Light Leak Photography
So I had an interesting situation, my camera had a light leak. This means that the bottom part of my film in sections was exposed and ruined a portion of the film. I honestly thought it was ruined… but on the contrary it was a blessing in disguise. Let’s look at light leaks, and also why mistakes made on film can actually be the best learning experience. Even better it can even improve you image.
A light leak is pretty simple. It is essentially where light exposed the film due to poor seals around your camera’s film door. Now in most situations this can be bad. If you are shooting a wedding and the client specifically asks or film you may have ruined the shoot! Film cameras are getting older these days and the seals are wearing out, so check your seals often to help prevent this. Also you may still be able to find replacement seals online, so if you are noticing light leaks, it’s a good idea to do a quick search on the google database for a replacement seal.
Now my light leak wasn’t on a critical shoot. It was shooting with a friend and her model. The light leak actually created this magical aura on the right side of the frame. Light leaks can be problems, but can also create artistic photos that have a random and uncontrollable outcome. A great example of a camera that is know for light leaks is the Holga toy cameras. It was notorious or having a soft lens and also was prone to light leaks. This style of photography is coveted by many photographers because of it’s low -fi nature; this creates a style often referred to as lomography. It takes photography away from the high quality clean images we have come to expect. If you get a chance you should google it. It really does create a dreamy and creative image. So when you create a mistake, remember there is a chance you actually created something unique and interesting. There are people after all trying to accomplish that look.
Don’t avoid mistakes when creating images, as they can be the mistakes that take your work to the next level. Even if you know there is a mistake, finish the task and see what the outcome is. Even if it’s a dud, at least you can learn from the mistake and know how to avoid it in the future. Sometimes you will get a magical image, all because you finished your mistakes.