I’m not talking about the latest iteration of peel-apart film from Supersense; I’m discussing the original Fujifilm peel-apart films. There was a time where I’d see them on eBay going for $700 a box. That stuff is so much more special as there are 10 images on a cassette, and if the film was kept in a good place, it would always look wonderful. If you’ve got some in your fridge, then I’ve got something you need to read.
Are you ready for this?
Stop hoarding it. Take it out and go shoot with it. We love to tell ourselves that we’ll save the really good film for really good moments. But the truth is that every moment we shoot with something as special as that film is is really good.
If you’re in real need of the money, then go ahead and sell it. But the priceless moments that you’re going to shoot with it I feel are far more worth it than the money you’ll get for the film.
Shoot the film and either keep the positive or give it to someone else. Then, take the negative, wash it off with water very gently, and scan the negative. We previously said that you need to work with it using toilet bowl cleaner that had bleach. But other photographers who I’ve spoken to all told me that you only need water and some gentle cleaning from a Q-tip or cotton swab.
This film is gone, and we need to shoot it. This realization came to me recently when I had friends over. I’ve had so much film in my freezer and fridge that hasn’t been shot. It’s been well kept and I never have the time to shoot it because I’m always so preoccupied shooting other things. So I gave it away to someone who needed it.
And that’s the thing, we don’t need to constantly sit on film. We need to shoot it. We need to start making photos of more moment that mean a lot to us and that force us to be extra careful when documenting them. Film does that in a way that digital doesn’t. Where film is fresh salmon that can be quickly overcooked, digital is the canned sardine. Both are very good, but one requires a steady hand and a clear head. Sure, that means digital is so much more forgiving. And that’s fine.
But why not give yourself that little bit of an extra test?