Keith Wood
Tell us a little about yourself! Where are you from/where do you currently live? What do you like to do besides photography?
My name is Keith Wood, I’m 23 years old and I was born up north in Kitimat, but I’ve spent the majority of my life here in Kamloops. Other than photography, I dabble a little in videography on a very amateur level, and during the summer months I love to get out and ride my motorcycle around the outskirts of town.
When did you first get into photography? When did you start shooting film?
I got into film photography about 5 years ago, but started taking it a lot more seriously over the last 2 years. Before that, it was just the occasional iPhone pic here and there. I’ve shot a bit of digital every now and then but I always find myself drawn back to film for the unmistakable tactile feeling it provides.
"I love this photo because it captures the feeling of summer so well. Everything is basked in warm light with a certain softness to it that I haven't ever really captured since. "
What kind/style of photography are you currently shooting? What style of photography do you find yourself drawn to? Is there something you would like to start shooting?
Currently, it’s a whole lot of whatever strikes me as interesting. I tend to struggle a little bit with inspiration during the winter due to the colder weather and the often dull lighting. In a way, it forces me to be more creative with my photography by pushing me back inside and into places I otherwise wouldn’t normally have my camera with me.
I have always found myself heavily drawn to the pastel colours and bright exposures of the typical American Southwest genre of photography, and often attempt to emulate it here at home. I typically tend to miss the mark lol. I hope to refine my composition over the coming summer to finally join the ranks of the true Instagram Photographers™.
I want to transition to shooting portraiture of my friends, but this has proven to be fairly difficult given the current circumstances we find ourselves in. Here’s hoping we can get things under control sooner rather than later.
What’s your dream camera?
For 120, hands down the Pentax 67. My friend Dillon (@fearandloathingin35mm) has a 67 with the 105mm lens and it blows me away every single time I see the images that thing can produce.
For 35mm, probably the Pentax LX for that spicy off the film metering.
Is there a film stock you haven’t gotten the chance to try but really want to?
I never had the chance to try out Fuji Pro 400H before the discontinuation which bums me out. I really like the idea of using it for an editorial style shoot. Maybe one day. A close runner-up would be any of the Silberra color films.
"The reason I love this photo so much is just how perfectly it captures exactly what I think of when I think of film photography. The grain, the colours, the highlights, everything about it just screams film to me. It's especially important to me because I thought that I had lost the only print I had of the frame, but I came across it by chance while I was flipping through old negatives that I never got around to scanning."
What camera are you currently using the most? What’s your go-to film stock?
While I am fortunate enough to own a few great film cameras such as my Canon EOS 620 or my Bronica SQ-A, the camera I often find myself reaching for first is actually my first ever film camera, my Pentax ME Super. Autofocus is a fantastic tool to have on the 620, but I’ve found for the type of work I’m doing these days that it’s best to slow down and take my time with composition.
My go-to film stock right now is Kodak Gold 200. I find it to be a fantastic stock with a lot of latitude for a decent price. Although if money was no object, I’d likely stock up on a bunch of Portra 400.
One camera, one film, one location for an entire year. What are they? (don’t worry about costs, it can be a discontinued stock, assume a film lab is at your location)
Easy, Nikon F6 w/ a split prism finder and Portra 400 in the south of France. I would like to have both fully manual and fully automatic modes available at the flip of a switch. So much versatility out of a little camera. I feel Portra 400 would be best suited for that sort of environment due to its versatile speed and the way it captures colours.
Tell us about NegativeBox and how it came to be. Where did the idea come from and where do you see it going in the future?
NegativeBox is a 35mm film subscription box that aims to both create new film photographers, and to retain current ones. I want it to take the decision making out of getting into film photography, while also providing the experienced folks with film stocks they may not otherwise try/get their hands on.
The idea was originally to have a simple online shop selling film stocks (which I may still do later on) but it proved to not be very cost effective. Thus, NegativeBox was born into a subscription model. For about the same price of buying two rolls of film + shipping from an online store, you can get those two rolls of film, some stickers, a fun surprise, and every now and then a little bonus. Right now, for the first ten subscribers I will throw a third roll in the box for free.
Goals for this year?
For myself, I’d like to get out there as much as I can and continue to take as many photos as I can.
For NegativeBox, I would like to grow the business enough to begin carrying a 120 film box along with home darkroom supplies such as chemicals and dev tanks.
Favourite Quote (from anyone, famous or not)
“We're all so frightened by time, the way it moves on and the way things disappear. That's why we're photographers. We're preservationists by nature. We take pictures to stop time, to commit moments to eternity. Human nature made tangible.”
- Ben Ryder, from the movie Kodachrome.
Personally, I found the movie to be sort of meh. Too many cliches. But this quote stuck out to me as something that put things into perspective and made me really think about why I like to take photos using obsolete equipment.
1-2 songs that you currently have on repeat.
Days - The Drums
Municipality - Real Estate
Honourable mention to King For A Day by Pierce the Veil
Closing statement
Stay safe!
Wear a mask!
