DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - While digital photography is the most common way to take pictures now, many people still use film photography for its unique look and nostalgic feel. To view those pictures, it takes a lot more than just a button on a camera. Film has to be sent to special facilities for processing.
One of those is Brooktree Film Lab, right here in Decatur.Â
"Someone takes that photo, then the photons of light will go through their camera and expose the three layers of dye in the film itself," said Robert Palmer, owner of Brooktree Film Lab. "We're going to take that process, and we're going to send it through our chemical baths that actually bring those images to life. Then we put dye couplers into the film, and then we are left with a negative."
The film is then scanned and put into digital format, so Booktree employees can send the files directly to clients. Last year, they received film from 49 different states. Palmer said there aren't many places anymore that can develop film.Â
But Brooktree does more than just develop film. They also have a team that can restore film, scan slides and videos, transfer VHS tapes and other types of recordings.Â
"We have a team of editors that we work with that can colorize a black and white image; they can take something that is ripped or torn or faded, and they can bring it back to life," Palmer said.Â
The work Palmer and his team complete relies on the intersection of old and new technology. They still use chemicals to develop film, but don't require a darkroom anymore. Film is still mailed to them, but they return images digitally. As technology continues to evolve, Palmer sees many customers still valuing physical media.Â
"We are seeing so much AI, things generated out of nothingness," Palmer said. "But when you're holding film, you're physically holding it. It's a thing that exists ... it can't be faked or manipulated."Â
Brooktree Film Lab is located in Downtown Decatur, but has customers across the country.Â
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