🎞 We have a phone number! 🎞

Need help selecting a kit? Send us a text or give us a call to speak with our team.

(805) 515-FILM — (805) 515-3456

At Negative Supply, we’ve always valued being able to speak directly with customers. While it’s taken a few years for us to grow our team to the point where we could handle inbound phone traffic, today we are proud to announce a new way to connect with us: Text and Voice!

Have a product related question or need help choosing a kit? Send us a text or give us a call and chat with our team. To start we may have limited hours that we are available, but our aim is to reach back out same day if we aren’t able to answer the call right away. Received our voicemail but think a text message conversation could also answer your questions? Feel free to send us a message at the same number.

While this service is primarily for sales and product related questions, in the future we hope to expand it to customer service and other warranty needs. For now, continue sending those to contact@negativesupply.co for the best turnaround time (as those messages go directly to the right people to handle the requests).

Saxon McClammaComment
Negative Supply Spotlight: Rafael Hernandez

We are thrilled to bring you another spotlight! This time we are featuring Rafael Hernandez. Check out his work and our interview below!

Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.

“Hello! I’m Rafael Hernandez from Los Angeles California 😄✌🏽

I am a photographer and enjoy shooting film in my spare time and for my personal projects. I began my photography journey back in 2004 starting out with traditional black and white film/darkroom classes in high school and have been at it ever since. “

Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“Growing up my biggest influences were my dad and brothers, my dad always had a camera either for video or photos to document everything we ever did and my brother took a photography class when he was in high school which I was very much looking forward to once I got to high school, I even got to learn from the same teacher and the rest is history.” 

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Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“I’ve been at this for 17 years now and I still get the same excitement out of film that I did for my very first roll. Despite all the knowledge I’ve picked up over the years, it’s still a surprise, like magic, when I see the emulsion every time. Every moment in life, despite how familiar to any other experience is still unique, I feel the same way about the way film captures these memories. They might have a predetermined look for each stock but the results you get every time are always unique to the moment you captured.”

Q: What are some of your favorite film stocks?

“My longest relationship has been with Ilford Hp5, it’s been with me from my very first roll in my high school class and will be my go to for Black and White. Color is where it gets a little tough because I’ve been absolutely enjoying Fuji NPS 160 in 220 but I’m running low on those and as they’re discontinued (so sad 😢) I use it a lot more sparingly these days. Another staple is Lomo 800, it provides just the right amount of saturation and vibrance for my taste and it shines both in daylight and at night. There’s always room for cinestill 800t of course but it only comes out for special/specific occasions where it truly shines.”


Q: What inspires me most when it comes to your photography?

I’ve found myself to always be motivated and inspired by technique and how things work but in the last year I’ve spent inside, I've been inspired by life itself and how we can learn to document the days that feel exactly like the last, but I find these little moments that stand out and remind me why we’re here at all.”

Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“I’ve had my eye on Negative Supply kits for a while now but I’ll admit it wasn’t until I actually got my hands on one that I was fully convinced this is the future of film scanning. I came from a flatbed scanner and the workflow now is just a lot more fun and efficient this way, it also lets me take advantage of the mirrorless camera I have sitting around, so that’s a plus. Aside from the level of detail I can achieve, the latitude I gain by shooting raw files and the ability to color correct each individual image without it feeling like a chore in Lightroom proves a nicer overall experience than I was getting through Silverfast. “

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Q: What camera are you using to scan?
Currently, I am using the Eos R and 100mm 2.8 EF L Series lens, but I’m hoping to upgrade at some point to a higher resolution canon sensor and the new 100mm 2.8 Rf macro lens.”

Check out Rafael’s set up below!

 
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Check out the tools Rafael used below used below! You can check ing out on instagram here. If you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

 
 
 
 
 
Guest UserComment
Negative Supply Spotlight: Andrew Apperley


We are thrilled to bring you another spotlight! This time we are featuring Andrew Apperley. Check out his work and our interview below.

Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.

“Hey, I’m Andrew Apperley - software developer by trade, and amateur film photographer by obsession. Currently based near Toronto, ON, I started shooting film in 2018 as an escape from my computer screen, and I’ve been hooked on the creative pursuit ever since.”

Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“Although I’ve had a camera around for most of my life, I never really took it seriously until highschool when I was tasked with constructing a pinhole camera, and thus, the ins and outs of a darkroom. Then, in college, my dad bought me a Nikon D5100 to help with producing videos and stock photography for the websites I was building. It was in college that I really found a passion for photography, while walking through the arboretum on campus.”

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Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“Film is finite in the same way that aspects of nature are; and that resonates with me, as I tend to primarily photograph nature. It’s also tangible. I get to touch my artwork, as it’s processed, in the same way that someone might prefer writing letters on physical pieces of paper, and I own the process end-to-end, if I choose.”

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Q: What are some of your favorite film stocks?

"When I first started shooting film, Fujifilm Superia 400/800 was my go-to for its versatility in all lighting situations, and the nostalgic feel of its fine-grain detail. Then there’s Fujifilm Pro 400H, which is what I love about Superia, but enhanced in all the right ways. It captures skin tones beautifully, and retains shadow detail in most situations. Overall, the greens and blues of Fujifilm are the tones that I love capturing.”


As for black and white film stock, I prefer Ilford HP5 for the classic quality of its subtle tones and sharp contrast, as well as Ilford Delta 3200 for projects that take place in extremely low light. You can push these films a long way, and still produce great images.”


Q: What inspires me most when it comes to my photography?


“Nature is my first inspiration; nostalgia is my second. I feel most comfortable with my photography when I’m exploring the outdoors, discovering new landscapes, or developing a greater appreciation for places I’ve been before. When other people are involved, my goal is to capture meaningful memories, like my daughter laughing, or my parents holding their granddaughter. Ultimately, the goal is to slow down and appreciate my surroundings.”

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Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“Consistency. I don’t have to fiddle around with flimsy holders for every strip of film, or worry about scans not turning out quite right. The film stays perfectly flat, the dust is significantly reduced, and the scanning speed is lightyears ahead of my previous workflow. Overall, I appreciate that the craftsmanship put into the tools is at the same caliper as the effort put into my photos.”



Q: What camera are you using to scan?

“I am currently using a Nikon D7100 and Nikon 40mm f/2.8G.”

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Q: What Negative Supply tools are you using to scan?

35mm Film Carrier MK1

4x5 Light Source Basic

Basic Riser MK1

Pro Mount MK2 with Anti-Static Dust Removal Brush

Check out the tools Andrew used below used below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co


 
Guest UserComment
Negative Supply Spotlight: Eric Floberg

We are very excited to feature Eric Floberg on our latest spotlight!

Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“I actually started making videos in school, and that got a camera in my hands. That evolved into making skits and parody videos with friends. I stumbled into filming weddings, and subsequently using my DSLR to photograph my friends who were engaged or for family photos, and it slowly morphed into a career. The passion for the medium slowly corroded as the digital camera became the thing tied to thousands of images I would make every weekend, not for myself. I would find myself photographing my family on the DSLR, but would never touch the files. As soon as I got a film camera in my hands, I cared about every frame, and that ultimately fall in love with the process again. Now, I exclusively photograph my personal life on film because I desire for it to be a separate process than my job.”

Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“At first, it was the joy of getting a set back from the lab. As the lab continued to be inconsistent, I grew frustrated with the results and teamed up with a friend to start doing it on our own. The joy is still there. It's even better seeing the conversions happen on my own computer and having the full authority to make them what I want them to be.” 

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Q: What are some of your favorite film stock?

“Portra 400; so original. It's my go-to, but I really enjoy Cinestill 800t, especially not at night, strangely.”

Q: What inspires me most when it comes to your photography?

“I'm constantly challenged with the basics. Always trying to make my compositions better, approach lighting better, noticing small nuances every time I go out and collecting/filing them away in my brain for future endeavors.”

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Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“The Film Carrier makes scanning so easy and such a fun process. We love the light bed. The consistency of light and output of power gives us the ability to shoot faster, with less chance of any motion blur. High quality build on everything and the best tools we've used to date with scanning our own film.”

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Q: What camera are you using to scanning?

“The Fujifilm GFX50s; we recognize that it's way overboard, but my friend already had it for portraits with client work, and we thought "why not?" - The quality seems to be unmatched.”

We’d like to thank Eric for sharing his work with us! You can check out more of his work on Instagram. Check out the tools Eric used below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

Guest UserComment
Introducing: Basic Film Carrier 35 - affordable 35mm film scanning!

The Basic Kit includes: Basic Riser, Basic light and the new Basic Carrier


Introducing the Negative Supply Basic Film Carrier 35:  The perfect tool for scanning strips or full rolls of 35mm film quickly, easily, and affordably whether you’re at home, on the go, or in the studio!  


Everybody loves 35mm film thanks to its ease and access, and the ability to quickly and genuinely capture life’s moments.  Whether it’s a day at the beach, a casual walk around your neighborhood, or photographing a holiday event, 35mm film is perfect for these and more.  Our Basic Film Carrier 35 extends that ease and access, allowing you to easily scan and share your photographs with friends and loved ones.  

Utilizing a digital camera (DSLR, mirrorless, etc.) to capture your scans, most Basic Film Carrier 35 owners can utilize a digital camera they already own.  Many modern digital cameras, from entry level to professional, will allow you to make beautiful film scans with this device.  

Keeping your film perfectly flat with our unique channel guides, the Basic Film Carrier 35 allows you to scan a full length roll of film in as fast as two minutes.  Building off the wide ecosystem of Negative Supply film scanning tools, this device is the perfect starting point for photographers of all skill levels.  

Basic Film Carrier 35 with film loaded

Scan full rolls or strips of film

Use you phone as a light source via our exclusive app (coming soon)!

Use you phone as a light source via our exclusive app. Coming soon!

Features:  
- Scan strips or rolls of 35mm film

- Scan full rolls in 2 minutes or less
- Keeps film perfectly flat for sharp scans
- Great starting point for the Negative Supply system

- Works well with our Basic Riser MK1 and 4x5 Light Source Basic
- Scan the borders/sprockets of your film with our Full Border Scanning Guides

Take the basic carrier with you on the go!

 
Loading a strip of 35mm film into the Basic Film Carrier 35

The basic kit in action

 

Suggested Accessories:  


- Basic Riser MK1:  Affordable and solid copy stand for scanning your film!  With a solid wooden base and machined aluminum head, this device is great for mounting both mirrorless and DSLR cameras for scanning.  Use this or a tripod you already own to keep your digital camera in a fixed position.  

- 4x5 Light Source Basic:  Light source specifically designed for scanning photographic film for 35mm up through 4x5.  Compact and bright, this is a great light pad for both color and black and white film.  Alternatively use your smartphone or iPad as a backlight!  

- Full Border Scanning Guides:  Love seeing the sprocket holes of your 35mm film?  Us too!  Use our Full Border Scanning Guides to scan the full frame of your film and see those beautiful borders!  


New to the process of scanning film with a digital camera?  Negative Supply is here to help!  Every Basic Film Carrier 35 ships with a quick reference guide and a scannable QR code with quick links to getting started videos, tips and tricks, and a link to schedule a free support call if you need further assistance.  


Our goal is for you to spend more time making photographs, not scanning them.  With our Basic Film Carrier 35, Basic Riser MK1, 4x5 Light Source Basic, and other exciting tools, you can do just that!  

Price:  $99 Retail as compared to $329 retail for Film Carrier MK1

Basic Film Carrier 35 is entirely made in house, hand assembled, and quality inspected by our team in Southern California.  With a rugged carbon fiber composite construction and a premium tolex exterior.

Check out the video below!


 

Interested in picking up a Basic Film Carrier? We are excited to be working exclusively with these wonderful retail partners on this launch! Check them out below. Are you a retailer interested in selling Negative Supply tools? Reach out to info@robertsdistributors.com

 

Guest UserComment
Negative Supply Spotlight : Ben Fraternale

We are very excited to feature the one and only Ben Fraternale from “In An Instant” on our latest spotlight!

Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.
”Hey there NS family! I am a director and photographer from New York with a wicked and highly publicized film addiction. Though I once orbited the analog community from afar, I threw on some dive gear and plunged hard into the YouTube game over a year ago, launching an instant film series called In An Instant. Though my channel goes deep into the craft of Polaroid photography, I have absolutely adored being a part of the broader analog community and I think I’m speaking for a lot of us in saying it kept me sane during the ‘Rona”

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Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“As an ambitious young lad I started shooting professional football at a very young age, eventually worming my way into press credentials in high school and learning the craft through trial and error. My mom studied photography at college and being raised around designers and creatives, I think I naturally gravitated toward cameras and image making. Despite those creatives and cameras around me, I noticed at a certain point that my family had suddenly stopped taking photos. The digital revolution had put off my grandparents and large gaps in our recorded family history started swelling. I think it was at that point that I started to really hone in on photographing everything, making sure every memory was captured and transforming my surroundings into food for my lens.”  

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Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“I think in a life of image making, film is the “spice.” Sure, the final image is the grand goal and it should stand beyond the medium, but the abundance of flavors and processes offered by film keeps me engaged in a much different capacity than digital. It’s just more interesting to me on every level. It also keeps me in touch with the physical world. I love disconnecting from pixels and shooting on a tactile medium that takes up material space around me (too much space if you ask my girlfriend). I think everyone in the analog community is bound by that spiritual connection to this tangibility and the humanness of creating something real. “


Q: What are some of your favorite film stocks?

“Bury me with Ektachrome. I just love it. I think in many ways it goes hand in hand with my passion for Polaroid (SX-70 and 600 film), which also produces a positive image and has to be shot similarly due to its narrow latitude. I get boomed every time I see those slides over the light table! I also have to give a shoutout to our fallen soldier FP-100C, Fuji’s peel apart film which produces a wild negative and a beautiful positive print. Having the instant gratification as well as the splash of darkroom magic in claiming the negatives is an engrossing combination everyone will be mourning until the end of days.”


Q: What inspires me most when it comes to your photography?

“I think my biggest inspiration is time. Without any accurate idea of how long I will be alive, I’m constantly propelled and compelled to produce imagery of a life lived. Not only that, but watching my surroundings shift with the passage of time keeps my lens engaged on certain subjects from the past that could disappear at a moment’s notice. And I don’t really mean this in a morbid way, just to say that I want to love and appreciate the colors and life around me; photography is my way of savoring that.”

Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“My Negative Supply 8x10 film holder has been absolutely clutch for me. As someone who shoots on a dizzying array of formats, from 645 to 8x10, this scanning tool has breathed a lot of joy and ease into my post-production process. I was finally able to go back and scan some of my favorite chunky peel apart negatives and I’ve had a blast scanning strips of my slide film to form diptychs, tryptics, and whatever the higher number -yptics are called. When it comes to my 8x10 negatives, of course it is a life saver, and having a simple and repeatable process for digitizing them only encourages me to shoot more (which is big for business)”

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Q: What camera are you using for scanning?

“I use a Canon 5DS R, my studio darling who is suddenly a celluloid-capturing workhorse!”

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We’d like to thank Ben for sharing his work with us! You can check out more of his work on Instagram. Check out the tools Benused below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

 
 
Guest UserComment
Negative Supply Spotlight: Emily Swift

Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.

“Hi! I’m Emily Swift, a fashion and portrait photographer based out of Connecticut and as of recently, a film lab owner! I’ve been shooting and processing film since my freshman year of high school, almost 11 years now. “

Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“My passion for photography came from a class I signed up for my freshman year. I remember going into high school and looking at the electives and thinking “oh photography might be fun” ha! If only I knew it would completely take over my life!

This was back in 2010, and my grandfather gifted me his Minolta XG1 that he traveled the world with after the Korean War. I still have that camera and shoot with it. The class was centered around black and white film. I learned how to shoot with that camera and many many many rolls of tmax 100. I will never forget the first time I printed in the darkroom. I remember watching the photo come to life in the developer, and basically never looking back after that. I became completely absorbed in photography, I wanted to do it all, learn it all, and leave no corner of any process untouched. I went on to study in photography in college where I got to explore alternative processes, medium format, and large format. I went on to open my studio after that, and now I’m running a film lab out of that same studio”


Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“I was an artist before I was a photographer, and when you create a piece of art through mark-making methods like drawing or painting, it’s a process. Film is a process. Digital? I mean, it’s a process, but it’s a very different type of process. You have instant gratification with digital. You don’t have that when it comes to drawing, painting, and film. There’s so many calculated steps, so much room for error, and so many decisions along the way to yield a specific result. But what I really love about it is that it’s a medium you work with, it’s not just a digital creation. Depending on how you shoot it, process it, you are effecting an actual tangible thing, the negative. There is no quick and easy when it comes to film. Even if you blow through a roll on a point and shoot, there is still the second half of creating your work which is the processing step. Something a photographer said to me once that has always stuck with me is, “If one day there is a catastrophic technology error, and all the computers, hard drives, phones, everything stopped working… you would still have your negatives”


Q: What are some of your favorite film stock?

“Ahh! The out of production ones of course! Lol! My favorite color film is Fuji Reala, which I recently learned was marketed to studio photographers so it’s no wonder I love it so much. For black and white my favorite has to be Tmax3200… thank you Kodak for bringing that one back!! The grain structure is so beautiful on it. Now if only it was also available in 120 “


Q: What inspires me most when it comes to your photography?

My goal for my photography has always been the same- I want people to think twice about it. If an image causes a reaction out of somebody I won. Wether it be good or bad, a reaction & a second thought is what i want. We live in an era where art is posted on social media timelines and only appreciated for a fracture of a second. I want my images to cause people to stop and think about it. “How did she do that?” Or even if it’s just a strong enough image that their eyes gaze across it, up and down, between the negative space and the subject… i just want people to feel something when they see my work. A photo might be good, but to me it’s a failure if it doesn’t get a reaction. Pushing for this has forced me to challenge myself and really think about the work I’m producing. I look back to my photo books at the work of photographers like Walker Evan’s, Richard Avedon, Irving Penn…ya knows, the greats, and there is something about their work that just forces you to pause and observe. I want that for my work. That’s what inspires me.”

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Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“I could on about this all day! Coming from a traditional background with photography as a darkroom printer, the modern work flow of working with film sucks in my opinion. When you work with film in the darkroom flow, it’s a three step thing, shooting, processing, printing. Now it’s shooting, processing, scanning. Printing is WAY more enjoyable than scanning. When I got out of college and lost access to being able to process and print i did what everybody typically does and got an epson v600. I would drop my film off to get developed, and honestly, MAYBE I would scan it. The scanning process on a flatbed takes so long and is so tedious I completely hated it. I didn’t like how any of my scans would come out, I hated that it would take like 1-2 hours just to scan ONE roll, and it was a good day if you were able to get through a roll without dealing with Newton rings. I was getting my film developed and it would just stack up and up and up on my scanning to do list, and overwhelm me to the point that i just wouldn’t even do it. When I started to get everything together to start processing myself again in preparation for launching my lab, I knew I had to re-consider my scanning set up.

I believe flatbed scanning 35mm is cruel and unusual punishment. I quickly realized there were no scanners on the market that fit was I was looking for. My requirements were simple, efficiency and quality. But modern film scanners just don’t exist with those two things in mind. I didn’t want to invest in an out of production scanner either, so I was THRILLED when I discovered Negative Supply. The set up offers me both efficiency and quality. Or as i like to say “fat juicy tiff files”. I’m not one of those purists, I edit my film. I hate this argument because realistically as soon as you scan your film it’s edited. Why not use the tools we have today? My favorite set up when I’m shooting in studio is my Hasselblad 500c + 40mm Distagon lens. This lens is just wide enough that most of my frames are wider than my seamless paper. So because of this, I usually patch back in the paper. In order to do that properly I NEED as much information as possible in the scan. I need the grain detail there on the film, I need the colors to be accurate, or else it just won’t work. This set up has also allowed me to fall back in love with 35mm. I actually stopped shooting 35mm because I hated the scan results so much.

With the negative supply kit I’m getting WAY BETTER results. Not only are the results better, but it’s SO MUCH FASTER to scan. My 35mm scans can now be treated like any digital file from my camera. This gives so much power with not only editing, but printing capabilities as well. In the time it would take me to set up my flat bed, I’m already done scanning the roll with my negative supply set up. This speed & efficiency will help me keep my turn around time fast when it comes to my lab, and still have time to manage my own film.” 

Q: What camera are you using to scanning?

“I use a Sony a7iii & canon 100mm 2.8 lens! In the future i hope to upgrade to a medium format digital for scanning my 120 & 4x5 film. How cool is that that now i can not only upgrade my digital camera for my digital work, but also have it benefit my film workflow? So exciting!!! I would much rather invest in a new camera than scanner, which is another reason i LOVE Negative Supply.”

We’d like to thank Emily for sharing her work with us! You can check out more of her work on Instagram. You can send her your film to be processed here. Check out the tools Emily used below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

 
 
 
 
Guest UserComment
Weekley Round Up: Week 16

Every week the Negative Supply team will share their favorite photography related content. Whether it’s a YouTube video we really like, a photo book we just picked up or a documentary we just watched. This is in an effort to highlight folks in the community, and inspire each other and you. Check out the links below!

Chris’s Recommendation- In An Instant- Kodak’s War vs Polaroid & The Instant Film Disaster [Instant Breakdown]

Ben tells the story of Kodak VS Polaroid and their fight over instant photography. It’s some great film photography history and once of my favorite stories! And he’s in Rochester, the home of Kodak!

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Guest UserComment
Negative Supply Spotlight: JR Kingdon

We are very excited to feature JR. Kingdon on our latest spotlight! Check out his images and interview below.


Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.

“Hey everyone! My name is JR Kingdon and I’m an amateur photographer based out of Ontario, Canada. I shoot a variety of different subjects and they change quite often! I also run a mini-lab based out of my house. I was tired of waiting 3 months for my film to be developed from our only local lab and I was sure everyone else in my area felt the same way. I named it Niagara Film Co. and it’s been up and running since September of 2020.”


Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“t’s actually kind of a funny story. I’ve always had interest in photography and while I was in high school I got huge into concert photography while going to local shows/concerts and seeing the photographers shoot in the pit. I was a broke high school student that couldn’t afford a camera and knew it was too expensive to ask my parents for one. I ended up putting that idea on the back burner.”

“Fast forward a few years, I was being pushed to go back to school after a failed attempt at graphic design and figured Photography would be a pretty good option. I thought “Hey, I can learn photography, AND get a camera…IM IN!”. From there I did a 2 year college program where I learned the basics of photography, got to utilize a bunch of studio equipment, and make some amazing friends along the way. Now, 3 years later, I’m still enjoying getting out to shoot, testing out new film cameras, and trying new styles.”


Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“It’s a cliche answer but it’s the same reason I collect vinyl. I love the tangible aspect of it. Picking out a roll, loading it up, shooting it, developing, and scanning or printing is all so hands on. It just makes you feel more connected to the image versus shooting a million photos on a SD card, picking your favourite, moving a few sliders on Lightroom and exporting the image. Not that there is anything wrong with that of course!” 

“It also slows me down. I was that guy who would shoot his XT3 on burst mode shooting 16fps and then going through 2,000 photos after an hour shoot. Being able to do that made me ignore any of the “rules” of photography, or composition, or anything really because I knew that there was bound to be one good photo out of those 2,000 shots.” 

“Or maybe I’m just a hipster. I guess it depends on who you ask haha.”

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Q: What are some of your favorite film stock?

I”’ve gotta go with the obvious and say the Portra line. Portra 400 is my go to for just about everything and 800 really has a special place in my heart. As of late, Cinestill 800T at night has been really capturing my interest. I’ve only shot about 5 rolls of it but every time I scan a roll in I fall more in love with it. Considering I never shoot night time photography I love that it really pushes me out of my comfort zone. “

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Q: What inspires you most when it comes to your photography?

“It’s really other creatives. Scrolling through instagram and seeing amazing work people are creating, or watching photo walk videos on YouTube seriously gets me itching to go out and shoot. I used to be very picky on what I shot. It was only portraits and only outdoors. As of the last year I’ve been really pushing myself to get out and shoot whatever whether that’s a run down car, an abandoned building, a landscape, or a planned out portrait. I’ve really been wanting to get into collecting photo books as well. I’m sure that would be an amazing source of inspiration (and look good in my office on the bookshelf). So feel free to send any recommendations my way!”

Q: How have our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“It’s just made EVERYTHING easier. I used an Epson V600 before this and waiting 40 minutes for some scans was just not my vibe. I picked up the 35mm carrier for myself after following the kickstarter, seeing a bunch of people using it and finally deciding I needed one. I also remember picking up my first medium format cameras and immediately knowing the first thing I needed was the 120 carrier. Being able to scan a whole roll in 2 minutes is a game changer especially with running a small scale lab. I’m scanning 20+ rolls a week and doing that with a flatbed would just result in me going bald from either stress or pulling my hair out. Whichever comes first.

My next purchases will be a Negative Supply copy stand to replace my janky rigged up copy stand, a better light, and the pro riser (definitely with that dust brush) as well as some small accessories. My goal by the end of 2021 (budget allowing) is to transfer my scanning process from my lab to be run 100% on Negative Supply products”

Q: What camera are you using for scanning?

“Right now I’m using a Fujifilm X-T3 with a 7Artisans 60mm macro lens and it’s working perfectly for me! The only upgrade I might make is a better macro lens like one of the Fujinon macros, although that’s not a priority at the moment. 

 

We’d like to thanks to JR for sharing his work with us! You can check out more of his work on Instagram. Check out the tools JR used below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

 
 
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Behind the Scenes at Negative Supply

We wanted to pull back the curtain and give you a behind the scenes look at our production operation in Southern California! Absolutely all of our tools are hand assembled and shipped by our team at our headquarters. Below you’ll see candid images of our talented team members working to bring you the very best scanning solutions on the market. We also wanted to say thank you for your support over this very challenging year, as that support has fueled our promise for sustained and future innovation in the film photography industry.

Andy managing a portion of our 3D printing operation

Andy managing a portion of our 3D printing operation

Andy assembling our 4x5 Light Source Basic and Film Carrier 35MD sub-assembly

Andy assembling our 4x5 Light Source Basic and Film Carrier 35MD sub-assembly

Film Carrier MK1 units staged for advance knobs to be installed

Film Carrier MK1 units staged for advance knobs to be installed

Film Carrier 35mm Hood units waiting on final QC and packaging

Film Carrier 35mm Hood units waiting on final QC and packaging

Joe assembling Film Carrier 120 hinges (Diego in background)

Joe assembling Film Carrier 120 hinges (Diego in background)

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Diego working in the shop

Diego working in the shop

Rhombie assembling Film Carrier 35mm Hood units

Rhombie assembling Film Carrier 35mm Hood units

8x10 lights

8x10 lights

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Saxon soldering electronics for our light source

Saxon soldering electronics for our light source

Weekly Round Up: Week 15

Every week the Negative Supply team will share their favorite photography related content. Whether it’s a YouTube video we really like, a photo book we just picked up or a documentary we just watched. This is in an effort to highlight folks in the community, and inspire each other and you. Check out the links below!


AJ Recommendation-The Eternal Moment: Essays On The Photographic Image (Aperture Writers & Artists on Photography)

“I bought this book (along with several others) to continue learning about photography after receiving my bachelor’s degree. Foregoing obtaining an MFA for now, this book has continued to inspire me in the same way that a lecture might.”

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Andy’s Recommendation-Anton Corbijn

“As a musician growing up in the 80’s-90’s, I had always been drawn to Anton’s photography. He has always had an incredible ability to make deeply connected portraits, while maintaining a sense of mystery in his subjects. He inspired me to get a Hasselblad!”

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Chris’s Recommendation-Intrepid’s new portable enlarger kickstarter

I was lucking enough to try a demo of this enlarger and it’s an absolute gamer changer. Being able to set up a darkroom in the smallest of spaces really inspired me to get back into darkroom printing. I’m absolutely in love!

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Negative Supply Spotlight: Tim Anderson

We are very excited to feature Tim Anderson on our latest spotlight!

Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community. 

 “Tim Anderson here, alias dv over dt, a reference to a rather nasty old 429 Police Interceptor powered Mach 1 I built up in an earlier life. My bill paying gig is electrical engineering.  Once, when asked if I was a professional photographer: “I make my living as an engineer, but I do photography to actually live.” “

Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography? 

 “The attraction started in my early 20s. I had a toy camera as a kid, but things took off when I got my shiny new Canon T70. I was early on fascinated with night photography, wondering just what would happen if I fully exposed film after the sun went down. Then, too I’ve always had an attraction for the cast off, the faded icons of another era, and photography was one way to capture and preserve these things before they faded away altogether.” 

Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film? 

“The tactile process. Loading the film. The mechanical feel of an OM1 shutter. I like having a hand in the entire process, from capturing the photo all the way through development, scanning, and printing. The process ticks all my boxes: the artistic aspects of stalking and capturing THE image, chemical wizardry turning an ugly brown piece of film into a stunning Velvia transparency, and the engineering chain allowing my Canon Pro2000 to spit out a stunning print, which gives the gift of reliving what I felt in that moment when everything came together and the shutter tripped. 

 Q: What are some of your favorite film stock? 

 “If I only had one to shoot for eternity? Velvia 50. It does things with desert twilight no other film can. Rollei CR200 and its many namesakes: it pulls off two unique looks that I love depending on subject matter and whether processed E6 or C41. I also enjoy good old color negative film for the way it allows me to shoot in blasting desert sunlight, as well as the way it tames the dynamic range in a night shot of vintage neon. Favorites here would be Ektar 100, Portra 800 even at high noon, and the drugstore films like Kodak Gold and Fuji C200, because they captured so many moments for so many people: theirs is the look of nostalgia. And finally, for black and white: XX-5222 for that classic high contrast look, and P3200 for letting me treat my Rollei 35 like digital, doing hand held night shots.” 

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 Q: What inspires me most when it comes to your photography? 

 “The siren song of the open road is a cliché. But for good reason. Nothing makes me happier than hitting that Texas/New Mexico border, headed west and loaded up with camera gear. I could spend the rest of my life photographing the American Southwest and not even scratch the surface of what it offers.”  

Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow? 

 “How about: making the entire thing possible? The one thing we can’t make more of is time. And, especially for hybrid shooters like myself who print digitally, a quality electronic capture of film is vital. I primarily shoot medium format film, and scanning options are either slow, expensive or unreliable. And sometimes all three. I can digitize a roll of 120 at 61 mp in two minutes, and that’s with me hitting the film with a rocket blower between each frame. If I had to rely on other methods I’d be shooting a lot less film.”  

 Q: What camera are you using to scanning? 

 “Sony A7Riv and Sony G series 90mm macro. Scan once, at the best quality possible, that way you don’t have to go back and do it over later.”

We’d like to thank Tim for sharing his work with us! You can check out more of his work on Instagram. Check out the tools Tim used below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

 
 
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Negative Supply + FilmLab - Introducing Light Source Calibration Profiles

With FilmLab 2.2 for negative conversions, new features allow for more accurate and realistic scans, including profiles for Negative Supply Light Sources and Falloff Calibration.

Before: Natural vignetting caused by the lens and camera setup (plus minor falloff from the light source) cause the light corners to be brighter than they would with conventional scans. After: As you can see, the natural vignette is more pronounced,…

Before: Natural vignetting caused by the lens and camera setup (plus minor falloff from the light source) cause the light corners to be brighter than they would with conventional scans. After: As you can see, the natural vignette is more pronounced, and the corners are not artificially brightened as in the top image. Keep in mind this is a GIF image, and email compression does effect image quality.

A Collaboration

Over the last year, Negative Supply has had the amazing opportunity to work with Develop & Fix, the developers of FilmLab. When we began talking through calibration science, we realized how important it would be to have accurate information about the light source spectral output. We also started looking at user calibration for falloff correction, which if you’ve used a camera scanning setups before, you’ll recognize as un-naturally bright corners due to scanning lens vignetting and light source falloff.

Lastly, we wanted to remind everyone that FilmLab offers a 14 day trial, so if you haven’t had an opportunity to try it out, now is a great time to.

We’ve include a few features below, but encourage you to check out his website for more information and example images.

  • Falloff correction. If you’ve spent time scanning negatives with a camera, you’ve probably been frustrated by visual issues caused by uneven lighting. Any unevenness in your backlight or vignetting in your scanning lens ends up reversed and amplified, which can give your scans bright corners and shifted colors. So we collaborated with our friends at Negative Supply to come up with a solution. Here’s how it works: When scanning a roll of film, take a picture of your light source with no film in front of it. Then tell FilmLab to use this image to correct for falloff. The result: evenly-exposed scans with no color shifting, and the true vignetting character of the lens you used to capture the original shot on film.

  • More backlight profiles: We’ve added built-in backlight profiles for the Negative Supply Light Source Basic and Light Source Pro. This makes it easy to calibrate for accurate colors when using these popular models. Thanks to Negative Supply for sharing spectral data on their lights so we could build these profiles.

We where incredibly honored to have our tools integrate with FilmLab, and can’t wait to see the work produced by our customers.

Best,

Saxon, AJ, & the Negative Supply Team

 
 

Examples

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“Those are non-contrived real world examples using a macro lens at f/8 and a non-professional LED light source. It really is a killer feature - I never want to camera scan without falloff correction again--and it’s one of those things that once you …

“Those are non-contrived real world examples using a macro lens at f/8 and a non-professional LED light source. It really is a killer feature - I never want to camera scan without falloff correction again--and it’s one of those things that once you see you can’t un-see, especially photos with blue sky where the top edge and corners look less blue” - Abe, the Developer of FilmLab

Negative Supply Spotlight : Kyle Gostinger

We are very excited to feature Guilhem Reinaud on our latest spotlight!

Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.

“Hi everyone! My name is Kyle Gostinger. I’m a hobbyist portrait and documentary photographer currently based in Seattle, WA.”

Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“My grandfather was a professional photographer his entire life. He bought me my first camera, an Olympus Stylus Epic(that still works!), in 1992. I shot a little bit after that but I never really connected with the medium until my grandfather’s death in 2015. I inherited his remaining camera equipment  and decided to explore the medium once again as part of my grieving process. I’ve been hooked ever since!” 

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Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“I work in tech so my days are spent looking at, thinking about, and discussing technology. Having an escape that has nothing to do with software or computers (except for scanning of course!) is really really refreshing and helps me recharge after long days/weeks in front of a screen” 

Q: What are some of your favorite film stocks?

“I’m really boring when it comes to film stocks. Early on I shot anything and everything I could get my hands on. Weird Lomo stuff, basically every Ilford film at one time or another, and lots and lots of expired slide film. All fun but it got tiring after a while. These days I stick mainly to Kodak Tri-X and Portra 400. I spent a long time making sure I felt comfortable with my film choices. These days I enjoy playing with other variables like different lenses and developing methods to adjust my results.”

Q: What inspires me most when it comes to your photography?

“I think it depends on what I’m shooting. If I’m out shooting random things or documenting my family I try and capture a moment that I couldn’t recreate. The excitement of my daughter on a swing for the first time, some guy falling off a monowheel, whatever. I don’t end up capturing much while I’m out shooting like this because it takes kind of a lot to compel me to release the shutter these days. I studied sociology for a while in college and loved it. I think shooting portraits and learning about my subjects is an extension of that interest. With a stressful job and a young kid it’s nice to have an excuse to get out and meet new people with the added bonus of getting to shoot at the same time.” 

Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“Control and consistency. Before getting my negative supply setup (35mm, 120, and 4x5 carriers with a copy stand and 5x7 Light Source Pro) I scanned using an Epson v700 and occasionally got lab scans depending on the work. By combining the negative supply carriers with Negative Lab Pro, I’ve been extremely happy with the quality of my scans. I can’t imagine a better solution outside of maybe actual darkroom printing.” 

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Q: What camera are you using to scan?

“I’m currently using a Nikon D850 with a Micro Nikkor 60mm 2.8. I don’t use my D850 for anything else these days unless I’m taking photos for a friend's business or some other non-personal photos.”

We’d like to thank Kyle for sharing his work with us! You can check out more of his work on Instagram. Check out the tools Kyle used below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co


 
 
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Weekly Round Up: Week 14

Every week the Negative Supply team will share their favorite photography related content. Whether it’s a YouTube video we really like, a photo book we just picked up or a documentary we just watched. This is in an effort to highlight folks in the community, and inspire each other and you. Check out the links below!

Rhombie’s Recommendation - Cherry Hill: A Childhood Reimagined by Jona Frank

“I recently finished reading Cherry Hill: A Childhood Reimagined by Jona Frank and I highly recommend it. Cherry Hill is a photographic memoir dedicated to ‘Every girl, in every town who ever thought, what else?’

Throughout the book Frank’s words and photographs visually recreate her childhood in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. In chronological order we follow Frank from Elementary school to the realization that she craves something more than her hometown can offer her. As you read it, you might fondly recall the moment a camera first landed in your hands and how your world began to grow.”

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Alan’s Recommendation The science of TinType Photography || Adam Savage’s Tested

“I’ve been interested in making tintype photographs ever since I started dabbling in alternative processes. This video that came out in 2012 just makes me want to dive into the collodion process even more!”  

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Chris’s Recommendation- Herbie Pabst "Random Shots from New Jersey" Volume One.

Herbie is new to Youtube and has great video on his favorite cameras. In this video he introduces he very first zine that is made up of photos he made during 2020 on black and white film. I love Herbie Channel and look forward to every video. You should absolutely subscribe!

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New Product: A Collaboration Between Negative Supply & Brooklyn Film Camera

Instant Processor

A collaboration between Negative Supply and Brooklyn Film Camera - The Instant Processor is a developing chamber to ensure a perfect environment for your Polaroid film to develop with accurate colors.

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We believe that every polaroid is an artistic expression. Give your images the optimal ingredients to come to life by providing them a temperature-controlled, light-tight developing environment no matter where you go. From cold, snowy mountains to warm, sandy beaches to unpredictable, bustling studios. When your images eject from the camera, simply slide them in and the Instant Processor will ensure that they develop beautifully every time; shielded from light, safe from dirt and debris, in a temperature-optimized chamber.

Brooklyn Film Camera and Negative Supply have developed a product that functionally and handsomely solves the problems that instant photographers face. Provide yourself the security of a perfect polaroid every time.

Weekly Round Up: Week 13

Every week the Negative Supply team will share their favorite photography related content. Whether it’s a YouTube video we really like, a photo book we just picked up or a documentary we just watched. This is in an effort to highlight folks in the community, and inspire each other and you. Check out the links below!

Chris’s Recommendation: “How to make film soup” Emily Swift

FIlm souping is something I have wanted to try for YEARS, so I loved watching Emily’s experiment. She got some amazing results and I’m definitely want to give this a try!

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Andy’s Recommendation: Intrepid Camera

I recently purchased the Intrepid 4x5 and love shooting with it. Intrepid is a great company and feels like a contemporary to Negative Supply. Consider them if you are getting into large format photography.

Alan’s Recommendation: “Jobo Machines || Super Film” Support Nico Photography Show (As a film photographer you spend a lot of money sending your film off to a lab or time developing your film at home in a variety of creative ways. I myself have been looking into Jobo processing to make my processing more consistent and efficient. Nico has a ton of videos helping photographers narrow down what jobo processor would be right for their needs. I will be investing in a CPP3 in the near future because I know it will help my career over time.)

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Weekly Round Up :Week 12

Every week the Negative Supply team will share their favorite photography related content. Whether it’s a YouTube video we really like, a photo book we just picked up or a documentary we just watched. This is in an effort to highlight folks in the community, and inspire each other and you. Check out the links below!

Alan’s Recommendation: The Best Books for Printing Fine Art Photo video by Mitch Boyer “Over the last week I’ve picked up a photo printer (Canon Pixma Pro 100) and now I am utterly obsessed with making the best prints possible. I would love to be printing in the darkroom but for now I’ll settle for inkjet printing. Mitch Boyer quit the printing business last year but his videos live on forever on YouTube. Teaching professionals and amateurs alike the fundamentals of printing your work.”

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Chris’s Recommendation: How I Film My Youtube Videos by The Photo Dept.” I recently discovered Christopher’s channel. (I know, I don’t know where I’ve been) And I really enjoy his videos. As someone who is looking to improve the quality of my own Youtube videos I really loved his advice in this video. Check him out and subscribe to his channel!”

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AJ’s Recommendation: “Black and White Photography: A Basic Manual” by Henry Horenstein “ This book is a well rounded text that covers all the basics of exposing, developing, and printing black and white film. It additionally inspires in the way of composition, intentionality and the art of making discriminate choices when making a photograph”

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Negative Supply Spotlight : Guilhem Reinaud

We are very excited to feature Guilhem Reinaud on our latest spotlight!


Hi there! Introduce yourself to the Negative Supply community.

“Hello! I’m Guilhem, I’m from Paris (France) and I’m an amateur photographer.
I work as a creative director in digital area. After many years in agencies in Paris, I have worked for Jaeger-LeCoultre (watch brand in Geneva, Switzerland) In this position, I had the change to work with many pro photographers and cinematographers, I have learned a lot but not only from them, but also by myself, today it’s very easy to access to good content on Youtube or websites.”

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Q: How did you first discover your passion for photography?

“My father gave me his old Pentax Mx in my childhood, it’s has been a blast.
During my creative studies, I‘ve used it a lot, I had 3 prime lens (35, 50, 135) which were perfect to learn photography. After this, I had a F70 and F3 Nikon, in 2006, like everyone I made a switch to digital, I began with the Nikon D200, D750 and finally the D850.

But in 2018 I was disappointed by digital photography, too much presets, filters, HDR, time lapse, focus stacking, too many editing possibilities…

I used to take more than 200 photographs at each session and I spent more time on my computer than outside. So I decided to come back to analog with my trusty F3 and that was a reveal for me. I bought a Sekonic meter and I worked manually with real lens (metal no cheap plastic).

Quickly I bought a Mamiya 7 and I was so impressed by the medium format quality.

Now, I’m lucky enough to have all my dream cameras, Mamiya 7, Mamiya RZ67 PRO II, Pentax 67.”


Q: What do you enjoy most about shooting film?

“Analog photography is very challenging, it takes time, money and you never know if the shoot is ok. Maybe your focus is not perfect, your DOF is too deep, your metering is to dark and your framing is too narrow. But at the end, it’s very rewarding to understand and control all the different steps.

It could be cheesy but with analog photography, I feel more as an artist. I’ve just past another step with 4x5, for me is like being a painter with his easel, you know what you want, you know that will takes time.

You have to radically change your approach. Think more shoot less!

I use an old Jobo CPE 2 and the Tetenal C41 kit, now with experience it’s very reliable.

It’s not fast as digital but in the same day I can shoot and in the evening I have my images.”

Q: What are some of your favorite film stock?

“I used to use slide film when I was young, but now I only use negative film. I’ve found with Kodak Portra the perfect way to reproduce natural things. Portra is very flexible and have beauty tones. I often use Kodak Ektar but I don’t master it yet, sometime the result is beautiful sometime too magenta.

I would like to try some Provia on 4x5 soon but slide films are so expensive.

Expired films are not reliable, it depends on the quality of storage, I had good results but it is too risky.

For 2021, my objective is B&W and I think Ilford XP2 Super 400 could be a good alternative, I would like keeping things simple, only one chemical at home, I do not make enough B&W for preserving B&W chemical”.


Q: How has our Negative Supply tools helped your workflow?

“I have tried a lot of different options for scanning, Nikon Coolscan, flatscan etc… Their were time consuming. I saw an article about something new on Kickstarter, I wanted to be part of it, I bought it. Since my scanning process is seamless, fast and reliable.

The quality is high and the feeling is like my Arca Swiss, I love using the metal wheel, very satisfying.”


Q: What support or tool can Negative Supply provide to help improve your experience?

“Lately, Negative Supply have released various products. I’m currently equip myself with 4x5 stuff. Maybe a French retailer :)”

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We’d like to thank Guilhem for sharing his work with us! You can check out more of his work on Instagram. Check out the tools Guilhem below! And if you’d like be featured on our blog send us a email at contact@negativesupply.co

 
 
 
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Weekly Round Up: Week 11

Every week the Negative Supply team will share their favorite photography related content. Whether it’s a YouTube video we really like, a photo book we just picked up or a documentary we just watched. This is in an effort to highlight folks in the community, and inspire each other and you. Check out the links below!

Chris’s Recommendation: “Film is Not Dead” by Jonathan Canlas

“I’ve been a fan of Jonathans work since a friend recommend I check him out when I was just getting back into shooting film. I’ve been obsessed with his work ever since. Jonathan is a pillar in the film community and dedicated to teaching photographers how to shoot film. This book is a great resource and has explanations with actual examples that are great for anyone who shoots film.

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Andy’s Recommendation: Herb Ritts - LA Style Book

“Herb Ritts created many of my favorite images. His work is sexy, sculptural, romantic and always beautiful.”

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Alan’s Recommendation: First Take At Something New

“Deans take on photography is something that has been inspiring me over the past few weeks. We have had tons of chats on the medium of film and the philosophy of what it’s like to be a photographer. This is his first video on YouTube and hopefully the start of something great!”

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Brennan’s Recommedation: Leica M10-P "Reporter" Digital Rangefinder Camera

“Leica has always released special editions, especially in the time of digital photography. Yes, we all know they’re expensive. I’m not going to get into whether it’s worth it or not but, I will say when you’re spending that much money then why not find one that looks good too. Find the “regular” M10 and M10-P kinda bland? Leica released one of my favorite designed special editions recently in the form of the Leica M10-P Reporter. I’m a big fan of the Safari cameras and this takes it a step further with a slightly different colorway and the use of Kevlar! No, it’s not meant for actual reporters and journalists to use and it probably won’t stop bullets but it’s definitely a cool conversation piece.”

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