The big difference is that there are far less trees being cut down as people display photos online. Less developing/processing chemicals are making their way into our water supply. People who still use chemicals are far more trained in the safe handling of the materials.

What if everyone who had a digital camera or camera phone had to have chemicals to develop their pictures? Digital is keeping all that mess out of the environment and encouraging many more people to get into photography who otherwise wouldn’t be able to because of the prohibitive chemicals. Digital photography has revolutionized how we enjoy and remember the moments in our lives.

If you enjoy being a more eco-friendly photographer, check out: http://CertifiedGreenPhotographer.com

There you will find several sections of tips and tutorials on how to be a greener photographer, as well as a detailed certification program for photographers who want to show their customers they are working hard to be more eco-friendly.

http://GreenWeddingProviders.com

Thanks for your comment. That’s why I love blogging – such a wide variety of opinion.

By contrast, there are very few new film cameras being made these days. Decent film cameras and lenses last for many, many decades with minor periodic maintenance. Film users overwhelmingly tend to be using equipment that was manufactured some time ago, even when “upgrading”. This is reuse that the digital world doesn’t even dream of. Formerly high-end film setups are selling for a song, meaning that one can achieve great image quality while reusing existing bodies and lenses. The working model of film, especially black and white work, can also be very educational to the digital-only shooter. The process of working with film teaches skills that improve one’s film and digital work. I’d liken this to cross-training in athletics, but here the cross is between different photographic media which afford different approaches.

As for film “using chemicals”, modern film chemicals (e.g. Silvergrain, as you mention, and many others more mundane), tend to be considerably less toxic than the cleaning products kept under most folks’ sinks. The only serious “problem” chemical is the fixer, which accumulates silver compounds from the developed film. Fortunately, these silver compounds are easily reclaimed and reused by any lab facility. Likewise, this is easy to do for the hobbyist either via dropping off spent fixer at a lab in his or her area, or via inexpensive silver collectors available to the home user. In either approach, the silver is recycled for further use. The other chemicals used in film processing are generally safe for normal water treatment processes. There are some other chemicals used in exotic processes which are decidedly not safe, but the learning curve alone means that these users tend to be very specialized workers who are keenly aware of proper handling and disposal practices.

Note, I’m not at all against digital, but the idea that quitting film use is somehow “good for the environment” compared to digital is a false dream brought on by our disconnect from the real end-to-end costs of manufactured goods.