Maybe film IS dead

[markinlondon]

I went out this lunchtime to shoot a few frames, but found I was on the end of a roll and had no film on me. Ah, but I was passing Jessop's on Fenchurch Street. On perusing the film stocks I decided to opt for Tri-x (no HP5 😱). The following exchange took place:

Me "I'd like some 35mm Tri-x, please"
Jessop "Tri-x?"
Me (pointing at shelf) "Kodak Tri-x, they label it 400TX these days"
Jessop "You mean TMax"
Me "No, 400TX, Tri-x"
Jessop "Oh, this one?"
Me "Yes please, do you have any more?
Jessop "Got 2 rolls"
Me " I'll take those then, got any SR44 batteries? Not alkaline, thanks"
Jessop (proferring Alkaline LR44's) "D'you mean these"
Me "No, just the film then"

Arrgh!

Mark

 

[Jon Perry]

You didn't actually expect somebody working as a sales assistant in a Jessops store to know anything about photographic products did you?

There was your mistake! 😛

Jon

 

[jamiewakeham]

Hee hee. Film is fine, Mark; it's just the cerebral prospects of the average Jessops wage-bunny...

You should have seen me trying to buy 120 Velvia the other day...

Jamie

 

[sherm]

Okay:

We've beat this to death.... let's kill it while we still can 😀

Scott

 

[markinlondon]

120 would have been even more entertaining, Jamie. I feel for you, maybe we need a support group. The funny thing is I had that branch down as one of the OK one's.

Mark

 

[jrong]

Jessops on Fenchurch St?! I think the only Jessops that even stocks anything respectably film-related anymore is the one on New Oxford St.

Um, the branch at Canary Wharf even proclaims itself as "all-digital". When I went in there last week to order a Paterson thermometer as I'd broken mine, I was met with blank stares. Then they told me that the nearest outlet that had the thermometer I wanted was in Glasgow(!). The entire shop looks more like PCWorld or a Dixons than a proper photographic store. I wouldn't normally give Jessops a penny of my money, but Silverprint's opening hours are a tad inflexible. 🙁

 

[beethamd]

Jessops in Monks Cross York, sells loads of Darkroom stuff - really, lots of choice. And they share the shop with Carephonewarehouse.

I buy there when I'm in, even if I don't really need stuff.

 

[Mark Wood]

I asked for Tri-X in Jessops and was immediately asked what speed I wanted. On another occasion, I asked for a 12 exposure colour negative film and was told quite emphatically by the store manager that they'd never sold it during the time he'd worked there - he was the person who'd sold me a roll a couple of months before this. I've asked them for Elitechrome Extra Colour and Fuji Sensia and been given strange looks when I've refused to buy it when it's either out of date or with only a month left.
Also, having to stand and listen to an assistant explaining that a 3 megapixel digital camera is much better than a 35 mm compact and that one camera is better than another because he/she prefers it is not on my list of favourite ways to spend time in a "photographic shop."
Their latest catalogue lists all film SLRs (including the Nikon F6) as "while stocks last" - read into that what you will.
I object to being told what I have to buy rather than what I want so I only look in Jessops for the "bargain bins" and use photographic shops for everything else! I'm not the only one. I've seen many disgruntled potential customers leaving Jessops in disbelief. They bought out (or helped to shut down) many well established photographic shops in the UK and left us with this - thank you Jessops!

 

[Pherdinand]

A hungarian would never buy anything in a shop called Jessops.
Szopsz (pron. "sops") means "you suck". Quite an accident, heh?

Anyway. I just tried to talk to UPC (again) and failed (again). Half a year ago I moved and I still am unable to make them stop my contract. And they send me reminders to pay the last bill BUT i can't because their website, which I should use to pay the bill, fails every time. I'm also waiting for some "activation code" since 3 weeks (that should have arrived in three DAYS)...whiuch is absolutely necessary for paying the bills.

I hate these large bureaucratic mega-chain-****s.

 

[BrianShaw]

I asked for Tri-X in Jessops and was immediately asked what speed I wanted.

It could have been worse... they could have asked if you want that in color or black&white.

Something like that happened once when I asked my wife to drop off a roll of 120 PlusX for processing at the shop where I bought the film just days before. First the clerk told her that he's never seen that old-fashioned style film before, then he told her that he didn't know if it should be color or black&white processed. She called me at work hysterical, thinking that I sent her on a "fools errand". I quickly asked her to retreive my film and I took it elsewhere for processing. Welcome to the new world of photography. The sooner we adapt to it and stop complaining, the sooner we'll be happy with our lives!

 

[Xmas]

My 'local' Jessops (one of the two in Worcester) has a pillar side about 2x6 foot dedicated to analogue. In additional to other really useful self service bits, they had plastic and stainless steel film drying hooks, several bottled developers, multigrade paper, and a photo thermometer, (this was last week). In their sale display case they had a reduced (Jessops branded) bulk loader.
I bought two 1/4 tripod bus adopters really cheap.
In the other store I cleaned out their out of date half price film box of black and white film.

I aked about E6 mailers and was told they never sold any so did not stock. The sales staff were cheerful and doing their best.

Noel

 

[markinlondon]

I asked for Tri-X in Jessops and was immediately asked what speed I wanted.

That could have been the clued-up one who'd actually heard of TXP, but on second thoughts no 🙂.

I did get to overhear an hilarious demo of a Sony dSLR while I was buying my Tri-x ration so it wasn't all bad 🙄

Mark

 

[BrianShaw]

I did get to overhear an hilarious demo of a Sony dSLR while I was buying my Tri-x ration so it wasn't all bad 🙄

That's the only fun part of camera shops anymore... the free entertainment!

 

[wtl]

what a bunch of snobs - so what if a sales person doesn't know what tri-x is? or a sr44 is not a lx44? what are they anyway?

are these things so important that everyone ought to know for some reason?

i know next to rats about sports and pretty much everything else in life. call me stupid all you want and see if i really care.

 

[Film dino]

At Applied Imaging, in KL, Malaysia... last week.. AI is a "pro-lab"

Saturday morning (me): can you ask the Fuji people if they've got any 35mm Acros... say 50 rolls?

AI: You mean Neopan
Me: neopan ACROS 100 ISO
AI: okay, we'll give them a ring Monday.. (I write down Fuji Acros 100 ISO on a business card & hand it over)

AI (Monday pm): hello... they've got 53 rolls of Neopan.. you've got to promise to take it all or we won't order it on your behalf
Me: OK, I'll be in on Thursday to pick it up
(On Thursday- the receptionist at AI hauls out a box from the film fridge containing... 53 rolls of Neopan SS)

I explain its NOT ACROS, it's DIFFERENT....
She rings the Fuji guys... they've never imported ACros to Malaysia? They've not heard of Acros? At any rate they haven't got any.

A baffled me leaves empty handed. Back to Megaperls & bulk loading

 

[fgianni]

what a bunch of snobs - so what if a sales person doesn't know what tri-x is? or a sr44 is not a lx44? what are they anyway?

are these things so important that everyone ought to know for some reason?

i know next to rats about sports and pretty much everything else in life. call me stupid all you want and see if i really care.

You know rats about sport, so I guess sports is not part of your daily job, fair enough.
But if someone sells photographic stuff it is not that unreasonable to expect that he knows a little bit about photography.

 

[Mark Wood]

It's not snobbery at all. In what is supposed to be the major chain of specialist photographic stores in the UK, they should know, especially when you ask for something that's actually out on their shelves!

 

[wtl]

...But if someone sells photographic stuff it is not that unreasonable to expect that he knows a little bit about photography.

fair enough.

but next time don't complain about everything costs too much so that the stores can actually hire someone who has the proper training.

i hear the same people who want everything the cheapest possible and yet hold the service to its highest standard. both expectations are resonable but just don't come together.

 

[Pherdinand]

heh, don't feed the trolls guys....🙂

 

[BrianShaw]

what a bunch of snobs - so what if a sales person doesn't know what tri-x is? or a sr44 is not a lx44? what are they anyway?

are these things so important that everyone ought to know for some reason?

i know next to rats about sports and pretty much everything else in life. call me stupid all you want and see if i really care.

I think it is a reasonable expectation of a photo shop to know a bit about photography. In a 100% digital shop, perhaps not knowing about film is acceptable, but where film is sold you would think they'd know the basics about the product they are selling.

p.s. who called you 'stupid', WTL? Are we reading the same thread... or do you work for Jessop's 😉