In the last year or so the photographic market has gone mad over the era of digital cameras’. Although now I have finally started using digital (at present I am using the 10D) I have continued to use my 1V (film). I probably use the film camera about 60-70% of my time simply because I prefer it. However there are definite advantages to going digital and it depends on you personally and also what you are aiming to take, and how you are going to use these shots.
The digital camera offers numerous advantages. Most obviously you can see the image straight away and then save or recompose the image and shot again without killing yourself over film processing costs. This option has evolved my photography because I am now taking things that I would never have dreamt of taking with film. The result has been that I have got some unusual, and interesting shots which I would have missed with my 1V. Also the fact that it is compatible with the AF lenses has made the transition easier and more useful because I can simply interchange between my 1V and 10D. However there are obviously disadvantages to digital photography. Firstly, and one which I feel passionately about is computer manipulation which results in the original image being completely lost. I am not saying that all manipulation is bad, sharpening and cleaning up the picture is fine but it has its limits, such as when you start getting 4 giraffes heads out of a tree! (As a recent image I have just seen did) you begin to question the whole idea of manipulation. Not only is this not photography but it stereotypes all digital users as photographers who ‘cheat’ to get a good shot. Another problem is obviously the size of the images. Slowly the market is building up to a film size image (the IDS and MK2 has just done so) but still many of the more affordable digital SLR's are between 4-6mb's which can give you a print size of up to approximately a 16*20 print. This is fine if this is the market you are targeting. However if you require larger prints then this causes problems, although there is now software which enables you to upgrade your image to whatever size is required without much loss to the quality of the original image.
Nonetheless, even with the pros and cons of digital I have decided to move into that area, while still using traditional film and I am glad I have done so. If you can afford to have the best of both worlds it is definitely worthwhile!
Below i have produced a quick pros and cons table for Digital photography which may help you in your decision about whether to go digital or not:
THE POSITIVES OF DIGITAL
No grain. I have taken pictures at ISO800 with my 10D when the weather and light are bad and there has been little effect to the finalised photo. This would be unheard if you were using film
There is no risk with processing. You don’t have to send pictures away to get developed where people in the labs may not respect your work as much as you’d like. There is no risk of getting scratches across the picture during processing and no risk of losing it in the mail. Also another added bonus is that there is no long and tedious scanning which I find one of the worst things to do with photography.
There are fewer generations. Digital: File + print = 2nd generation. Film: Film + scan + print = 3rd generation.
The digital histogram produced makes it nearly impossible for a photographer to over or under expose. Also, you can see the photograph taken straight away and recompose if you’re not happy with the result. With film you have to wait until you get them processed to see if you achieved the correct result and by then its too late to do anything about it.
Digital photographs produces “clean “ colour.
NEGATIVE FEATURES OF DIGITAL
Digital is reliant solely on technology. In the field you can’t recharge your batteries and safe the shots onto CD’s. Although there are CF card holders to store your files on, these run from batteries as well so you either have to take a warehouse of batteries or hope there is somewhere to recharge your stuff.
As technology advances you have to continue to invest to keep up with the market. Although 35mm equipment has changed generally the end result is the same, a processed film. With digital this is not the case.
As I keep saying there is a threatening ‘downward spiral’. Once you have experienced digital technology and the power to change your image with ease it becomes addictive. The more you transform the original image the less you are showing the true nature of the shot and therefore producing a negative stereotype for photographers because you are not depicting the true essence of the natural world.
All in all I would recommend digital photography, especially if you can run it alongside film.
An in depth look at specific pictures of different wildlife situations. Find out how the final picture was produced and the problems that occurred throughout the process. Subjects include amongst others the native red squirrel and the great spotted woodpecker.
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