Best Film Photographer Holiday Gifts 2024
With the holiday season fast approaching it’s good to jump on gifts early. If you, your friends, or your family shoot film and are looking for gift ideas this list is for you. There are plenty of best camera, film, and gear master lists out there but it’s hard to find something unique. Although film photographers always need one obvious thing, film, this gift can start to feel a little low effort or lackluster over the years. We’ll try to cover the basics along with a few niche gifts your friends and family might not be expecting.
Nice Film Club Membership
A Nice Film Club membership is the perfect gift for a number of reasons. It’s unique, thoughtful, and multi facetted. Not only do Nice members start with a minimum of 10 credits per year but it fixes dev & scan costs at $9.99 for the entire year. A membership could be a gift for a friend or a family member who interested in the Nice services but maybe wouldn’t buy the membership for themselves. Or maybe this person is you and it’s the perfect thing to ask for!! Other features of the basic Nice tier membership include unlimited scan storage, $0.33 Hi-Res 4K Tiff unlocks, and great deals on purchasing film rolls.
How to Gift a Nice Film Club Membership
Email contact@nicefilmclub.com with the following information. The information required is for the person to whom you are gifting membership to.
First Name
Last Name
Email
Phone Number
Membership Tier
Start Date (of the membership)
Looking for a personal touch?
If you want something physical to give to your gift recipient, include that in your email and Nice will send you a customized receipt you can print and hand deliver!
2. A Framed Print
This is my favorite gift to give and receive during the holidays. A framed print is such a low cost, high effort gift with a very personalized touch. Around the holidays framed prints usually come in the form of family photos. Photos that are often more flattering to some family members than others. Instead of begrudgingly giving your parents a photo you could honestly live without, why not print/frame your favorite shot from your roll? Fine art prints make the perfect decor for home offices, studio spaces, or to hang in the house. This is a great way to insure your gift is unique. I’ve never heard a complaint from someone receiving a nicely framed photo.
If you’re looking for cheap, no hassle frames in a variety of styles, I use www.arttoframe.com. They’re always running deals and you can get a single frame for under the $20 price point.
If you’re looking for something really special, I love sourcing vintage frames off eBay and Etsy. I typically will buy the frame I like first, then print to size. Sometimes the odder the size/shape, the more unique the gift.
You can order a print of any of your photos on the NFC platform by simply clicking on the photo and selecting the “order print” button.
3. Deluxe Lens Cleaning Kit from B&H
There isn’t a photographer in the world who wouldn’t benefit from having lens cleaner on them, yet it isn’t something you typically see film photographers carry around. This kit is extremely compact and includes everything you need to keep lens glass spotless.
4. Long Weekend Gear
Long Weekend is a collaborative design by fashion designer Allison Simon and photographer Willem Verbeeck. The two partnered with Moment in 2021 to release a line of merchandise specifically designed for film photographers. Well made products designed by two people deeply entrenched in the film photography community is hard to pass up, and when Moment send the NFC team some gear we tested it out and loved the quality and sensibilities of the products.
This brand is designed for specific film gear and stays utilitarian without losing any stylistic integrity. Where other brands might give into excess, Long Weekend’s gear stays practical and light at a very reasonable price.
Long Weekend Film Pouch
5. Film Supply Club
Film supply club is a camera, accessory, and film whole sale company committed to keeping film at an affordable price. They operate on a Membership based system with three tiers, The Film Dabbler ($7/month), The Film Pro ($14/month), and The Film Pro Plus ($29/month). With these memberships you get access to their member prices, which for film are the best I’ve seen around.
If you’re shopping for someone who you know will just keep buying film all year, Film Supply Club is the way to go.
6. Buy a Magnum Print
If you’re working with a bit of a bigger budget, considering buying a print from a Magnum Photographer. For those not familiar, A Magnum photographer is a member of the Magnum Photos agency, a prestigious international photographic cooperative. Magnum Photos was founded in 1947 by four renowned photographers: Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger, and David "Chim" Seymour. Photographers cannot simply apply to join; they must be invited. Being a Magnum photographer means being some of the best of the best, and owning work from one of the members is no small thing.
Prints from these photographers are not just images; they are fine art created by masters in the field. Magnum photographers have captured some of the most iconic and historically significant moments of the 20th and 21st centuries. Printed with expert finesse these photos hold historical, aesthetic, and fiscal value that will only increase over time.
7. Buy a photo book from a local bookstore
During the holidays there is no better time to support small and local businesses, especially your local book shop. Rifling through the shelves and picking out a book for someone can not only bring joy to the recipient, but to you as the gift give., Buying a photo book from an artist is the best way to support their ongoing work.
If you’re in NYC, visit Dashwood (33 Bond St, New York, NY 10012) Books for the holiday season. Dashwood is managed by writer, publisher, and curator Miwa Susuda who has an insane level of photographic knowledge. If you’re looking for anything, she can help you find it and is extraordinarily kind while doing so!
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