The Unexpected Return of Film

When digital photography overtook the market in the early 2000s, many predicted the swift and permanent demise of analog photography. Major companies like Kodak filed for bankruptcy, film production lines shut down, and countless darkrooms were dismantled. Professional photographers rapidly transitioned to digital equipment, drawn by convenience, cost savings, and client expectations. By 2010, film seemed destined for museums and nostalgic collectors rather than active creative use.

Yet something remarkable happened around 2015. Rather than disappearing entirely, film photography began showing signs of revival. Sales of film cameras on secondary markets increased. Remaining film manufacturers reported growing demand. Photography schools reintroduced darkroom techniques into curricula. Kodak, responding to market signals, reintroduced Ektachrome film in 2018 after discontinuing it years earlier. New companies like Lomography expanded their film offerings. This wasn’t simply a blip or temporary nostalgia but the beginning of a sustained movement that continues gaining momentum today.

Beyond Nostalgia: The Aesthetic Advantages

The film resurgence transcends mere nostalgia, with practitioners citing specific aesthetic qualities unmatched by digital technology. Film possesses a distinctive color rendition—Kodak Portra’s warm tones and Fujifilm’s greens create looks digital photographers spend countless hours trying to emulate in post-processing. The organic grain structure of film differs fundamentally from digital noise, providing texture rather than distraction. Film’s highlight handling—its gradual rolloff rather than abrupt clipping—produces a more natural look in challenging lighting conditions.

Perhaps most importantly, each film stock has a distinct personality—Cinestill 800T with its cinematic tungsten balance and halation effect, Ilford Delta’s dramatic contrast, or Fuji Velvia’s supersaturated landscapes. While digital photographers can approximate these looks through presets and editing, film photographers achieve them in-camera through their choice of medium. The limitations become creative strengths, forcing intentional decisions rather than endless options. Professional photographers like Kat Swansey, who switched from digital to medium format film for wedding photography, report clients specifically seeking film’s distinct aesthetic, willing to pay premium prices for results that feel more timeless and authentic.

The Mindful Process: Slowing Down in a High-Speed World

The technical demands of film photography enforce a mindfulness that many find liberating rather than limiting. With just 36 exposures per roll (or fewer with medium format), each frame carries consequence. The cost per shot encourages deliberate composition and timing rather than the “spray and pray” approach common with digital. Photographers report becoming more intentional about each element within the frame, from lighting to subject positioning. The inability to immediately review results requires trust in one’s vision and technical abilities.

This slowed approach extends beyond the moment of capture. Film photographers often wait days or weeks to see their images, creating a separation between the experience of making photographs and evaluating them. Many report this delay leads to more objective assessment and less immediate disappointment with technical imperfections. The anticipation of developing film introduces an element of excitement largely absent from digital workflows. For photographers suffering from creative burnout, this reconnection with the fundamentals of their craft often rekindles passion dulled by commercial demands and digital tedium.

The Community Revival: From Darkrooms to Social Networks

The analog revival has created vibrant communities both online and offline. Web forums dedicated to film photography have thousands of active members exchanging knowledge about equipment, techniques, and processing. Instagram hashtags like #filmisnotdead and #analogphotography connect millions of images from around the world. YouTube channels dedicated to film photography attract hundreds of thousands of subscribers, with creators offering tutorials on everything from camera maintenance to home developing.

This online enthusiasm has manifested in physical spaces too. Community darkrooms are reopening in major cities, offering membership-based access to equipment and expertise. Workshops teaching traditional processes like platinum printing and wet plate collodion regularly sell out. Independent photo labs have emerged to serve the growing demand for quality processing, scanning, and printing. Annual events like Film Photography Day draw participants globally. Perhaps most significantly, these communities are remarkably age-diverse, including both older photographers who never abandoned film and younger ones discovering it for the first time, creating valuable cross-generational knowledge exchange.

The Commercial Renaissance: New Products and Market Growth

The economic impact of this revival has been substantial enough to influence manufacturing and retail. After years of discontinuations, film manufacturers are introducing new stocks. Kodak launched Ektachrome E100 in 2018, followed by a 120 format version in 2020. Japan Camera Hunter created new street photography film. Smaller companies like Cinestill adapted motion picture film for still photography use. Fujifilm, despite discontinuing many professional films, maintains consumer stocks like Superia and professional lines like Pro 400H due to consistent demand.

Camera manufacturers have taken notice too. While most major brands focus exclusively on digital, companies like Leica continue producing film rangefinders alongside their digital offerings. The secondary market for film cameras has seen dramatic price increases, with working models of cameras like the Contax T2 compact selling for five times their original retail price. Even mass-market retailers like Urban Outfitters now stock film and simple cameras. Industry analysis suggests the global film market is growing at approximately 3-4% annually—modest compared to digital imaging but remarkable for a technology many considered obsolete.

The Future: Digital Collaboration, Not Competition

The most intriguing aspect of the film revival isn’t its opposition to digital photography but how the two approaches increasingly complement each other. Many photographers work in both mediums, selecting each for its strengths. Digital platforms have, paradoxically, been crucial to film’s resurgence, with social media providing visibility and community that sustain interest. Hybrid workflows—shooting film but scanning negatives for digital delivery—have become standard practice, combining film’s aesthetic with digital’s convenience.

Educational institutions reflect this integration, teaching both digital techniques and traditional processes rather than treating them as opposing approaches. Film’s physical limitations continue providing valuable learning experiences even for photographers who ultimately work primarily in digital. The careful exposure discipline required for slide film, for instance, builds technical skills applicable across all photographic media.

As we move further into the 2020s, film photography appears positioned for sustainable growth rather than either explosive resurgence or final decline. Its role has evolved from mainstream medium to deliberate artistic choice—one that remains relevant precisely because of, not despite, the digital revolution. In embracing the physical constraints and unpredictable beauty of analog processes, photographers aren’t rejecting technological progress but reclaiming aspects of creative experience that progress inadvertently left behind. The result isn’t competition between old and new but a richer photographic culture that values both innovation and tradition.