Telegraph: Traditional camera film makes a come back

[Diapositivo]

The ugly side of these reports is that you can rarely find the information you look for. In the case of Kodak, it would be very interesting to see a break-down of profit (and loss) for each division. I understand that the repartition of certain fixed and overhead costs over product lines is quite artificial and debatable, but some information would be better than no information at all.

Specifically I would like to ask Kodak: is the film division profitable? We don't know the answer. 14% decrease in revenue is no small decrease, but it might be that the division is still "profitable", given a certain arbitrary allocation of common costs.

This new 600ppi POD-quasi-offset printing technology is very interesting, but where is it? Who sells it? If APUG wanted to print a book with this technology, where would they go?

 

[michaelbsc]

The ugly side of these reports is that you can rarely find the information you look for. .....

Specifically I would like to ask Kodak: is the film division profitable? We don't know the answer. 14% decrease in revenue is no small decrease, but it might be that the division is still "profitable", given a certain arbitrary allocation of common costs.

This was exactly what I thought as well, where's the real meat? Revenues are down 14%, but as PE pointed out that they've closed a whole production line in the past quarter so what are their cost savings? Has the margin gone up? (Probably not, but we can hope.)

MB

 

[zsas]

I think I have an answer to the above questions related to earnings of the Film Division. I found it in the quarterly report. I believe I calculate a 94% decline in earnings ($2 million 2Q11 earnings vs $36 million 2Q10 earnings). I sure hope they can continue to make profits in our Film Division!!!

"Film, Photofinishing and Entertainment Group second-quarter sales were $396 million, a 14% decline from the year-ago quarter, driven by continuing industry-related volume declines. Second-quarter earnings from operations for the segment were $2 million, compared with earnings of $36 million in the year-ago period. This decrease in earnings was primarily driven by significantly increased raw material costs, particularly silver, and industry-related declines in volumes, partially offset by cost reductions and price actions across the segment."

per Kodak's 2nd Quarter 2011 Results
http://investor.kodak.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=115911&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1588842&highlight=

 

[Plate Voltage]

Specifically, how much of that decline is attributable to the Entertainment part of that division? A breakdown of film sales changes by product would be interesting. A good chunk of that could be explained if Hollywood's been shooting more digital and less Kodak Vision while Ektachrome and Portra sales could be more or less unchanged, for example.

 

[fred]

using the good news

This is indeed good news!
We can use it. Let's start with an apug 'worldwide open door day' (apug-wwodd), once a year, where we invite all young lomographers (and all the others youngsters) to our darkrooms and where we show all (at least a part of it) our knowledge around analogue photography? (off course: free of charge)

A apug world wide open door day? What do you think? For example in the month march or november.... typical darkroom days here...

Kind regards
Fred

 

[bblhed]

Something that I have seen mentioned a few times in this thread was the "overpriced" LOMO film that someone could get anywhere. Well, I find that to be somewhat true, but I have also seen that LOMO has film that I can't find from any other source, and if I can get it please let me know where.

LOMO is selling "Red Scale" film that gives a reddish tint to the photos taken with it. While some might look at this film and say so what, or that looks terrible I saw photos taken with this film and knew what to use this film for. This red scale film is actually underwater film that will give nice colors when shot underwater with an underwater camera. I didn't even know that anyone was making underwater film any longer, so tell me where I can get underwater film besides from LOMO.

 

[michaelbsc]

...I didn't even know that anyone was making underwater film any longer, so tell me where I can get underwater film besides from LOMO.

It isn't underwater film. There isn't any "underwater" film.

It is just film loaded into the cassette backwards. Buy yourself a cheap bulk loader on eBay and load it backwards yourself.

Or if you don't want to buy a bulk loader just carefully roll it from one cassette to another such that it rolls into the target cassette with the emulsion facing outward.

Just Google "make red scale film" and there are a bunch of hits.

 

[thegman]

I was under the impression that redscale film is simply regular C41 colour film flipped around in the canister, so that it loads the opposite way round. This means (as I understand it), the red layer(s) get more light than they normally would, and the picture comes out looking quite red.

You can check out Redbird by Rollei too, for a rescale film. However, in the UK, Fototo does 3 rolls of Redscale for less than £10, which is OK with me.

Lomography themselves sell Kodak and Fujifilm films for atrocious amounts of money, and their P&P is through the roof. Their "own brand" films are not too badly priced though.

 

[michaelbsc]

This isn't to imply that shooting the film backward or cross processing is not a legitimate artistic methodology. It is a reasonable tool.

But the idea that I can charge you 2 to 3 times what it would cost you to do it yourself just because I disguise how it works is the make of a scam to me.

 

[Jay Abbas]

Film being coated is good. Exposing film will result in more film being coated. Let us go out into the world and expose more film. Circle of film life !