What types of photography can still favor film over digital?
Asked 7/19/2010
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Are there any areas of photography where film still has practical advantages over digital cameras? I'm especially interested in situations where film may be easier, more accessible, or more cost-effective than digital.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
16y ago
2 Answers
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I think medium and large format photography is still a world dominated by film. While that fact is starting to change with more recent digital cameras that have extremely high megapixel counts (20mp or more), going to a larger format is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper with film. The benefits of large format are particularly nice for landscape photography, but shine whenever you need the ability to generate extremely large prints (poster size or very large canvas prints.)
There are some digital cameras explicitly designed as medium-format, such as the Hasselblad H4D. The H4D sensor ranges around 50-60 megapixels and is 40.2 x 53.7mm in size, which is considerably larger than a full-frame 35mm sensor. The cost of this camera, at $45,000, is extremely prohibitive.
Originally by user124. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user124
16y ago
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Yes. While digital is dominant overall, film can still have advantages in a few areas.
- Large and medium format: Film remains attractive when you want the benefits of larger formats, especially for landscapes or very large prints. Digital medium-format systems exist, but they are much more expensive, so film can be the more practical route.
- Very long exposures and star trails: Film cameras can be better for multi-hour exposures because they don’t drain battery power during the exposure the way digital cameras do. Digital sensors can also build up heat and noise during long exposures, though digital workarounds like stacking shorter shots exist.
- Infrared and ultraviolet photography: Film can be more accessible here because digital cameras usually need sensor modification or special filtering to work well outside normal visible light capture.
So the main remaining advantages of film are less about everyday image quality and more about certain specialized uses, especially large-format work, extremely long exposures, and alternative-spectrum photography.
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