Forever Capturing a Memory
Using 35mm film for the first time in the PNW summer
Welcome to May everyone! Spring is upon us. The snow is melting and the mountains are coming back to life. The other day, I took a couple hours of my day to drive up to the closest mountain near me and ski in some spring snow. The lifts weren’t running, so I truly did earn my turns. But you gotta do what you gotta do to ski every month of the year (More on that later).
Anyways weather aside, today I got a really cool article to share with you. I wrote this article in the Summer of 2023 just as I was beginning my film journey. I found it the other day and realized I hadn’t published it yet. Brings back a lot of good memories. Hope you guys enjoy.
P.S - There is a couple copies left of Revelry Collection / Volume 001. Get your copy now using this link before they sell out. Shipping soon.
Forever Capturing a Memory
From the Archive: Written & Photographed in Summer 2023. Published in May 2025.
The sound of a shutter letting the light into the camera for a split second, forever capturing that memory. The feel of that metal body made not for the latest trends but made to last a lifetime. That is how photography used to be and how it can be. Now people take photos without actually taking the time to make photos, and I am guilty of this too.
Let me give you some context. I was sitting there after my first full year of doing photography, staring at over 50,000 photographs. The breaking edge was when I saw this beautiful rainbow. I took over 300 photos of the same thing, and that's when I knew I needed a change. I was getting so caught up in taking the photo that I was losing the ability to be fully present in these amazing locations.
The first thing my mind went to was film. See, my mom was super into photography in her college years and had many cameras. She had a camera that had always piqued my interest by how it looked, but not by what it did. A quick search and I find out what a Canon AE-1 was all about. I planned to go get it, but schedules and, well, me forgetting got in the way, so I put it aside.
Until almost 6 months later, I had a moment of realization. I was shooting too much, and my work was starting to feel meaningless. So I got that old Canon AE-1 from my mom (my mom wondering why I even bother with using it). Then, I bought my first roll of film. I ruined my first roll of film by pulling it out (Rookie mistake), and then I continued to ruin my second (Again, pulled it out, how did I not learn my lesson?)
But besides me pulling film out (Pro tip - don't pull film out until you're done), I was feeling down and like I wanted to quit film photography. But I knew that if I put that camera on the shelf, I probably wouldn't pick it up again. So I swallowed my shame and bought my 3rd roll of film.
Not knowing even the slightest bit of how to work a film camera, I shot that roll of film over about a month with the utmost confidence that they would turn out. As I was in the Pacific Northwest, I took advantage of the sunny summer weather and shot in the mountains and in the many lakes.
Overall, it was a really transformative experience. I tried to capture the real authentic moments of summer, instead of just the photos that were popular. I really thought about each photo, trying to capture the right frame. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don’t. But when you do, it feels all the more special.
For me, it transformed photography into less about capturing as many quote on quote “good” photos, and more about seeing the world through my eyes. It shows you who and what you care about. As some would say, I caught the film photography "bug." But it really is true. It encourages you to go shoot and capture something meaningful.
After capturing the photos, I sent them off to the lab. Unknowing of which lab to choose, I selected one that I saw another photographer had used called Statefilm. So I mailed it off to Louisville, Kentucky, and hoped for the best.
Over three weeks later, I received the photos back. As excited as could be, I opened up the box and went through the photos one by one, really taking my time.
Holding and feeling your photos really brings new meaning. Looking back at the people and places you care about, it's a feeling that really can't be described. I hope everyone can experience it. The feeling of holding a memory forever captured, something that's timeless.
Signing off, Bentley Zylstra (Editor & Founder)
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