subject: Film Cameras Vs Digital Cameras - Which Is Better? [print this page] Ever since the digital camera was introduced, a war has raged within the photographer community. There are those that think 35 mm film is the only true "professional" media and an ever increasing group that only work with digital. So, what's the consumer to think? It's time to break each format down and figure out which is truly better.
Digital: Amateur?
With both digital and film cameras there is an endless supply of factors that can impact the photos each one can produce. Image quality (in terms of depth of field and color contrast) has always been a major concern for those that choose digital and is still one of the most common excuses heard from the opposition. And considering that finding a digital camera that could match the raw data contained in a film photo was very expensive, it made the film enthusiast have a fairly good argument.
Fortunately, the price of an excellent digital camera has decreased sharply in the last few years while the quality for the dollar has increased. Canon's popular "Digital Rebel" line of SLRs gives photographers an affordable entry level camera for under $1,000 that produces near professional results. And with many other camera companies competing against Canon, consumers will continue to see lower prices as manufacturers work towards being the first choice at the retail counter.
35mm: Antiquated?
These days, why use film at all? It's certainly no secret that film has an expensive and unforgiving learning curve, so it's no surprise that current trends show photographers leaning heavily towards digital for precisely those reasons. After all, when taking shots at a big sporting event like the Super Bowl, would it be better to have the opportunity for thousands of photos or just the film in the bag? Well the answer to that is simple - the more the better when it comes to sports photography.
However, just as some music enthusiasts claim that everything sounds better on a record, there are plenty of photographers who think that there is no matching the warmth and familiarity of a fresh roll of film. Sure, photos can be endlessly edited and re-edited using fancy tools like Adobe Photoshop, but clicking a mouse pales in comparison to the tactile sensations of the darkroom. And of course, having someone else print up a roll of film doesn't take much more than a quick errand and an hour to kill.
And the Winner is... Neither!
Based on the availability of technology and the huge amount of resources devoted to this topic, there is really no defining point that helps one camera win the battle. As with many debates, the winner here is going to be decided entirely by the needs and wants of the individual. Families wanting to shoot and share their holiday memories on the fly may choose digital due to its instant gratification and convenience, while others may stick to good old film so they can print up doubles and put them into family picture frames. Thanks to the powerful yet affordable digital innovations and the classic familiarity of film, the choice is now right where it belongs- in the hands of consumers.
