contrast between the light and dark tones and for me it makes the photo more detailed as you are less distracted by colour. I love the complexity of the branches and the shadows they have created and it makes the photo look slightly surreal.

Below is a picture of Anna (I love secret photos) who only realised the photo was being taken until it was too late and then promptly asking to see it, I had to tell her that she could not because neither I nor her could as this was film. She was just going to have to wait until it got developed.

Anna - Canon AE-1

Overall, I am pleased with the black and white outcomes, but sadly this is a far too expensive hobby to keep up, so after I use up my last roll of black and white film, I may have to limit myself unless I start developing the film myself.