Holga- The First Two Rolls: Mikaela Joy: El Paso Portrait Photographer

I think I have a new favorite camera.  

It's funny, I've invested thousands of dollars into all the amazing equipment that I own, the equipment that helps me to nail shot after shot exactly how I've envisioned it. 

But the camera that is making my heart sing these days is nothing like that gear.  It cost me $30 and is made entirely of plastic. This camera is a holga.

Holgas are funny cameras.  They were made to be a cheap option for a consumer camera back in the film days.  Optically, they are one of the worst cameras ever made.  Yet they are loved by film photographers around the world.  

Why?  Well they have a very distinctive look.  They are known for light leaks and blurry edges, and not being very sharp, all the things that are technically terrible in a photograph.  But they create really interesting photographs.

  Holgas are very basic, which means the photographer has very little control.  There are three settings for light, and three settings for focus. All you can really do with a holga is to pick up a roll of 120 film and go shoot.

And that's exactly what I did.  There is definitely some trial and error in learning how to shoot a Holga, so I've mostly been practicing on my son.  Here's a bit of what I've done so far: 

I've been having a lot of fun with this little camera.  I can't wait to try it out for some more serious uses!

Sara on Film | Mikaela Joy: El Paso Portrait Photographer

The thing I love most about shooting in downtown El Paso is the color.  There are all kinds of colorful walls and buildings that make amazing backdrops.  So It seemed like a fun challenge that instead of bringing a roll of Ektar (my absolute favorite color film), I would bring a roll of black and white film for this downtown shoot. 
And it was.  When I stopped looking for color I started noticing all the amazing textures and light patterns instead.  Sara met me downtown for a lifestyle type portrait session, and instead of planning ahead which specific locations I wanted to use, we just explored.  Sara was pretty much up for whatever and was totally cool with following me aimlessly around El Paso.  It ended up being a really fun session!

Since I wasn't super happy with the fomapan film I used for my last session, I decided to go with the tried and true Tri-x 400.  I had never used it myself, but according to basically everyone online it's one of the best films out there, so I figured I'd give it a go.

This session was shot on a Nikon FM.

Check out the photos below:

---

If you are interested in your own portrait session with Mikaela Joy, please contact me to schedule your complimentary consultation.

My Analog Summer | Mikaela Joy: El Paso Portrait Photographer

You haven’t heard from me in a while.  There are a couple reasons for that.  One is that I’m on vacation.  I’m in the Pacific Northwest soaking up the sunshine and taking in the beautiful mountain views.

The other reason you haven’t heard from me it that this summer I’ve gone analog.

Well sort of.  I recognize the irony of me typing that sentence from my laptop.  But as I type I’m sitting on the front porch of my parent’s house, a slight breeze lifting the smell of lavender to my nose. So I'm outside at least.

And yes, I’ve spent a good portion of my summer glued to my cell phone screen, as per usual, but it hasn’t been all day from the comfort of my couch.  It hasn’t been all summer.

Instead I’ve spent this summer huddled by the warmth of a campfire.  I’ve spent my summer with books- the paper kind, well loved, with writing in the margins and blueberry-stained pages. My summer has been spent loading film into a 30-year-old camera, and the satisfying click of its shutter.

My summer has been perfect.

You see, this summer has brought me a new love- film photography. 

I didn’t grow up with film like many of the older pros.  Although I went through a significant number of disposable cameras at a young age, I was quickly upgraded to a 5 megapixel Olympus in order to save my parents money on developing costs.  I’ve always been able to see my shots right away, to instantly upload to a computer, and to shoot as many images as my SD card (or whatever those cameras used) could hold. 

Shooting with film is a beautiful slow down.   

There’s something so freeing about taking a shot and not looking instantly to the LCD screen to see how it turned out, something in knowing that you only have 36 shots so you better make them count.  And it’s amazing to be using a piece of technology created 30 plus years ago that works beautifully and doesn’t require batteries. 

And the feeling of seeing a roll of film for the first time, weeks after the first frame was shot? There’s nothing quite like it. 

I’m so excited to play more with this medium and see how it changes my work.  But until then let me share some images from my first roll of film. These images were shot on a Nikon FM with Portra 400.