This guy thinks film is dead

paulie · May 7, 2010

film is dead, it died 10 years ago, most people i know and who buy lenses from me allways ask , can you still get film.

as far as the general population is concerned FILM IS DEAD its just us freaks that wont let it die

TSSPro · May 7, 2010

Lee L said:
When my older son was 13 he started taking lessons with one of the top classical saxophone professors in the US. The professor asked me which digital camera I used, and I told him I used film. When he asked in a slightly incredulous way why I used film, I asked him what kind of MIDI (musical instrument digital interface) saxophone controller he played.

See: http://www.yamaha.com/yamahavgn/Images/KeyboardsDMI/Product/Enlarged/WX5BK_Enlarged.JPG

He took my point.

Lee

Awesome response...Kudos

Thomas Bertilsson · May 7, 2010

I get asked the question 'can you still get film for that?' every frackin time I'm using my pinhole camera or Hasselblad.

The digital camera marketing teams have done exceedingly well in making people believe that there is no alternative.

Darkroom317 · May 7, 2010

Thomas Bertilsson said:
I get asked the question 'can you still get film for that?' every frackin time I'm using my pinhole camera or Hasselblad.

The digital camera marketing teams have done exceedingly well in making people believe that there is no alternative.

I got asked this at a photography symposium by a professional last May. He asked mainly about Kodachrome

It is truly sad how well the marketing has worked

paulie · May 7, 2010

at least now even crappy film photographers have been elevated to artists, i beg to differ

lxdude · May 7, 2010

This kind of article is common in various publications, including much larger ones. I have seen this sort of article about all kinds of stuff: it's written for a general audience, not people who really know much about the subject.

In this case, the guy's the "technology writer" for a publication; he's paid to write about technology. He's going to be pushing the latest stuff. You can pretty well figure he's not going to defend film; I doubt he'd defend last year's version of the iPod. These guys go from "Golly gee, wow!" to "That old thing?" in less time than most people even get around to learning how to use their new toy.

The "film is dead" statement is a hook to get people to read the article. He might believe it wholeheartedly too, and really think that camera is what finally killed it. It's his opinion, and some people will take it as gospel. He's hardly an expert, but it's in his interest to make himself sound like he really knows his stuff, so people will put stock in what he says.
When he issues a declaration that film is dead, I think most folks can see that it is his opinion; it's just a matter of how much they think his opinion is worth.
Unfortunately there will be those who do think he knows more than the next guy about photography because he gets his opinion published.

I remember many years ago reading a review of a camera with some new feature in Popular Science magazine. The allure of "new, advanced, fantastic" was clearly being put forth, but I was appalled at the low level of understanding of actual photography the writer had, and the factual errors and mischaracterizations in the article. That taught me a lot about how seriously to take any "gee whiz" article of any stripe. I began to see where writers in even the major photo magazines were infusing articles with opinion dressed up as truth, often had new model infatuation syndrome, and how they were as capable as any of the rest of us of dispensing utter horseshit.

Steve Smith · May 7, 2010

rthomas said:
and I still make pancakes from scratch (no Bisquick here!).

I assume Bisquick is a pre-made pancake mix. I really don't understand people who buy that stuff. It's not like it's difficult to mix three ingredients together.

Steve.

removed account4 · May 7, 2010

paulie said:
film is dead, it died 10 years ago, most people i know and who buy lenses from me allways ask , can you still get film.

as far as the general population is concerned FILM IS DEAD its just us freaks that wont let it die

exactly ...

removed-user-1 · May 7, 2010

Steve Smith said:
I assume Bisquick is a pre-made pancake mix. I really don't understand people who buy that stuff. It's not like it's difficult to mix three ingredients together.

Yes, it's a pre-made pancake mix (really awful stuff too in my opinion). Sorry, I don't always remember that brand identities aren't universal.

I need to go to the camera shop this weekend and get some 120 film.

Poisson Du Jour · May 7, 2010

Wyno,
In what publication in Geelong or the State or Australia-wide did this article appear? The only reference I can see is on the scan you put up:EBIZ.

bl1nd · May 7, 2010

I'm ready to wallop the man. Analog is making quite a comeback, with both music and photography.

w9cae · May 7, 2010

There was a big shift to digital after great up roar & there is a whole generation of photographer who only know digital. But as the die hard digital folks get more involved with there photography. They are venturing over to the dark side of analog photography. Each system has its good & bad points. For the average consumer digital is great. For the business of making money especially companies digital is a huge disaster. The accessory market for filters has been ruined due to folks thinking you can do everything in photoshop. I think once the dust settles markets & demand for both will flourish. Using the correct tool properly is very hard to master & this sorts out the amateur from the professional photographer.

Ross Chambers · May 9, 2010

For goodness sake send it to ABC TV's Media Watch. The piece is obviously a craven promo. Was there any advertising for the camera in the journal as well? Did the writer obtain one of the cameras gratis?

Tony Egan · May 9, 2010

neelin said:
His digital Canon might have face detection, but I can detect a horse's backside without my camera's help.

Can I steal that one!

Kevin Caulfield · May 9, 2010

bl1nd said:
I'm ready to wallop the man. Analog is making quite a comeback, with both music and photography.

Why suggest physical violence against somebody?

RMP-NikonPro · May 9, 2010

Analogue Vs Digital yet again! wow!! :rolleyes:

When will this ever stop? :confused:

Lets all stop bickering over someone else's stupid comments!
So what if he thinks film is dead!

Film is still available to buy and Good second hand cameras are filling the market!
I bet most of us here have their own stock pile of film at home! so why worry!
I rather think about how my next lot of images turn out!
:munch:

donbga · May 9, 2010

Wyno said:
Hi guys,
I found this article in the latest edition of the Geelong Business News. The author thinks that because he doesn't use it, and has no interest in it, that film is dead. It's attitudes like this this that will kill off film, it's nearly happened in Geelong already. It's basically the diehards and the users of Holga cameras that are keeping film alive here.
Mike

Film isn't dead or on life support but it's definitely in the critical wing.

Consumption shrinks each and every year and that's the way it will continue.

There will not be a new period of enlightenment where people take up film photography and leave digital photography.

Cliffy13 · May 9, 2010

donbga said:
Film isn't dead or on life support but it's definitely in the critical wing.

Consumption shrinks each and every year and that's the way it will continue.

There will not be a new period of enlightenment where people take up film photography and leave digital photography.

But as this and many other forums prove there are many people who gave up film and moved to digital are now coming back to using film alongside digital

mr rusty · May 9, 2010

Thank you for the recommendations, we do get orders from customers who mention they have seen our name on forums and it's very gratifying that people take the trouble to do that. Judging from the volume of film we get, and the variations of photography, there are many people going back to film cameras because of the different things you can do with them

The above is a quote from an email conversation with my film processor. They are a high street and mail order operation, I guess its possible their volumes are going up because others are shutting down, but still an encouraging comment.

Rodex · May 9, 2010

Cliffy13 said:
But as this and many other forums prove there are many people who gave up film and moved to digital are now coming back to using film alongside digital

I bought a canon dslr recently and I will keep using it, but I'm also starting with film photography now. I have missed the whole film period because I am still young and grew up with digital photography.

Stew · May 9, 2010

Worker 11811 said:
Then figure in the cost of consumables like paper and ink. (It costs over $50 to refill my printer!)

I think you can call yourself lucky !! It costs me $160 to refill my Epson R1900 with ink !! I find it is hard on ink, so much so, that I am thinking about going back to RA-4 printing for my medium format work.

Worker 11811 · May 9, 2010

I've had printers that cost $70 or $80 to refill. I bought the one I have now partly based on cheaper ink cost.

I just wish they sold ink in 5 gallon buckets so I could just hook them up to a rubber hose!
Why not? We can already do that with darkroom chemistry! How come digital can't catch up?

Rodex said:
I have missed the whole film period because I am still young and grew up with digital photography.

You are wise to study traditional photography. Even if digital photography takes over 99% of the market in the future, a good photographer should have AT LEAST a basic knowledge and understanding of traditional photography. Traditional photography teaches about the basic qualities of light and optics that are difficult or even impossible to understand with a digicam.

If you ever want to be a good professional photographer I think a minimum understanding of traditional photography will be required long into the future.

Rodex · May 9, 2010

Above all, It's fun to learn about traditional photography. I love reading about the different alternative processes and camera's, chemicals etc. Also experimenting with different kinds of film is a lot more interesting than putting an sd-card into the computer and that's it. I'll just use both digital and traditional.

donbga · May 9, 2010

Cliffy13 said:
But as this and many other forums prove there are many people who gave up film and moved to digital are now coming back to using film alongside digital

The net user base for film continues to implode regardless of anecdotal remarks about digital users switching to film.

Film use continues to shrink and the rate of shrinkage isn't slowing. Look at figures for film sales, lab closings, and new film camera sales.

Rodex · May 9, 2010

donbga said:
The net user base for film continues to implode regardless of anecdotal remarks about digital users switching to film.

Film use continues to shrink and the rate of shrinkage isn't slowing. Look at figures for film sales, lab closings, and new film camera sales.

I hope film will come back like vinyl did.

This guy thinks film is dead

removed-user-1

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