How I Edit my Black and White Film Portraits.
A video tutorial, transcript + bonus screenshots, and a look at the full roll!
Hey Film Fam, welcome back!
The spicy flu got me finally, so I’ve been mostly recovering from that. The fatigue has been hitting me hard and I haven’t had a lot of energy to do anything really. Still, despite this I managed to pull myself together enough to follow through with my promise and bring to you an actual Video Tutorial of how I edit my 35mm Film!
If you’re new here, welcome aboard! You’ve jumped in at the perfect time - go have a little sneaky look around at my archive of previous blogs, and various links all over the place, or tip toe over to my Instagram if you want to see some occasional chaotic IG stories about what’s happening behind the scenes.
Now, most of this Substack will be heavy with text as I spent hours typing out the entire transcript for the video, and I will add in screenshots along the way to further explain things.
Please stick around till the end to see the images in all their finalized glory. This is my first and only FREE Video tutorial - future ones will be a paid subscriber option to help continue to support my ability to bring such incredible and in depth resources to you for the fraction of the price compared to my 1:1 Mentorships, or In-Person Workshops (which will be launching soon! yay!)
An important announcement before I crack on with it -
If you didn’t already know I’m a Disabled artist and becoming a bit of a prominent voice in my little local Photography Community. I often talk candidly about the importance of true Inclusivity and improving Accessibility and other Disability needs as I try to navigate spaces that usually only cater to Able-bodied creatives. I cannot tell you how many Studios, Job offers, Workshops, even other creative’s Mentorships, etc that I have been invited to or tried to participate in, only to be met with hostility and excuses once I ask for my bare minimum needs to be addressed so I can actually show up fully and engage with it safely.
As a result of endless rejections and a frustration of lack of spaces for me to participate in, I’ve been forced to carve out my own spaces that include people like me with various Disabilities. Part of me is obviously angry at the injustice of it, but I am also grateful for the opportunity to hopefully make things a little better for others like me who are ignored and silenced.
It’s going to be (and has been) a lot of hard work, but I hope by giving back in this small way it will inspire others to step up and do the same - and I hope it encourages people to hire/pay Disabled Educators so others can learn how to improve community spaces often run by Able-bodied people. (And y’know, it's nice when people value our time and experience rather than always expecting free labor from us…)
So with that in mind, my plan is that every year I’ll have a handful of Donation-based Photoshoots (and other services) designed to give Disabled and other marginalized creatives an opportunity to work with me - whether that’s as a Model, Photographer, Makeup Artist, etc. Anyone and everyone can apply, but spaces will be prioritized to those most in need - and I’ve already had some wonderful engagement and interest which I’m exited about!
These kinds of community caretaking events and services have existed for decades and I have adopted this from various creatives I’ve been in community with over the years, so I am by no means the first person to make space for these sorts of things. It’s a great way to give back and to create a genuinely inclusive space - and being Disabled myself, it just made sense that someone with actual lived experience is the one to step up and help start to create a space that is otherwise lacking.
These are not profitable events either, everything is going to be as accessible financially as I can make it to give as many people a chance as possible - and yes that means I am potentially harming myself in the process so I need to be mindful of my own financial limitations. But if I am willing to operate a few shoots a year at almost a complete loss - and that brings joy to someone who otherwise can’t afford the experience - then it’s worth it to me.
So having said that, if you’d like to help out in any way, you can absolutely donate directly to me or upgrade to become a paid Substack subscriber.
If you are within the Blue Mountains, Sydney, or South Coast areas and want to be involved in-person - ask me over on my Instagram DM's about my multi-tiered Photoshoot Session offers as a part of this program/initiative. Limited spots are available over the next 6 months, so jump on it while you can!
I plan to create a “Caretaker” tier as part of this program in the near future - which will essentially allow people to pay/donate additional money if they’re able to do so. This will help me offer more Donation Based sessions, workshops, mentorships, etc. for those who are otherwise unable to access those services.
There’s a lot of work to do - of course there’s the risk of people abusing the system and taking advantage of things, but I’m hopeful that with a few rules in place most people will be respectful and trustworthy in the little community I’ve been building.
(Once again this is a concept adopted from the Economic Sliding Scales that are seen in Creative communities, and is already implemented in spaces like Substack as can be seen with the Free vs Paid subscriptions and ‘pay what you’re able to’ multi-tier systems/spaces like Patreon, etc. A great explanation can be found here)
Let’s get on with it!
Now with that out of the way, here’s your usual warning - As always these newsletters tend to be quite rambly (already is!), photo heavy, and have the vibe of catching up with that one friend you haven’t seen in a while who’s just very passionate about all things film.
So if that’s your kind of jam, you’re in the right place!
Grab a coffee, settle in, and let’s get into this Video Tutorial and the film roll!