Herr Barnack Posted September 19, 2018 Share #1 Posted September 19, 2018 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) From Kosmo Foto, here are two articles on the future of film based photography. Both are long reads but present some worthwhile information IMO. Where does film photography go from here?https://kosmofoto.com/2017/12/what-does-film-photographys-future-look-like-now/ A passage from the above article: "...the nearly one billion rolls of film a year sold in the US at the height of the film market in the early 2000s has dwindled to a few tens of millions a year..." Yes. it is always better to sell a billion rolls of film a year - but if photographers are buying a "paltry" 30 million rolls of film a year - 1/33rd of the billion rolls a year of legend and lore - that still amounts to over 576,900 rolls of film purchased per week. If the profit per roll of film for both manufacturer and retail seller were $2.00 a roll - and I would guess that given film prices today, that is a reasonable estimate, and may be low for the manufacturer - that amounts to a over a million dollars profit per week for both manufacturers and retailers. That's not pocket change and I would think there are a lot of other businesses out there who compete for much smaller pots of gold than $52 million plus per year. 2017: The year that film returnedhttps://kosmofoto.com/2017/02/2017-the-year-that-film-returned/ Edited September 19, 2018 by Herr Barnack 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted September 19, 2018 Posted September 19, 2018 Hi Herr Barnack, Take a look here Where does film photography go from here?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
pico Posted September 19, 2018 Share #2 Posted September 19, 2018 (edited) About twenty years ago I became overly concerned about available film and stocked up to an extreme and stuffed it into a deep-freeze. In retrospect I suspect it was a poor decision except for a case of low speed 120 film. We have enough 35mm film for a lifetime. Edited September 19, 2018 by pico 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
250swb Posted September 20, 2018 Share #3 Posted September 20, 2018 From Kosmo Foto, here are two articles on the future of film based photography. Both are long reads but present some worthwhile information IMO. Yes, lots of information, but no real insights. If you read both pieces one after the other all the tension of a soap opera is built up, and then the happy couple get married and you can shed a tear, but with no understanding of 'why?' It misses the point if we don't acknowledge that more photographs are taken today with phones than were ever taken with film cameras or digital cameras. Digital cameras in themselves are going the way of film, declining sales and manufacturers milking a reduced enthusiast market. I don't think film and digital cameras will ever be on a par in the future, but it can't be denied that a digital photographer now has a phone in his pocket that ticks many of the boxes. His/her interest in photography can now be satisfied with film both for it's craft element, the amateurs perennial desire to buy, and because it doesn't compete or overlap with the phone. So it's important to note that while the market has declined for film and digital it has also spread, and the boundaries are more blurred and easy to cross. Much has been made of photo labs shutting down, but these are generally the small corner shops, and these wouldn't have been used by dedicated film enthusiasts anyway, they were for films with a Christmas at each end and a holiday in the middle. What we are left with are professional labs that do a great job of processing film and getting it back to you in many formats and without you needing to go and pick it up. The ease of using film photography today hasn't got any worse than at its height, it's just a different interface. This is why film can now thrive, this is why vinyl records can once again thrive, and it's because other alternatives such as phones and iTunes offer the easy digital access the the medium, which takes pressure off the consumer to stay up with the pack and undergo devolution purely for the pleasure it brings. 6 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug A Posted September 20, 2018 Share #4 Posted September 20, 2018 Well said. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmahto Posted September 21, 2018 Share #5 Posted September 21, 2018 It is interesting that I can safely go about shooting with film camera with the comfort of capable smart phone digital camera tucked in my pocket (for backup, grab shots or if I run out of film toll). The same smart phone is negatively impacting dedicated digital camera usage but helping me in shooting film. Go figure! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmahto Posted September 21, 2018 Share #6 Posted September 21, 2018 (edited) Yes, lots of information, but no real insights. If you read both pieces one after the other all the tension of a soap opera is built up, and then the happy couple get married and you can shed a tear, but with no understanding of 'why?' It misses the point if we don't acknowledge that more photographs are taken today with phones than were ever taken with film cameras or digital cameras. Digital cameras in themselves are going the way of film, declining sales and manufacturers milking a reduced enthusiast market. I don't think film and digital cameras will ever be on a par in the future, but it can't be denied that a digital photographer now has a phone in his pocket that ticks many of the boxes. His/her interest in photography can now be satisfied with film both for it's craft element, the amateurs perennial desire to buy, and because it doesn't compete or overlap with the phone. So it's important to note that while the market has declined for film and digital it has also spread, and the boundaries are more blurred and easy to cross. Much has been made of photo labs shutting down, but these are generally the small corner shops, and these wouldn't have been used by dedicated film enthusiasts anyway, they were for films with a Christmas at each end and a holiday in the middle. What we are left with are professional labs that do a great job of processing film and getting it back to you in many formats and without you needing to go and pick it up. The ease of using film photography today hasn't got any worse than at its height, it's just a different interface. This is why film can now thrive, this is why vinyl records can once again thrive, and it's because other alternatives such as phones and iTunes offer the easy digital access the the medium, which takes pressure off the consumer to stay up with the pack and undergo devolution purely for the pleasure it brings. Well said but adding my 2 cents on the highlighted (by me) text in your above post. They are not really thriving in old sense. It is just that there is an equilibrium of market size that is never zero. The reduced market size (however small) is supported by enthusiasts and their willingness to pay higher prices. Few months ago I heard about "Super 8 film" which has no reason to be sold in today's world of smart phones shooting HD video. Super 8 costs more than $50 to shoot 3-4 minutes of video. Someone is willing to pay for it. Just google it up or search on Amazon. Edited September 21, 2018 by jmahto Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ambro51 Posted September 24, 2018 Share #7 Posted September 24, 2018 Advertisement (gone after registration) I believe the future of film is dependant on Hollywood. Their needs need to continue or better yet grow. If Hollywood walks away, frozen stocks will hold us for many many years. I feel though that Black and White film stocks will continue to be manufactured as Home Processing may “save the day”. BTW they are still making albumen paper, Daguerreotype plates and Collodion.... these old processes tend to live on as “shadows”. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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