Lomo-- did it save film? From BBC News

[JohnTF]

Interesting look at the little viewfinder.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20434270

 

[one90guy]

Sure did not hurt, hope they keep making them.

 

[Michalm]

Somehow this is extraordinary story, i was never a great fan of lomo and especially Mr Vlad Putin but on the other hand perhaps it really did give a film industry an extra kick and save the film for us . Very interesting.

 

[jarski]

dictators often do good things too 🙂

 

[thegman]

Apparently, just in the UK, they sell over 10,000 rolls of film per month:

http://www.gadgetstech.co.uk/lomography-movie-revenue-increasing/

So, whilst I had a fling with Lomo and stopped, they're obviously, very obviously helping the film camera market and film in general. There are very nice shops you can walk into in London which are *exclusively* film camera shops, no digital at all. They are probably the only camera shop I can think of where that is the case.

 

[santino]

it's not VPut who has saved film but the Austrian art students (I'm a patriot 😉) 😀 - funny story though.

 

[Dirk]

Hey, anything that saves film is OK by me. I'm not into Lomography, but am exclusively into film photography, and if they are the ones saving film, more power to them!

 

[zuiko85]

My evaluation of Lomography has softened over the last five or so years. As a manufactured and manipulated fad of 'don't think, just shoot' it engendered some contempt. However I give them credit, they have helped, to some extent, to keep film alive. Recently they resurrected 110 cartridge film, both color and more importantly, B&W. I don;t even own a 110 camera but I heartened by this development. Quite a few folks still have a Canon ED20 or a Pentax 110 SLR that are capable of some respectable results. They are even making a new, square format mini 110 with a WA and normal lens styled after the Diana 120 toy camera.

 

[f6andBthere]

If I can still get a roll of 120 film in five or ten years I'll be happy ... and I won't be worrying about the hipsters when I buy it. 😀

 

[John Bragg]

More power to anything that boosts film sales, even pinhole cameras. Digital photography has its place well established now but we do well to remember our heritage. I am exusively a film photographer and I get great joy from anything that proves that there is considerable life in this old dog yet !

 

[brainwood]

Interesting story. Lomography is certainly bringing a new generation already familiar with digital to film . My daughter is one such convert and is a big fan of her holga 120 . She likes the look of the lomo lubitel TLR so is already looking to move forward and when I showed her a yashica mat it prompted a 'cool camera' response. Many of the lomographers of today may well become the Rff'ers of tomorrow.
While I remain to be convinced that film's days are numbered in my lifetime anything that helps to increase the size of the film market is good in my book

Chris

 

[Landsker]

I started off with an LC-A, its what got me into film about 6 years ago. Im sure there are more just like me!

 

[f6andBthere]

To be honest I'm more concerned about the association with Putin than the hipsters! 😛

 

[28mm]

Interesting story. Lomography is certainly bringing a new generation already familiar with digital to film .

Is this still the case with Instagram so prevalent? My thoughts are that before, when people wanted the aesthetics of film, they had to shoot film. And if they wanted square-format, they'd had to pick up a 6x6. But now, with a free app, you can get these features for free and without even leaving the house.

 

[brainwood]

Is this still the case with Instagram so prevalent? My thoughts are that before, when people wanted the aesthetics of film, they had to shoot film. And if they wanted square-format, they'd had to pick up a 6x6. But now, with a free app, you can get these features for free and without even leaving the house.

My experience of my daughters attraction to film though is that it offers a more satisfying image making process than instantaneous moment of hipstermatic and instagram

 

[johannielscom]

Those selling film to the Lomo crowd are doing something right: In Berlin I saw Lomography plastic camera's for EUR 50 and up, while any flea market camera was of equal or better build quality, and packs of 'Lomo film' (read: 3 expired films, C-41, E-6, B-W) for EUR 27. Yikes! 😱 And they sold them too! 😱😱

 

[slava]

The lomo was my first step to the film world. It was short but it was right.

 

[John Bragg]

Surely the Lomo fills that need that George Eastman saw when he created the Box Brownie? A simple camera that people are not affraid to use and carry everywhere. Sure the results often suck in pure technical terms but we love them none the less. Photography at its most primitive but magical and satisfying.

 

[Rangefinderfreak]

What Lomo movement did, was they scrapped the stocks of old outdated film. The older, the better.. hehe ! At Maco, (www.mahn.net) they told that requests for old outdated film is incredible ! It looked like the sellers were swimming in outdated film stock, now all is gone ! same in japan...

 

[pakeha]

Little irony in this really is`nt there
Lomo from Russia plays part in film interest and sales.
Gets `labelled"

Famous film maker blows it😀