Is the film craze dead?

[Roger Cole]

How do you prevent abuse of credit cards? - chop em up and throw em away. How do prevent abuse of motor-winders and automated exposure systems? ....

In both cases - "or just exercise a little adult level self control."

 

[Cholentpot]

All of the 20 yr old hipsters reversing film sales decline are now in their mid 30s with families. The current 20 yr olds are infatuated with 15-20 yr old point and shoot cameras.

Yeah but we're snapping up the film so we can document our kids growing up. We have more or less the cameras we need, we're not jumping at cameras priced at market value or overpriced. We know what we want and need. And that is more kinds of film and availability. And reliable point and shoots.

 

[Roger Thoms]

My "bank" is full of frozen sheet film. That's what I call a wise investment.
Crypto currency, digital images stored on the "cloud" somewhere beyond the blue, etc - that's all risky.

Yep, silver is a good investment.

Roger

 

[Melvin J Bramley]

The only reason film cameras are not selling is the unrealistic prices asked by sellers.
The same goes for enlargers and other photo equipment.
asking prices on E Bay are not representative of actual selling prices.
It's safe to say that E Bay pricing is "sucker" pricing.
Sad to say that much good photo equipment goes to the landfill because it could not be sold at E Bay prices!
For example here in Canada Hasselblads have been advertised for many months in the $3500 CDN range, whilst one at $995 sold quickly.
Nikon FM's and FE's are advertised in the $300 range remain unsold ; those at $150 are sold in week or two.
The demand for film and paper is a better metric for B&W film interest.
The store i purchase from has been out of stock of Ilford HP5 ,120, and struggling to meet the demand for Kentmere film.
Film is alive and well and will remain a niche market for a long time.

FWIW; picking winners over losers is photographers! who have too much time that should be taken to make photos!

TB

 

[Melvin J Bramley]

My "bank" is full of frozen sheet film. That's what I call a wise investment.
Crypto currency, digital images stored on the "cloud" somewhere beyond the blue, etc - that's all risky.

Thats what called investing in silver!!

 

[Helge]

Starting a doom and gloom thread because your overpriced HB didn’t sell, is a bit daft. As daft as most of the theorizing going on in it.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

The last few years prices of film cameras has gone silly .
This isn't gear that's had a full service, just 40+ year old cameras .
You see them listed , but not selling for that reason.

Luckily I bought most of my gear when prices were in free fall as people were ditching film for digital .

I remember buying three Nikon FMs for a total of $100; spent another$100 to get them CLAed and they are still all working great. They are all 40+ years old but 40 years ago, I couldn't have afforded one of them.

 

[benjiboy]

There are heathens posting in this thread. There’s no such thing as too many cameras.

There's a point when " too many cameras" becomes obsessive compulsive disorder.
A person has to decide when to say enough.

 

[Don_ih]

For example here in Canada Hasselblads have been advertised for many months in the $3500 CDN range, whilst one at $995 sold quickly.

From ebay.ca:
Sold 18 March - 500CM with 80mm lens for $3163
Sold 18 March - 500CM with 80mm lens for $4376
Sold 17 March - 503 CXi with 80mm lens for $3850
Sold 17 March 2000FC/M with 80mm lens for $1387
Sold 17 March - 501CM with 80mm lens for $2487
Sold 15 March 503CX with 80mm lens for $4125
Sold 15 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $1610
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $4171
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $3497
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $2928

Average price: $3159

I didn't investigate whether or not all of them work.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

There is an inverse relationship between the price asked and the time to sell an item - a variation of the price-elasticity curve. What the hell, I'm preaching to the choir, but when has that ever stopped me.

Something is only worth what you can get someone else to pay for it. Wait long enough, though, and someone will come along and buy it - sort of the "Greater Fool" theory of stock investing ("If I was foolish enough to buy this worthless stock for $X then somewhere there is someone even more foolish than I who will buy it for $2x" - if I don't die first...)

As to film demand, I'm too far removed from the hipster scene to know.

I worry about photographic paper demand. Paper will disappear before film goes. With the current practice of photographing negatives with a phone and calling the job done, the demand for anything darkroom has tumbled faster than film. It seems very few people now make prints from their negatives - a shame as analog prints are so very beautiful.

Does Blurb photo books count in the paper comment? Many people are making photo books today rather than printing separate photos and putting them in albums. Also, most people print some pictures of family shots that are framed for tabletops and wall mounting. I don't think that's going out of style. Especially for grandmothers and grandfathers. I order prints regularly from Walgreens of my one-year old grandson. I also made a Blurb book of 48 pictures of his first birthday party. Of course this came from digital shots but could have equally come from film scans.

 

[campy51]

The one for $995 was sold quickly because it was way under valued in todays market.

 

[Don_ih]

The one for $995 was sold quickly because it was way under valued in todays market.

Or was just a body.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

From ebay.ca:
Sold 18 March - 500CM with 80mm lens for $3163
Sold 18 March - 500CM with 80mm lens for $4376
Sold 17 March - 503 CXi with 80mm lens for $3850
Sold 17 March 2000FC/M with 80mm lens for $1387
Sold 17 March - 501CM with 80mm lens for $2487
Sold 15 March 503CX with 80mm lens for $4125
Sold 15 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $1610
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $4171
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $3497
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $2928

Average price: $3159

I didn't investigate whether or not all of them work.

When I started large format and bought my first new LF camera three years ago, I really was guessing at how much to spend on old used lenses, the only ones available because like Hassies they're not manufactured anymore. The prices were all over the place often for similar lenses. I wound up buying four lenses some from Japan directly. I'm sure I got screwed on a couple of them. Hard to tell. I read the descriptions very carefully and reviewed the pictures of the lens as well. I checked the seller's ratings as a guide to their credibility and honesty. It's hard to gauge value when items are marked Mint, Excellent+3, etc by different people who rate differently. There's no standard. It's a crap shoot.

 

[Hassasin]

prices are not really rising since a year or maybe longer. what things sell for is a function of interest at point in time. what sells today for 500 may not tomorrow for 300, and vice versa.

 

[Don_ih]

It's hard to gauge value when items are marked Mint, Excellent+3, etc by different people who rate differently. There's no standard.

"Mint" is obviously false for anything other than Wrigley's gum or a coin just put into circulation.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

"Mint" is obviously false for anything other than Wrigley's gum or a coin just put into circulation.

Remember the song titled?: "Does your chewing gum get stale on the bedpost overnight?"

 

[Duceman]

The one for $995 was sold quickly because it was way under valued in todays market.

And the converse to the above is that if one does not sell quickly, it is way over valued in today's market.

 

[VinceInMT]

There are heathens posting in this thread. There’s no such thing as too many cameras.

And that applies to many other hobbies as well. I was a successful bidder on a quadraphonic 8-track player and when I paid for it my wife got a notice on her phone (as she does for all purchases on our credit card) and she’d ask what I’d bought. (It was $50.). I said “A quadraphonic 8-track player.” She said “Don’t you already have a quadraphonic 8-track player?” I wasn’t sure is that was a punch line or was serious.

 

[Huss]

The only reason film cameras are not selling is the unrealistic prices asked by sellers.
The same goes for enlargers and other photo equipment.
asking prices on E Bay are not representative of actual selling prices.
It's safe to say that E Bay pricing is "sucker" pricing.
Sad to say that much good photo equipment goes to the landfill because it could not be sold at E Bay prices!
For example here in Canada Hasselblads have been advertised for many months in the $3500 CDN range, whilst one at $995 sold quickly.
Nikon FM's and FE's are advertised in the $300 range remain unsold ; those at $150 are sold in week or two.
The demand for film and paper is a better metric for B&W film interest.
The store i purchase from has been out of stock of Ilford HP5 ,120, and struggling to meet the demand for Kentmere film.
Film is alive and well and will remain a niche market for a long time.

FWIW; picking winners over losers is photographers! who have too much time that should be taken to make photos!

TB

I have found plenty of excellent deals on ebay. Still do. Just like any forum, I ignore the overpriced stuff.

 

[John Earley]

The problem is not knowing how to use a manual camera, but being able to read a camera manual. Even a Harvard professor was complaining that some freshmen found reading The Scarlet Letter too difficult. That was 8th grade book when I was in school. The number of schools failing to have even a single student reading at grade level is staggering. From my own experience, I wonder how many teachers can read at grade level.

My friend recently retired from teaching. She said that there were teachers with masters who couldn't read or do math at a high school levels. Not too surprising really.

 

[John Earley]

It's hard to gauge value when items are marked Mint, Excellent+3, etc by different people who rate differently. There's no standard. It's a crap shoot.

Yes and when you read a listing for a "mint" lens and down below it says "fungus and hazing but does not affect picture quality."

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

Yes and when you read a listing for a "mint" lens and down below it says "fungus and hazing but does not affect picture quality."

That's like reading an ad in a personal web site: "Previously married. Slightly used."

 

[Cholentpot]

From ebay.ca:
Sold 18 March - 500CM with 80mm lens for $3163
Sold 18 March - 500CM with 80mm lens for $4376
Sold 17 March - 503 CXi with 80mm lens for $3850
Sold 17 March 2000FC/M with 80mm lens for $1387
Sold 17 March - 501CM with 80mm lens for $2487
Sold 15 March 503CX with 80mm lens for $4125
Sold 15 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $1610
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $4171
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $3497
Sold 14 March 500CM with 80mm lens for $2928

Average price: $3159

I didn't investigate whether or not all of them work.

Ebay is where the PT Barnum customers hang out.

 

[Michael Mutmansky]

My "bank" is full of frozen sheet film. That's what I call a wise investment.
Crypto currency, digital images stored on the "cloud" somewhere beyond the blue, etc - that's all risky.

You will regret that as much as Michael Smith grew to with is XX freezer in later years.

 

[Duceman]

Ebay is where the PT Barnum customers hang out.

Their money is just as good as anyone else's.