Four Dollars Per Snap? That’s How This Photographer Likes It!
Most photographers shoot digital because of the speed it offers and the very low cost. Travis Cobb photographs with film exactly because it is slow and expensive.
Full disclosure: This article was sponsored by Identity Digital.
Why film?
“I love film photography because it slows me down,” Travis Cobb says. “The cost to buy one roll of film, mail it off and process it works out to US$40.”
Cobb says he shoots in medium format, so one roll yields just 10 images. “Every time I press the shutter, I hear ‘four dollars’ in my head.”
“Nobody is paying for that, other than myself, so I have to be very conscious of what I’m dedicating each frame of film to.”
With a collection of 20 medium-format cameras in his closet, Cobb says the one that always finds its way into his camera bag is a Mamiya RZ67 Pro II, which he bought through eBay many years ago.
He describes finding that camera as a bit like finding your favorite shoe.
“The camera is an extension of myself now,” he says.
“I know exactly how to use it to get what I want. It’s a unique camera, and it takes pictures like nothing I’ve ever used before.”
“It’s definitely worth four dollars every time I press the button.”
Film photography has had a resurgence in recent years, and camera prices have skyrocketed since Cobb bought his Mamiya.
“Seeing what that camera sells for now, there are times I’m hard pressed not to list it for sale. But I’m going to shoot with it until it dies.”
“It’s like having a dog. You wouldn’t give up your best friend.”
Looking for a connection
Travis Cobb started taking black-and-white shots in high school and studied photography as part of a fine arts degree at university.
After this, Cobb says he was mainly photographing to document his newborn son.
But, it wasn’t long before photography found its way into his work as marketing director for a large sports company, which led to long hours and extended periods of travel.
“That didn’t work for me,” Cobb says. “As a parent, I felt I didn’t have nearly enough time with my son.”
“It was a struggle to find a happy medium between my love and admiration for this hobby and being a parent.”
Still, paid photography assignments kept on coming Cobb’s way.
“I’d go to work and put photos of my son as a desktop background on my computer.”
“People would see the photos and ask who took them, and then they’d ask me to take pictures of their kids.”
One thing led to another, and Cobb got into wedding photography. Digital wedding photography.
“I had to get digital cameras, as nobody wanted to pay for film,” he says.
“I’ve shot over 100 weddings and it got to a point where it turned into even more work, on the side of my full-time job.”
“It wasn’t fun anymore, so I had to start saying no a lot.”
“Now when I take on a client, there has to be a connection,” Cobb says.
“The latest wedding I photographed was for my cousin. It was just me, her and her husband on a two-week road trip through Iceland, which I got to document on film for them.”
“I brought 30 rolls, so I knew I could snap 300 pictures. I had to make every frame count.”
The portfolio
Cobb shares his photography portfolio on his website traviscobb.photography, where he also blogs and posts videos featuring behind-the-scenes stories from his photography shoots.
He describes the decision to join thousands of photographers moving to .photography domain names as cost effective and great for his personal brand.
“I used to have a rudimentary gallery display website where I’d put my photos on a DVD and send it to an acquaintance who would put them online for me,” he says.
Cobb eventually moved on to managing his own website through various web hosting services, but he was never happy with his web address.
“I’ve had a couple of domain names. I wanted travis dot com, but it was taken and someone wanted a lot of money for that.”
“When I found out I could get traviscobb.photography, I bought it the same day and paid a fraction. It definitely worked out better.”
“It’s easy for people to remember, and it leads to exactly who you are,” he explains. “When you say ‘my name dot photography’, it reinforces your personal brand.”
“If you want to showcase yourself as a photographer, this one is it.”
Whether you’re just getting started out or you’re ready to take your photography business to the next level, a .photography domain extension shows the world you’re serious about your photography.
Join the ranks of thousands of professional photographers with an SEO-optimized domain.
And, since your desired .photography domain is more likely to be available than the .com equivalent, you won’t have to worry about compromising your personal brand identity.
Your work deserves a .photography domain.
Join our growing collective and you may be featured!
You’ve done the work, and now it’s time for the world to see what you can do. Each month, we’ll be featuring a photographer’s website on PetaPixel, Shutterbug and CP Collectives. Submit your website with a .photography domain extension for the chance to be featured and check out a new photographer each month.
Visit Travis’s website: traviscobb.photography
More from Travis Cobb
Full disclosure: This article was sponsored by Identity Digital. .Photography is part of the Identity Digital portfolio of domain extensions. Click here to learn more. Travis Cobb has been compensated for his participation in this article.
Image credits: All photos by Travis Cobb
