Can we still afford film?

[MikeCassidy]

I shot Tri X, Plus X, Ilford's Pan F and FP; I buy at B&H.
I think about bulk but I did it a few years back and the bulk loader ruined 30 rolls of film - scratches. I didn't notice because I had fallen behind in processing.

I save by processing all my own film; shot between 3-10 rolls a week.

I still may do bulk loading; firstly to save money and secondly to load some rolls at any numbers between 10-36 frames. The shorter rolls will be better to experiment with developing times.

Paper cost gets to me; because I am still not happy with my printing [wet]; I am not skilled or patient enough yet.

Though I sometimes think digital would be gentler on the environment.

 

[Photog9001]

The M8 results do not look like film's results perhaps?

i don't know, never tried one.
but i'm pretty confident i can make a well exposed digi image look ok (to my eyes). it probably wouldn't be much of a substitude for c41 material though ... damn, i was so not going to get into this... bottom line, the "film or m8" is not much of a topic for me since i can't afford one.

 

[alternatve]

i did a stupid calculation some time ago, and found out that for the cost of processing and scanning (no prints) of 232 films, i could buy a leica m8. not including film price.

that's not a lot of films processed, if you ask me.. can't figure out why i didn't switch already.

Scanning you can do on your own after purchasing a decent scanner. Like wise for processing.

However, if you're too busy and want to outsource both processing and scanning, that's still 8352 shots taken on 232 rolls, assuming it's 36 shots per roll. An average hobbyist doesn't shoot nearly half of that in a year, so unless you're a pro, film still makes sense.

Samuel

 

[sanmich]

I'm really surprised by film price, here in Israel, mainly because we are used to pay more on ANYTHING especially related to photography.

I pay 3$ for a tri-X and 4$ a Plus-X and that's steady for a year or two now.

So for me the question is: Can I already afford digital?

Naahhhh, not going there...

 

[alcaraban]

For most people amature like me, a 10M or 16M Digital camera will be usable for many years.

I remember that guy happy with his Fuji S3 Pro (nice camera BTW, released in 2004) when its shutter dies. Now he can have it repaired (out of warranty, so pick some 500 USD) or buy a S5. Otherwise the camera would be usable for him in terms of Mpx, etc ... I don't think of too many digital cameras working for the next 20 years.