On 17th September 2025, the ‘Stop Trump Coalition’ organised a demonstration where thousands of people marched through central London to Parliament Square for a rally against US President Donald Trump’s second state visit to the UK. I wasn’t covering this protest for a client, a news agency, or anyone else. I went purely for myself. No assignment, no checklist of required shots — just the urge to experience, observe, and record the event.
When I looked over my gear before heading out, I knew it had to be film. Specifically, 35mm. And it had to be the Leica MP rangefinder camera with classic 35mm Summicron lens like so many of my documentary heroes carried.
Shooting film at events like this is a joy. There’s no “chimping” at the back screen, no fluttering bursts of 20 frames per second leaving you with thousands of images to sift through. Instead, you slow down. You breathe. You watch. You choose carefully. You’re present — documenting not just what you see, but how you feel. Witnessing people’s right to protest peacefully becomes not only a subject but an experience.
In the end, I shot 188 frames across five rolls: three in colour (Kodak Vision3 500T and 250D) and two in black & white (Kentmere 100, plus Kodak TMax 400 both pushed to 800). Back home, I developed the rolls myself — Bellini C41 for colour, and 510 Pyro (semi-stand 1+200) for black and white. I scanned them with a Plustek OpticFilm using Silverfast 8.
Here are some of my favourite images from the day.
📸 Some Takeaways
- Protests are excellent practice grounds for street photography. Most people expect to be photographed, and those carrying costumes, placards, or homemade banners often welcome the attention.
- Photographers everywhere. At times it felt like there were nearly as many cameras as protesters — but this creates a vibrant energy and a sense of camaraderie as we try to document the event.
- Getting close matters. The real impact often comes from stepping into the action and working up-close, where emotions and interactions feel most raw and authentic.
- Leica’s draw their own attention. I was actually approached by a photographer who asked if he could take my picture because I was using a Leica camera. That’s something that has never happened before and made me laugh. I said sure… but I do wonder where that might end up?!
- Colour or Black & White? Did I make the right choice? Starting out I figured colour would be the way to go given that protests are usually colourful affairs. Certainly the images benefited from the rich ‘reds’ and ‘oranges’. Unfortunately, the weather turned dark and gloomy and I wasn’t prepared with faster film stocks. I went with 800 iso for the black and white in the end and I wish I’d pushed it further to 1600. That said I got away with slower shutter speed hand holding and it’s a lesson for next time.
- Bring earplugs. I’m so out of practice at covering these sorts of events that I forgot to bring ear plugs! When the whistles start blowing and the drums start banging… Oh dear. Still, first world problems compared to other stuff going on in the world.
So would you have taken a film camera? And would you have used colour or black and white?
Thanks for reading.
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Gregory Gross
26 Sep 2025During the last few protest rallies in my area, I opted to take a film camera loaded with either Kodak Tri-X 400 or Kentmere Pan 200. On the end of the focal length scale opposite to your 35mm, I used a 135mm f/3.5 telephoto lens. I knew the protest event was taking place on the side of a street, and I wanted to compress near and far in order to capture a sense of the density of people there. I also wanted to get close-in shots of people’s facial expressions. I know exactly what you mean about using film at an event like that: it forces you to be present in the moment and to be deliberate with the shots you take.
Paula Smith
8 Nov 2025Thanks so much for your comment Gregory. I think using a telephoto is a great idea for protests. Compressing the scene can help better express the atmosphere of a protest rally. I think the next one I go to I’ll try that too. I still haven’t used Kentmere 200, how’d you like it?
Gregory Gross
9 Nov 2025I find that Kentmere Pan 200 has a lot to offer especially with its increase in contrast over that line’s 100 and 400 speeds. It’s a great budget film stock, one that punches above its weight. It’s definitely worth a try.
Paula Smith
9 Nov 2025Great to know. It’s on my ‘to order’ list for sure. 🙂