Shooting film tends to encourage a more frugal approach to photography. Medium format is particularly good at preventing me from just randomly photographing everything I see. After all, there are only 12 frames on a roll of 120 when shooting 6x6. Best to make each of them count.

There is one throwaway photo opportunity provided by film that is missing from digital, and that is the need to “finish the roll.” This comes up regularly for me. Yesterday, for example I shot some family portraits using a Hasselblad. I went through a roll of Fuji 800 color film, and two rolls of T-MAX 400. Almost two rolls of T-MAX. I wanted to process them soon, so that left me with either not exposing the final 2 frames or “wasting” them on something nearby. I chose to waste them. Walking to my car, I saw an orchard with many of its trees cut down and logs piled up against each stump.

Snapped the final frames and although the results didn’t make for great photos, I kind of like them, and wouldn’t have taken them at all if not for the “finish a the roll” problem presented by shooting film.