It’s no secret around these parts that I love film. I have deep affection for my other cameras – my trusty DSLR with its fast, sharp glass, my stealthy X100s and my ever-present and ever-useful iPhone – but it’s film that really makes this photographer’s heart skip a beat. I love the unpredictable nature of photographing with film, but most of all I love the irreplacable and impossilbe-to-truly-recreate magical quality of film photographs.

Now, I will shoot film anywhere and any time. It is a rare occasion that I shoot something and don’t think about how it might look on film. There are some subjects, however, that have me reaching in my bag for my film camera, before any of the others or that prompt me to arrange my schedule to be there with film camera(s) in hand. It may be predictable or even cliché, but I’m ok with that. I’m a sucker for capturing nostalgia on film.

Vintage things? Check. I’ll happily load up my car and drive to a small-town classic car show in order to point my Polaroid at beauties like these:

Shady

T-Bird

While I was back home visiting in Vancouver last week my sister suggested that we take her kids for a day at the Pacific National Exhibition. I jumped at the chance, not only because I knew we’d have a great time but because it would give me a chance to photograph one of Vancouver’s icons. This wooden roller coaster has stood in this spot since 1958. It played a big role in my childhood and adolescent summers and in those of many kids before and after.

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And it’s not just the roller coaster. For me, fairs and midways evoke a sense of nostalgia that begs to be captured on film. Some of the rides may be new but the classic games and cotton candy stands don’t seem to have changed.

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img009Also unchanged? The pure joy of kids enjoying an ice cream cone.

Ice Cream

What about you? Are you as compelled as I am to capture your places, things and moments of nostalgia on film, or do you think I’m just a big sap? It’s ok. To each their own. I’ll be over here scouting nearby car shows and country fairs with a film camera or two in hand.

Debra ~ Manifeisty