If you were super rich what would you do for analog photography?

[mooseontheloose]

You're top of the list!

 

[beemermark]

I'd start a massive marketing campaign to convince people they need to go analog. Once they decided they wanted to go back to film, then I make cameras and film. Think about it, people get into fil on their own initiative. No one is advertising to buy and try film.

 

[Down Under]

I'd start by assuming that I know nothing, and I'd look for people with the passion and know-how and ask "What do you need?". For a retailer, maybe that could include selling film owned by me on consignment, thus freeing up their own capital. And just as with a supermarket, I'd be the one ensuring that products were always in stock and always fresh.

A certain American Glorious Leader now made redundant could do wonders with this idea...

Moving on - what I could do with $100 million, wow!

Fund a Contax G3 with film and digital backs. Put all them glorious Zeiss G lenses back to work.
Recreate the Zeiss Super ikonta as a desirable minimalist-niche camera.
Put Kodachrome III into production.
Buy out Leitz and Rollei and set up production in the USA.
Make old camera donations to charity shops tax-deductible. This would give me an extra $100 million in no time...
Eliminate film sales by most big retail photo shops (good riddance to those parasite,s they can keep digital and they are welcome to that) and set up supermarket photo booths to sell film and do processing with mini machines.

Accept the fact that I would probably get no profit return from this investment, and do it purely as a social gesture.

I would then donate my cash-stash to Helge (#20) and let him play with it to his heart's content.

 

[eli griggs]

Something I'd like to find is paper and film printers, personal and retail, which produce sensitised , Silver and T films so a photographer can print on demand, these products ahead of a shoot, and decide if they will print 'ripe' materials or, for long storage/ageing.

The trick, in my mind, is to first focus on a Tri-X 400 type, and an "archival" Fiber based print silver bromide emulsion, as I no longer trust Kodak to carry on good silver film production, like Tri-X 400, relying more on Ilford's ongoing commitment to analog photographers into the future

Despite the NBC Analog photographers/Kodak video many of us have seen in the last few days, I feel this needs to be done as a priority, so the sudden ending of a particular b&w film, is no an Earth Shaking Event, to most of the analog world .

Even type 47 b&w polaroid could be made for LF film holders, and a separate machine or attachment could deliver processing and coatings, making gloss, satin, pearl and mat finishes.

All of this needs to be 'greener' and less expensive that the overpriced offerings of some companies Board.

IMO.

 

[jp498]

I would also investigate the possibility of making a TLR with a 2.0 lens.
Easy!

That would be great!

I'd make big shutters out of modern materials to replace the slow and less reliable ilex-5 for large format.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

I would lobby congress to pass the Afordable Photography Act and force everyone to buy a new Leica each year and 50 rolls of film.

this thread clearly shows why analog photography is dying; a significant number of replies concentrate on making sure supplies are cheap. That's why the existing businesses died!

 

[MattKing]

Okay - I would subsidize a re-printing of Way Beyond Monochrome 2nd edition, and make sure the authors are well compensated!

 

[Lee Rust]

Commercial and popular culture have moved on, the Kodak business model doesn't work anymore, and chemical photography cannot be sustained for upcoming generations solely with Instax snapshots or ancient film cameras and peripherals scrounged from eBay.

As others have already suggested, I would fund international educational programs or institutions that were dedicated to the promotion and advancement of traditional photographic art, science and technology, just as classical forms of music and literature are now supported in academia. There would have to be a parallel effort that ensured the continuous manufacture of new materials and equipment of sustainable quality and quantity.

 

[Deleted member 88956]

Well, I've been away. Have just returned from my vacation on Mars. Indeed, it is way too close for my way of seeing life. BTW, in case you get an offer from your travel agent, there is nothing to see. Prospectus I was given is just full of flashy photos, all shot in HDR, and absolutely nothing resembling local conditions. To make it worse, climate control on the plane did not work, so that was an atrocious way of getting back to Earth. On a positive side, it appears my hand sanitizing business did quite well and my wealth more than doubled while I was away. With the cash now on hand, which even my accounting firm cannot keep pace with, I've got to spend some.

Now I'm in the process of fully funding film scanner development, one that will cover lots of missing corners while keeping end price in check. Fully modular design for future easy upgrades of all components, so it does not fall behind technological advancements, and easy user based repairs in range of 99% of problems. Most effort will go into developing scanning technology, tentatively called "OSD - Organic Scanning Device" , with main goal of giving output most closely returning analog nature of film capture, with minimal digital ingress.

Now I'm arranging a meeting with Adox in order to make an irrefutable offer: full funding for unrestricted production and development of analog photographic products, with nothing asked in return.

Then I take controlling stake in Ilford/Harman. They end up getting full funding with no return on investment, with sole caveat being full control of what is being done. I would wish to get some of their act together (mostly minor, but annoying to me stuff), fix that ULF teaser program, so end customer can get odd sizes at reasonable cost with much wider selection. Full funding also means any manufacturing upgrades needed to keep pace with changing demand with maximum flexibility in scaling production and offering. I would not bank though on return to 220 film, so no need to get too excited.

There is more for European side, but that will come in time.

Then I fly over to Japan for a little chat with Fuji, give them shit about that duuble-priced teaser they have the nerve to call Acros (II) while nobody really knowing who makes what. Would offer financial support only if it becomes clear enough Instax isn't their only commitment in non-digital capture. And - off topic - I would really try to get some answers about design logic of the X100 series cameras, a camera I came to love yet is more annoying than any other I've used.

Now the best part, as after all above I am yet more loaded.

Kodak. This is something hard to swallow. I have no choice, but buy all Eastman Kodak / Alaris related, including Eastman Museum (will need some historical info without googling for it all day). By ALL I mean whatever one can think of, so whatever Kodak ever developed is available with no secret formulas left in a dumpster.

Once I have it, I invite all top Kodak decision making meat, also from past years, serve them a nice dinner, chat about what took place, when and why, and unless there is one who can have convincing argument, in the end I thank them all for screwing it up so badly. In all this effort I get to the bottom of who, from lower ranks and actual production, was trying to run it right and when the downfall began. It's all about producing a historically and factually correct record of events, all on display at the museum. Call it public lynching of sorts. Whether Kodak name can return to what it was known and admired for is another matter, it may all end up in the museum. Even with unlimited cash it just may not be worth it.

Kodak adventure will take time to figure out, but film is coming back baby.

 

[Huss]

There seems to be a lot of talk about film but cameras will eventually run out. I'd start manufacturing a range of new analog cameras with a modular lens mount system, to allow for adaption to different kinds of the most pipular older lenses.
.

I backed that Kickstarter:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/reflexcamera/reflex-bringing-back-the-analogue-slr-camera

Pretty much looks like I threw that money away...

 

[cerber0s]

I backed that Kickstarter:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/reflexcamera/reflex-bringing-back-the-analogue-slr-camera

Pretty much looks like I threw that money away...

Exactly lile that, super cool! Did it tank?

 

[Sirius Glass]

I will buy up all the Rolleis, Leicas and Hasselblads to keep them from the hoarders.

 

[KenS]

I would lobby congress to pass the Afordable Photography Act and force everyone to buy a new Leica each year and 50 rolls of film.

ONLY if that Leica camera was a 'large format' camera that will accept 'sheet' film. There are many of us who much prefer to process each 'single' sheet of film according our needs. I willing to 'bet' that you have not had much (or perhaps) NO experience with large format cameras... but are more than willing to 'over/under bracket' exposures with your Leica 'just in case'. So doing with large format film could have you in financial distress pretty damned quick.

Ken

 

[AnselMortensen]

Open a
"Modeling School for Wayward Women".

 

[Rupie]

Whilst its great to collect cameras, It annoys me that they don't get used. Just like all those classic vintage cars that are sat in collectors private garages so they don't get viewed by enthusiasts.

So, If money wasn't an issue I would bribe governments to pass laws to make it illegal for people to own stuff they intend to just look at and not ever use.

There is only a finite number of cameras left, lets get out and use them and share the love...

 

[Huss]

I will buy up all the Rolleis, Leicas and Hasselblads to keep them from the hoarders.

And I will give you double what you paid for them to make sure no-one can control the market price for them.

 

[Sirius Glass]

And I will give you double what you paid for them to make sure no-one can control the market price for them.

Double that and we have a deal.

 

[Huss]

Double that and we have a deal.

Anything to prevent people getting gouged.

 

[Sean]

I'd probably form a team to re-invent the way analog materials are produced and decentralize the whole manufacturing process of it. I think there are viable ways to laydown emulsion layers using inkjet nozzle technologies, allowing for emulsions to be highly customizable and coated on-demand. Instead of warehouses running gargantuan machines you convert that down to a machine that sits on a desk. Then, Imagine a website where you order paper and tweak several sliders to custom create your own emulsions on demand to a variety of materials. Would be a fun challenge to pull off.

 

[MartinCrabtree]

Haven't followed the thread but after thinking about it for a couple days.............I'd look into cleaning up the developing/printing process. While preserving the fundamental wet part of it keeping it as close as possible to what makes it a desirable method of image making.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

Fund wet photo programs at high schools and universities.

You'd think the film companies would do that or advertise or something. I don't follow social media. Do they advertise on it? You'd think they'd drum up business with the kids somehow.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

Buy Hasselblad and relaunch 500-series production.
Develop and market an affordable 6x6 slide projector.
Develop an automated 120 scanner which can scan 1 roll at a time without user interaction (why do those things only exist in 35mm?)

6x7!

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

There seems to be a lot of talk about film but cameras will eventually run out. I'd start manufacturing a range of new analog cameras with a modular lens mount system, to allow for adaption to different kinds of the most pipular older lenses.

I'd also have a real good look at making color film developing and printing more accessible. I don't know when research and development of those machines stopped but it seems like there should be room for some improvement in 2020.

Of course, Nikon still makes the F6 film camera and there are large-format camera makers like Chamonix, Shen Hao, and others. But until you eliminate most of the old film cameras that can be bought for pennies on the dollar, it just costs too much to design and sell a new film camera that won't work any better than the old ones.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

I would invent a filter that, just as the shutter is triggered, the composition will be automatically improved, the focus corrected, for black & white the appropriate filters inserted, for color the appropriate color compensating filters inserts, facial expressions correctly adjusted, flowers perked up, any animals eyes properly engaged with the lens, the lens cleaned and film defogged, astigmatism and all aberrations corrected, film flattened, and stray light removed. Also the photographer's weight reduced to a healthy level, age reduced to the lower twenties, teeth straighten, and hair trimmed and bushed.

What about the 23 year old blonde?

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

If I had the money, my dream would be to open a photography museum/gallery/education centre here in Kyoto. Connected to it would be a school/facility that would offer workshops of all kinds - free or low-cost classes to introduce local young people to film and film cameras, perhaps connected to various schools and universities here. It would also offer specific workshops on special darkroom/alternative processes and various camera/film formats. Included would be workshops geared to serious photographers with special access to certain locations or people (for example, maiko/geiko), or workshops featuring well-known photographers and/or darkroom masters. Of course, to have these kinds of workshops/classes, I would need to build several types of darkrooms - some for class conditions, private ones for rental use, both long-term for locals and short-term for tourists/non-residents, and perhaps another for alternative processes.

In addition, there would be money to support artists-in-residence, which may or may not be photography-related, but definitely part of the analog world. Ideally there would be connections with other traditional Japanese trades/crafts around the city/prefecture/country. The use of washi paper as a base for liquid emulsions is an obvious match, as is the fact that the last collotype printers in the world are located here. Perhaps too, I could establish a camera-repair centre here, as I am sure there are plenty of (probably) older men who have the knowledge and skills and would like to do something in this capacity while being semi-retired.

I went to Yodobashi camera the other day and the darkroom/film section has been significantly reduced and relocated - it now takes less than 10% of the previous space it did before (which has been reduced slowly, but surely, over the years that I've lived here), and is hidden in a not-so-easy to find area. I have no idea where they even keep the film coolers, as those have also been moved out of sight. I find this extremely frustrating since Kyoto is such a photographic place, and the film section is often sold out (or with extremely limited stock - one or two rolls of each emulsion), so it is clear that there is a demand for these products that the stores refuse to acknowledge. So, part of my museum/gallery/education complex would also feature a store that has all things film/photographic so that there is a constant supply of materials for both locals and tourists.

This is in addition to supporting current film/paper production worldwide, especially for products that could conceivably be revived or reformulated for the current market. Having HIE (or similar) film would be fantastic, as well as good papers for lith printing. I'd love to bring back peel-apart films for Polaroid cameras, but not sure if that's even possible if all the machines have been scrapped.

You're in the middle of the film mecca. From what I can tell, there's more interest in film there than anywhere else in the world. I bought 3 of my 4 4x5 lenses from Japan as well as Velvia 50 film unavailable in the USA. I'd love to go back to Japan on a real trip to film the sights. I was there for two years in the USAF during the mid-1960s. I bought my first 35mm camera there - Nikon F Photomic T. I think Shinjuku was the area where you'd shop for cameras. I forget - it's been a lot of years.