As trends change, one thing stays the same: everything comes back eventually. From clothing styles rediscovered through thrifting to vinyl’s return to popularity, it’s obvious people love what’s old (but new to them). The comeback of “Y2K,” or the style of the early 2000s, shows what the New York Times describes as “the novelty of an old look.”
It’s no different for photography, with disposable film having made a comeback over the past few years. Many people quickly jumped to purchase these cameras due to their simple use, making it fun and easy to capture moments. But, the time it takes to fill a film strip and develop it isn’t something most people want to wait for and the cost per picture is much lower for digital cameras as it is a one-time payment instead of a per-film roll price. More recently, digital cameras have seen a revival, even though their main competitors, phone cameras, are quicker than ever.
Sofia Farah (I) mentions that she loves “the way it feels detached from my phone because I spend a lot of time looking at my phone and other screens during the day.” Digital cameras are the perfect blend of the two, allowing a user to capture a moment with the added benefit that they can download it to share at their leisure. This reduces pressure to frame each shot perfectly, while maintaining an aesthetic filter.
This “filtered” type of picture is similar to what you could get on an app, such as Snapchat or Instagram with a filter, but one key difference is the comparison to real life. The auto-touch and filters available through phone lenses have increasingly begun distorting photos, even if just by a little bit. These automatic adjustments to each photo on a phone take away from the natural feeling of each moment, distorting what people think of it and the subjects of the pictures.
Users also don’t have the option to scrutinize every single picture the second it’s taken, so using a digital camera takes away some of the insecurity that arises from taking pictures on a phone. One of the largest factors of photography’s recent evolution is the rise of social media. The rate at which people share and access photos has increased exponentially, but so has the pressure to present oneself a certain way. People are more and more worried about how they look, so being in pictures has become a source of stress for many people as they take as many pictures as possible to try and get the “perfect” one.
Photography is a means of expression, and the art behind it that creates such strong memories is preserved through digital cameras. Because taking pictures on a camera is a one-at-a-time process, it forces users to take their time when capturing moments. Unlike a phone camera where you can take multiple pictures with one click, a digital camera’s perspective makes each photo more unique. Boston Latin School AP teacher Mr. Stephen Harris brings up the point that the sheer volume of photos on one’s phone takes away some of their meaning. He asks, “When you’re 25, will those pictures still be in the same place, or will you have lost them by then?”
Mr. Harris makes a good argument. Although a photo’s meaning changes from phone to camera, both have their benefits. Phones are easy to access and use while cameras make it a bit more fun.