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    Film cameras dead?

    Interestingly, this part of the Forum gets hardly any traffic. You wonder if film is even 'deader' than we feared a year or so ago. Film processing is becoming more problematic too.
    One key point is that throughout the 20th Century (sic) collectors and enthusiasts could carry on using vintage cameras (e.g. 1930 Leica rangefinders, Victoria plate cameras, 1960's SLRs) as the fundmental technology hadnt changed and film was still available and processible. Just look at the longevity of 135 format.
    But, how long do we have now.....
    www.garywhite-photography.com
    Gary White, MPhil
    Travel Photographer

    #2
    Re: Film cameras dead?

    I think they are going that way. I thought if the Slides firms like Kodakchrome,Fujichrome and others continued making slide films, that film cameras would continue to be bought and sold albeit second hand; but these companies have now stopping producing slide films.
    Canon 6D; Canon 760D;Canon G15;Canon 40mm f2.8(Pancake);Canon 50mm f1.8(ii); Canon 17mm-40mm f4L;Canon EF-S 10-18mm f4.5-5.6 IS STM;Canon EF-S 55-250mm f4-5.6 STM lens;Canon 24mm-105mmf4L IS;Canon 70-300mm f4-f5.6 L IS USM;Kenko 1.4x HD TC;Canon 430EX ii flash;Giottos tripod;Manfretto monopod;Cokin P filters + bits and pieces!

    www.flickr.com/photos/nathaniel3390

    North Wales where music and the sea give a great concert!

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      #3
      Re: Film cameras dead?

      Fuji are still quite active but your wonder for how long....
      www.garywhite-photography.com
      Gary White, MPhil
      Travel Photographer

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Film cameras dead?

        Thanks for letting me know. I thought they stopped making slide films befoe Kodakchrome did.
        Canon 6D; Canon 760D;Canon G15;Canon 40mm f2.8(Pancake);Canon 50mm f1.8(ii); Canon 17mm-40mm f4L;Canon EF-S 10-18mm f4.5-5.6 IS STM;Canon EF-S 55-250mm f4-5.6 STM lens;Canon 24mm-105mmf4L IS;Canon 70-300mm f4-f5.6 L IS USM;Kenko 1.4x HD TC;Canon 430EX ii flash;Giottos tripod;Manfretto monopod;Cokin P filters + bits and pieces!

        www.flickr.com/photos/nathaniel3390

        North Wales where music and the sea give a great concert!

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          #5
          Re: Film cameras dead?

          35mm film cameras RIP :-)

          Larger formats will die a slower death imho

          Millie

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            #6
            Re: Film cameras dead?

            A friend of mine who collects (and uses) old 'real' camera has great difficulty getting 127 film. He is sticking with a pair of Pentax 67's for now as 120 stock is still available.

            But 135 (35mm) .... I think it has specialist applications so will continue to be available for some time ... but choice will be limited and it may only be available in bulk.

            Mind you ... in 20 years time people will be saying ... those old fashioned digital cameras like the EOS 1D Mark IV ... they needed a memory card (fits of giggles) ... and suffered from digital noise (more giggles) ....

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              #7
              Re: Film cameras dead?

              Another useless observation form me. :-)
              Since 35mm DSLRs are so common now, we should just call them SLRs again and refer to the film ones as FSLRs :-)

              Millie

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                #8
                Re: Film cameras dead?

                FSLR RIP I wonder

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Film cameras dead?

                  Far from useless, that sounds like a sensible observation.

                  Colin
                  Colin

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                    #10
                    Re: Film cameras dead?

                    My Jessops, in Horsham, stated, when queried;"That approxiamately 50% of customers are still bringing film in for developing". Another fact born out in the press and some trade publications is that the digital take up, has overall not met market expectations, (bear in mind that these expectations were largely created by market strategists, and that those of this ilk are to more than a degree, responsible for the state of Jessops as it is today).

                    Another thing to view is the number of new models entering the market, in ye olde days, one could expect a new model to come along every 2-3 years and occasionally longer. Now when you leave the shop you take yesterdays technology with you, tomorrow will produce the next item without-which-life-is-not-worth-living.

                    A further point to bear in mind (get ready with the stones); some stock libraries are still insisting on film. I am given to understand that one stock library that embraced, possibly too readily the digital age has had problems; i.e. finding storage had become corrupted for no rhyme or reason.

                    Film is far from dead, but developing and processing are quite likely to become niche markets, highly specialised and quite likely as a result expensive.

                    Medium format I believe will survive in the hands of pros and dedicated amateurs.

                    Fuji was too ready to drop film, having failed to recognise the continued adherents, and we have seen the reintroduction of a number of films erstwhile withdrawn. Kodak, I feel, is sat on the fence and keeping a toe in the water.

                    There are many advantages to digital, however pixels in comparison to molecules are at best footballs in size, with the onset and increase in nano-technology we can expect digital to ultimately replicate light affecting molecules, but at what cost! For years to come this is likely to be prohibitive; cost of R & D etc, potential markets. And to a very large extent I feel they will have reinvented the wheel.

                    Just my ramblings

                    regards

                    Nigel

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                      #11
                      Re: Film cameras dead?

                      Nigel

                      You keep rambling and I'll keep reading your posts.

                      Colin
                      Colin

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                        #12
                        Re: Film cameras dead?

                        Nigel:
                        I also like your ramblings & hope that Film isn't yet dead - I shot film mostly Fuji Provia & Velvia for over 10 yrs & probably would still be opening the back & loading more if it had not become so darn expensive. In 2008 we finally took our 1st trip to Europe - Shot 50 rolls total cost including processing = a little over $600.00 --- Thought about that for about 6 months and then reluctantly put the EOS3 on the shelf, pulled all the remaining film out of the freezer gifting it to a buddy & purchased the 5D mkII. To my great and total surprise the D-Shooter totally out performs film. Simply put the 5D MkII just takes a better photograph.

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                          #13
                          Where the Film Photographers are Hiding

                          At this point, I suspect that many of the 35mm film photographers are using rangefinder cameras. Although there are many of us who still use Canon EOS film cameras (I have a Elan 7n), I think most of the film aficionados are using rangefinder forums and therefore haunting other forums like, RangeFinderForum.com. If one is going to stay with film, one probably has a romantic sense. This is just my opinion which works well to flatter me, mind you. So, if you're into the romance of film, you'll want a film camera which is classic and stylish looking like a rangefinder camera. Below is a shot of one of my latest rangefinder film camera acquisitions. Sweet looking, don't you think? Anyway, this tendency accounts probably for why the film section of the Canon EOS Forum is fairly inactive, while sites like the RangeFinder Forum are extremely active with film photographers. Thanks for this post, by the way. It gave me an excuse to show off my new Zeiss Ikon camera here. I like it so much that I like to pet it sometimes.

                          Last edited by russelljtdyer; 06-05-2015, 16:58.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Re: Film cameras dead?

                            I liked the film cameras esp the EOS 3 (I had two of these in very good condition). However, I find that digital SLR's takes better pictures and it also enabled me to check my photo there and then. So I have sold my two EOS3's, at a good price, and have no regrets whatsoever. However I am only slowly coming to grips with DSLR's and the terminology such as "noise" which I first thought, the camera made a loud noise of some sort, if the photo wasn't quite right!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Then I read the manual and other digital photography books which told me that "noise" = "grain"!!!
                            Canon 6D; Canon 760D;Canon G15;Canon 40mm f2.8(Pancake);Canon 50mm f1.8(ii); Canon 17mm-40mm f4L;Canon EF-S 10-18mm f4.5-5.6 IS STM;Canon EF-S 55-250mm f4-5.6 STM lens;Canon 24mm-105mmf4L IS;Canon 70-300mm f4-f5.6 L IS USM;Kenko 1.4x HD TC;Canon 430EX ii flash;Giottos tripod;Manfretto monopod;Cokin P filters + bits and pieces!

                            www.flickr.com/photos/nathaniel3390

                            North Wales where music and the sea give a great concert!

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Re: Where the Film Photographers are Hiding

                              Originally posted by russelljtdyer View Post
                              So, if you're into the romance of film, you'll want a film camera which is classic and stylish looking like a rangefinder camera.

                              Not really romantic about the film as such but for me it's the pure beauty of honest precision engineering - with reliable materials that you feel will last and last.
                              I know modern polymers are durable as used in new models - but its not the same as a precision device hewn from nice shiny silver stuff.

                              I could never afford a nice Nikon FM or the like - so used a Practika MTL3 and then a Minolta X300 - wish I still had the Practika! (forgotten how to spell it though).
                              Brian Vickers LRPS

                              brianvickersphotography.com

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