Cost per Image, is it too much?

[Sam N]

That's only the cost of the camera. What about the computer, storage, and all the other factors?

Storage space must also be considered when dealing with prints and negatives.

Most people already have a computer, and storage is dirt-cheap. You can get over 6 GIGABYTES per dollar. 70,000 10mb RAW files would cost about $120 bucks to store. Backup is another issue... but with negatives you have only one copy. You could backup all those RAW files online for a small yearly fee.

There's no doubt that digital is far cheaper than film for the uses of the majority of people. This is why we're seeing so many more people getting into photography. This in turn brings more people into film photography. I got rid of my Polaroids big shot because $2 a shot was not worth it to me... even with the print included.

 

[Al Kaplan]

Shame on you Martin, bringing up coffee consumption. I live on the stuff! It made me think of the threads about developing film in coffee and then I started thinking "Gee, I wonder what it tastes like after a few rolls has gone through it?" Would that be free developer or free coffee?

Then there's silver recovery, quite popular during the early 80's before the price crashed.
It's easy enough to do, and if the price ever goes up again you can sell the silver. In the meantime it's good for the environment since silver kills a lot of micro organisms ~ it's a pretty effective antibiotic. On the other hand iron is relatvely harmless.

All you need is a plastic bucket and some steel wool. Pour your used fixer in the bucket along with some steel wool and put the lid on the bucket. over a period of a week or two the iron will go into solution and the silver will percipitate out as a black sludge. You can pour off the iron laden fixer when you have more silver laden fixer to put in the bucket. When you get enough sludge you can put it on a pile of newspaper to dry.

 

[dfoo]

....
Most people already have a computer, and storage is dirt-cheap. You can get over 6 GIGABYTES per dollar. 70,000 10mb RAW files would cost about $120 bucks to store....

That is todays prices. Storage was much more expensive in the past.

 

[Keith]

Quality proprietry films in 100ft rolls like Legacy Pro and Arista Premium now on the market, a reasonable scanner (V500) is cheap and PC's are like noses ... everybody has one! Chemicals are plentiful and also inexpensive!

Let's face it ... it's a very cheap and extremely rewarding hobby if you want it to be!

 

[Al Kaplan]

Talking about how many millions of images can be stored in digital form only makes sense if they're images worth storing. Digital capture encourages overshooting. It's "free", no film or processing expense. I just measured my stacks of boxes of B&W negatives and contact sheets. It's less that ten cubic feet. I don't consider that a burdensome storage problem for half a century's shooting.

 

[35mmdelux]

I replaced my Canon 10D, which I bought new for $2200 after over 70,000 frames. I think that works out to three cents a shot. Seems pretty cheap to me.

What about the processing?

 

[35mmdelux]

Walmart charges me $5 for D&P plus $2 for scanning it.

 

[Sam N]

That is todays prices. Storage was much more expensive in the past.

Storage gets cheaper far faster than file size increases.

 

[funkpilz]

I limit myself to slides and B/W these days. The latter I load off a bulk roll and develop myself. I've reduced my spendings dramatically, but I still go overboard on large size prints every now and then. Gots to dekorate mai haus.

 

[angeloks]

Well, film photography is indeed an expensive hobby (aside from the Leica gear). The film itself costs between 6 and 10 cad. The processing at the lab, around 5. I'm scanning with a Coolscan 5000. Considering that I've done about 500 negatives, the cost per picture for the scanner is around 7 cents per frame. This rounds up at around 43 cents per picture.

 

[dfoo]

I don't think its that expensive compared to many other hobbies. Antique cars, RC helicopters/airplanes, skidoo, boating to name a few... photography is probably the cheapest, and most rewarding hobby I've had.

 

[Trius]

Anyway, he got me thinking.

Don't think, just shoot.

 

[bigdog]

Try www.mylab.com

Try www.mylab.com

My time is limited, so it pays to send my film to a lab for development. I have been using www.mylab.com for years with great success. They only charge $8 for processing with a contact sheet. I then scan and print on my Dimage 5400 and Epson R2400.

 

[P. Lynn Miller]

Photography can be an expensive hobby, but so can drinking coffee...

Several of my customers easily spend $10AUD per day for takeaway coffee, that is only 3 decent cups of latte or espresso. I take the cheaper route... I buy fresh roast bean from the local roaster at $35AUD kg... and I use 2kgs a month... that is $70AUD a month... about 100 shots of coffee. But that is still almost a $1000AUD per annum and does not include the cost of the grinder and coffee machine.

It depends on what you want to spend your money on... I like espresso and film.

 

[djonesii]

Just got the tank, chemicals, and way over priced bottles ($15 for the set ) I have "burned" one roll learning how to get it on the spool in the changing bag, will mix chemical Friday night to use Sat. A roll of 220 costs me around $11 developed and scanned to about 2500X2000 ( or so) .... The lab only does C41. I buy from the short life guys, and it's $3 a roll.

I don't drink, roast my own coffee beans, don't kill large mammals or birds when I shoot them, am monogamous, don't have a sail boat, and have a 10 year old Volvo .... The extra $11-22 a week is not going to break me.

On the other hand, I think it will be cool to develop my own film. If and when I get a LR rangefinder, the 2.75 a sheet developing will start to matter! On the other hand, the keeper rate should be higher!

Dave

 

[Leighgion]

I wouldn't pay $10 for C41 processing of 35, but I have a particular point of view.

I'm finding I'm shooting less and less C41 film in 135 form, because digital covers me pretty well for the situations where I'd be shooting 35 in color. So, I'm not really willing to expend a lot on that category and go with cheaper development when I do use it. I tend to use 35 for B&W (developed myself) as a companion to digital, or just skip straight to medium format, be it B&W, C41 or E6.

 

[StanSmith]

I don't know about the next guy but I tend to waste a lot of film unnecessarily. It is an anal retentive thing. There is an uncontrolable urge to finish a roll especially there are only less than 10 frames left. If it is at 12 or 18 or even 22 I woudl leave it alone but when the film counter reaches around 28 then something takes over and I am obligated to finish the roll even if I end up shooting myself naked in front of the bathroom mirror.

 

[P. Lynn Miller]

I don't know about the next guy but I tend to waste a lot of film unnecessarily. It is an anal retentive thing. There is an uncontrolable urge to finish a roll especially there are only less than 10 frames left. If it is at 12 or 18 or even 22 I woudl leave it alone but when the film counter reaches around 28 then something takes over and I am obligated to finish the roll even if I end up shooting myself naked in front of the bathroom mirror.

Simple solution... buy your film in 100ft rolls and bulk load 24exp rolls or whatever your heart desires.

 

[Al Kaplan]

Cut off the exposed part of the roll and soup it. Make a new leader and use the rest later. If you have a half frame camera like an Olympus Pen use the short rolls in that.

 

[StanSmith]

I like the bulk loading idea and will try and see how 24 exposures will work out.