šŸ‹ What You Could Learn From Using a Film Camera

November 09, 2021

Good news everyone! I've begun turning these newsletters into video format - laid back discussions that explore these topics in more detail. Find them on my Youtube channel. Ep. 2 dropping tomorrow :)

Iā€™ve been playing around with an old-school film camera lately.

It feels different, a good type of different.

The pictures feel special, too.

Whilst I tried to conjure up all the reasons why it felt so special to me, I found myself thinking about one point more than the others.

Itā€™s restrictive.

There are fewer options on the device as well as both a financial and physical restriction on how many pictures you can take.

The paradox of choice is that having more options is not always a good thing.

A study made in 2000 found that shoppers were less likely to purchase jam from a store if there were more options of jam available.

When offered a choice from 6 rather than 24 types of jam, 30% of shoppers bought jam in the former compared with a measly 3% in the latter.

It seems to be a common theme in marketing books too, where more purchase options on the webpage lead to ā€˜less conversionā€™ into sales.

Similarly, weā€™re surrounded by tools that offer us more, and in return, we focus less.

I always struggle to write on my laptop with all its distractions, so I revert to pen and paper.

And of the hundred pictures I take of a single moment on my phone, the more the novelty divides amongst them, leaving a sea of unappreciated memories in my camera roll.

Using a film camera has been an exercise in slowing down, of gratitude for the present moment and a reminder that sometimes, less is more.

Iā€™m creating a series of meaningful video projects on Youtube (self-improvement, intentional living etc.)

Theyā€™re short, packed with value and always getting better.

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šŸ“Œ Quote of the Week

"Well done is better than well said."

- Benjamin Franklin

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šŸ¤“ About Me

I'm Faisal, a Doctor working in the NHS who writes online and makes Youtube videos on: self-development, intentional living and doing the things that matter.

I love writing, storytelling, filmmaking, entrepreneurship and innovating in medical education spaces. If you'd like to go down the rabbit hole and find out more about me, the links below are a good place to start:

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