Foto Gallery.

Obviously, the trick is to find the middle ground. Using a Hasselblad camera with a Carl Zeiss lens won’t automatically give us a good photograph. Tools are simply that: tools. They require experience for proper handling, and this can be truly complex.
I remember what it was like to measure ambient light and contrast with my Lunasix F light meter. The minty taste of the adhesive on my tongue when sealing 120 rolls. Loading the film onto the reels and developing the negatives. Hours spent in the lab with the smell of acetic acid soaking into your senses… It was a long and meticulous job, but in the end, it was worth it. Every baryta paper print was truly special.

I don’t think I would do it again.

However, since I started experimenting with my current smartphone, something has changed. Now I’ve rediscovered the joy of taking photos like before, but without the tedious part. Technology allows me to achieve contrast ranges that were once unimaginable. I no longer have to spend hours in the lab to get a really good image (though I miss the smell of the stop bath). I don’t need to carry multiple (and extremely expensive) lenses. I don’t have to worry about running out of film, and costs have dropped to almost nothing. Finally, if I really like an image, I can share it instantly—or even publish it right here.

For me, 6x6 monochrome photography has returned, but in a different way.