The Cool Science Behind Developing Photographic Film

Engineer Destin Sandlin of Smarter Every Day explains the very cool science behind developing rolls of photographic film. This has become a bit of a lost art due to the ubiquity of digital photos.

There’s something different about film. It feels different. Like it’s not just the shutter click with a digital SLR you can just take as many photos as you want….But when you take a film photo, …you stop, you know, you have 36 rounds and you just take the shot, pull the trigger and you get the perfect shot. And you’re rewarded when you see your photos because you know you were in the moment more because you cared more about the photo.

Sandlin also visited with the folks at Indie Film Lab in Montgomery, Alabama, to find out more about how they develop film and their mission to keep film alive.

That special feeling of taking a film photo is the number one reason that film is making a comeback. And it is if you didn’t know that, 35-millimeter film is coming back in a big way. Today we’re going to explore all this. We’re going to learn about the chemistry, the science behind how this works, and the people that are working to preserve this art.