The Gospel of Grain

It's a bit humorous how often digital photographers search for ways to emulate the grain and grittiness of high-speed black & white film. There are even automated Photoshop plug-ins and actions that produce this "look" at the touch of a button. Yet after all that investment in time and money to produce a character in the picture that comes naturally with old-fashioned film itself, the results of all those efforts rarely look as good as the original. Granted, there are times when a picture calls for the sterile, super-clean look that many of today's digital cameras produce. But there are other times when nothing conveys the mood than some good old-fashion film grain.

Today's photographer has a freedom we have never had before, the ability to chose between digital and film.

The photos above are recent additions to the Holy Grounds Cafe "Sounds at the Grounds" photo project. Nekia Parchell. Her website: http://nekiaparchell.com/