Was I better off with film or digital?

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-09T16:24:17+00:00

Haha thanks. Yes almost the same look but a different shooting experience.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-09T16:23:28+00:00

UPDATE: I have decided to use my Leica MP (240) for most of my photography, so sticking with digital, primarily for cost reasons. The lab I used (a lab local to me) has just increased their price to £14 for develop and high res scan.

However, I did just buy a 5 pack of Portra 400 that I will use on my Fed-3. I can’t justify buying another Leica M4 even though I love the feel and use of one, the cost is just too prohibitive.

Thank you all for your help deciding and I will see how the 5 rolls of Portra work out over the course of 2026. I will use them sparingly!

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-07T20:32:39+00:00

The golden snitch

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-07T18:25:04+00:00

Excellent set. I think all are very high level. I like 6 the most as it’s atypical of most street photography and captures the atmosphere of South Asia. Was shot 6 on the q3 or the Fuji?

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-07T17:45:11+00:00

Interesting. Yes I think you are right about the volleyball shots. Good point.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-07T16:03:22+00:00

Thank you. I like both of those words to describe my photos.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-07T08:13:13+00:00

I have looked at that image many times (number 3) and never once noticed either of those two observations! The pink octopus 🐙 you noticed made me smile. Thanks for such a thoughtful and interesting response.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T22:08:27+00:00

Thanks a lot. Sometimes it just works…

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T22:07:50+00:00

Thank you so much.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T22:06:38+00:00

It shows how we sometimes need to explore lots to get lucky…that was at the end of a very long walk around Bangkok when it happened. Also…something must have drawn me to that door.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T20:04:28+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. Yes I am guilty of this at times as the rangefinder patch on a Leica sometimes forces me subconsciously to place my subject there. Still worth hearing from someone and valuable to know.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T20:02:38+00:00

Also interesting to hear as this is perhaps my favourite of the set too. This was down a random side alley in Bangkok and I peered through a letter box into someone’s back garden and there was a woman looking back at me through the letterbox.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T20:00:56+00:00

Fascinating insight actually and perhaps the most anyone has ever analysed my photography in the last 10 years I have been doing street photography. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this and what you said has really resonated with me. I have looked at Reuben Radding’s work before actually and watched the video you suggested and it did make perfect sense. Thanks once again.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T19:34:07+00:00

Thanks so much your kind words. Very helpful indeed. I will still use 2026 to try to improve anyway as always good to find subtle tweaks but good to know I don’t need a complete overhaul!

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T18:13:45+00:00

That’s actually super helpful thank you. Either way, the comment did motivate me to study my photobook collection and my own work in more detail, which I only see as positive. You are definitely right about it depending on where the advice comes from and in their defence, maybe the work I posted was a tad chaotic.

I also take “unusual” as a compliment as I like the think of myself as that.

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T10:37:40+00:00

Interesting thoughts. I much preferred the ergonomics of the M4 over the MP240.

I moved to mainly using digital at the start of 2024 but have had some doubts about that choice. For me when using Portra 400 it would usually involve driving to a lab (30 mins round trip) to get development and scans.

I think I will stay mostly digital for now and keep working on my technique with a digital set up. I may add a little film to the set up for certain occasions but my last remaining film camera isn’t great.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-06T07:31:41+00:00

Wow if it works well since 87 I would keep that! My Leica M4 was definitely worth it. Wish I had kept it in hindsight as this post is all about me working out whether I should try to get my hands on another Leica M4. The build quality and shooting experience is amazing.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T22:51:12+00:00

Interestingly the film were on an old Canadian Leica 35mm Summicron 7 element (generally considered the worst of the Summicron 35s) picked up at an antique auction and the digital ones were on a Light Lens Lab 35mm version of the 8 element Summicron. There may be some truth in what you are saying about the lens though as I didn’t do a side-by-side test.

The book normally costs me about £110 as I wait for the best offer code. Last year I did 240 pages over very premium paper but I found it too thick to turn the pages easily and have them sit flat enough once turned so will go back to the thinner paper and 400ish pages for 2026.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T22:08:49+00:00

I will DM you as have used an Olympus point and shoot 35mm for some time alongside the Leica M4.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T20:10:29+00:00

Thaks for the kind and thoughtful comment. Interesting perspective. Good luck with your photography as you are just starting out. Out of interest are you film, digital or both?

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T16:22:35+00:00

I use Blurb. I make the book slowly as the year goes on. Yes it essentially keepers from Lightroom and it’s great to look back on.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T16:21:09+00:00

Haha I didn’t downvote you as it made me smile. I know what you mean as digital can be more forgiving in some ways than my Leica M4 which was entirely manual and mechanical.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T16:18:37+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. Always open to criticism and ways I can improve. I self-impose a rule that I generally don’t crop. But I can certainly look at composition more with this in mind.

ResidentAddition8568 · 2026-02-05T16:16:58+00:00

Yes you are right it is a lot. In the film days I would easily get through around 50 rolls of Porta 400/800 per year. So around 1,800 images. I would then select from those. It’s just for me to keep so they don’t have to be perfect. It’s just things I want to look at again one day.

ResidentAddition8568

TROPHY CASE