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Comment by alister | Hacker News Reader

> I left home with 500 rolls of film in my backpack. It was close to $5 a photo in today's money just to develop and print the photos. So I had to really think about it each time I pressed that shutter.

At 24 frames per roll, the cost to develop and print his entire backpack would be 24 x $5 x 500 = $60,000. That is indeed a big investment he made to document his travels.

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Forget the cost... 500 rolls is over 30lbs! I can't imagine carting that much film around while backpacking. I don't think I ever brought more than about 4-5 dozen rolls even on month-plus length trips - that plus a lead-lined bag for airport x-ray was already a hassle and a significant portion of my carry-on.

I very much relate to the "really think about it each time I pressed that shutter". I spent so much time shooting film that now, even after over 15 years of digital, I still struggle to kick this habit and need to constantly remind myself to take more shots: explore more variations on a subject, grab a shot even if I don't think it's going to be outstanding, etc.

Never at that scale or for that length of time, ordering a few dozen 36 exposure rolls of slide film of various speeds from B&H was always one of the rituals before I went on a big trip. As was the painstaking labeling, sorting, and editing when I got back.

Or he made contact prints and figured out which frames to print by using a loupe.

...ah, film.

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