8 Frames From Coney Island

I have always admired those who can shoot through a pack of film in a day. Since I can remember I have been the person to save important things, even from a young age. [I would be that 5 year old that just got a book of dinosaur stickers, but instead of sticking them on every surface possible I would keep them in their book to make sure they are used at just the right time someday. If only I would have known that the right time to use them was then, but what do 5 year olds know anyways, right?] Once Polaroid stopped production of their instant film I became a small time film hoarder, stashing everything I had left, saving my film for the "perfect moment." Unfortunately, we never know when that perfect moment is going to come, if it ever will. Chances are that the perfect moment is finally recognized a few years later when we are reflecting on past experiences.

Suddenly the pressure to take the perfect photo every time, as if I owe it to the film, became so overbearing that I sold or gave away everything I had left. With the launch of The Impossible Project's new film only a few years after my last pack of film was purchased in stores, shooting film became intense again for a different reason, not scarcity, but cost. I guess I have not completely resolved this new problem, and yes the cost of the film still prompts me to buy tons when it goes on sale, and hoard, hoard, hoard. Yet, I have been challenging myself with projects such as this one, shooting the entire pack of film in an afternoon, rather than a month, or a year. 

This series of 8 pictures taken at Coney Island may not be anything extraordinary to the average browser, but to me it represents a mental exercise to let go of all the mindset holding me back from enjoying the instant film experience. 

Written by Adam Fuerst

Photographs taken by Adam & Kori Fuerst

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