Kodak to raise prices

halfaninchawater said:
I have an old box of 120 Kodak Verichrome Pan that expired in 1959 with the price tag still in tact. Film cost: $0.70, Tax: $.03, Total: $0.73. Per a number of inflation calculators I used, the price for the film in 2019 dollars would be $6.44 adjusting for inflation. The price for 120 Tri-X today at B&H is $6.99 when purchased in a 5 pack.

This seems to back up your concept that the cost of film like everything else in life has gone up. And in this case the cost is just about even with inflation.

I would also add that the old adage remains true; film is still the cheapest thing in photography."
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Price worked its way up by the early 1960's. Kodak 135-36 and 120 were 85 cents a roll everywhere then.
 
Hogarth Ferguson said:
I'm glad to see someone with some sense. Not here, but in the other places I frequent, people complain about every price increase.

If what Adox says is true, which I assume it is, prices for film are too low. The only way to train new people, reinvest in your equipment, is to raise prices. If it costs 4 dollars to make a roll and you sell it for 4.10, you're only covering your costs and a little extra.

At the end of the day, I'll pay for film no matter what the cost (within reason) and just shoot accordingly. I budget for this hobby of mine, and as long as film is being made, I'll likely be a film shooter.
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The recent presentation by the technical man from ADOX (quick web search will find it) could not have been more clear or more accurate on these points.

Current film production (by everyone) is using heritage equipment and drawing on the practical/intellectual skills of an aging technical staff. These are wasting assets.

The ADOX gentleman made it clear that a roll of 135/36 had to fetch about USD$7.50 for a film manufactured in the near future to financially justify replacement/upgrading of production equipment and realistic recruitment offers of career opportunities for technical staff to support production.

Those are the constraints/rules: stated in US$; 20 cents per 35mm shot and film will be available as long as one can use it. Cigarettes. I note, go for 40-50 cents apiece these days. The roll film will do you less personal damage.





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zuiko85 said:
Not a surprise. Prices going up everywhere for most every thing.
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Actually this is incorrect. Inflation continues to be well below historical averages, to the point that central banks around the world are keeping interest rates at or near zero. Central bankers struggle to understand why inflation is near non existent.
 
At Walgreens pharmacy: Kodak Ultramax 400, three 24 exposure rolls per box, total $17. Sep. 2021 expiration. I like it enough to buy it.
 
IIIg said:
Those are the constraints/rules: stated in US$; 20 cents per 35mm shot and film will be available as long as one can use it. Cigarettes. I note, go for 40-50 cents apiece these days. The roll film will do you less personal damage.


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Assuming you don't get cold-cocked taking someone's picture on the street, then a smoke will seem mighty enticing.
 
Kodak?

Hey this is the company that invented digital cameras...they need to charge more so they can continue researching and developing exciting new technologies! About time I say! :D
 
Ok, so January 1st is here and it seems that the price hike has taken effect. I must say, it's not as bad as I expected! I placed a large order at B&H at the end of the year and comparing the prices on the bill to the new ones on their website, I can see that a 10 sheet box of Kodak Portra in 4x5 (160 and 400) is about $2 more expensive than before. A 5-pack of Portra in 120 is about $4 more expensive which is still less than $1 more a roll.

I can't speak of 35mm since I didn't order any this time around so I don't have any prices to compare. Same goes for b&w.
 
I haven't bought film in well over a decade. I have a chest freezer full of it, and I still have a lot. Getting a bit low on color transparency 120 film, but still have plenty of 35mm, and 4x5 sheets.

I'm sure it's going to hurt when I actually need to start buying film.
 
Went to compare a B&H order I made in 2016 with how the prices were in 2019 and just updated it to include the new increase of 2020. On this assortment of film it winds up being a 30% increase in 4 years after factoring in inflation.

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I find it interesting Portra 160 is more expensive than Portra 400 now. I thought higher ISO films were always more expensive due to higher silver content?
 
If you shoot that much film in a given year, you're better off canning your own bulk stock. I probably go through 6-12 rolls a year so a 30% bump isn't felt.
 
james.liam said:
If you shoot that much film in a given year, you're better off canning your own bulk stock. I probably go through 6-12 rolls a year so a 30% bump isn't felt.
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Other than Kodak Vision 3 ECN-2 film, there isn't any color film you can bulk load as far as I know.
 
 
james.liam said:
If you shoot that much film in a given year, you're better off canning your own bulk stock. I probably go through 6-12 rolls a year so a 30% bump isn't felt.
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Luckily I amassed enough film to last me years. Like another poster mentioned, there's no opportunity to bulk load colour film anymore (I'm not willing to deal with expired old stock at this point).
 
It's not like there is a lot of competition to keep prices reasonable. In B&W there is Kodak, Ilford, Foma, and maybe what, two or three other minor players. (I know, Fujifilm is going to bring back Acros….well, we'll see if that happens and at what price and how long it lasts.)
Looking at bulk loading, it just doesn't seem much of a savings. Most reports on the bulk cartridges available report a lot of problems and they are expensive. I suppose you could buy a brick of 20 preloaded factory rolls and then just leave the last bit of film out and reload those from bulk.
I shoot 35mm half frame and load 36exp rolls. It wastes some film but if needed I can clip off 10~20 shots in the darkroom and reload the remaining, if in a hurry to see results.
With my Aden loader the most I can get from 100 feet is 19-36X rolls. (Plus fooling around with cranky Agfa style metal cartridges.) So for the last few years I just buy preloaded film.
I figure the percent of markup on bulk must surely be more than on preloaded rolls.
 
zuiko85 said:
It's not like there is a lot of competition to keep prices reasonable. In B&W there is Kodak, Ilford, Foma, and maybe what, two or three other minor players. (I know, Fujifilm is going to bring back Acros….well, we'll see if that happens and at what price and how long it lasts.)
Looking at bulk loading, it just doesn't seem much of a savings. Most reports on the bulk cartridges available report a lot of problems and they are expensive. I suppose you could buy a brick of 20 preloaded factory rolls and then just leave the last bit of film out and reload those from bulk.
I shoot 35mm half frame and load 36exp rolls. It wastes some film but if needed I can clip off 10~20 shots in the darkroom and reload the remaining, if in a hurry to see results.
With my Aden loader the most I can get from 100 feet is 19-36X rolls. (Plus fooling around with cranky Agfa style metal cartridges.) So for the last few years I just buy preloaded film.
I figure the percent of markup on bulk must surely be more than on preloaded rolls.
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Fuji Acros II is already available. It's made in the UK, though.

As for savings with bulk loading, I agree that it's just not really worth the hassle. Doing the calculations for Ilford HP5, you save approximately $1 roll (not counting the initial cost of a bulk loader). For me that's not enough savings to justify the extra work AND the possibility of messing up.
 
Bulk loading makes everything way more economical. Wait until the major retailers have a sale and snap 100 foot rolls up.
 
james.liam said:
You make that sound as if it's a bad thing.

:cool:
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I just mentioned it to point out that it probably isn't manufactured by Fuji. Other than that, of course it's not a bad thing. As someone who uses Ilford products exclusively for bw, I know very well that they make great films in the UK.
 
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