keytarjunkie
no longer addicted
If Fuji makes a killing off of these X100's, maybe they'll put more $$ into film R&D. or maybe even buy Kodak (that may or may not be a good thing).
andredossantos
Well-known
And yet last quarter was the most profitable quarter for U.S, business in history. I don't doubt some companies are strugglng to make ends meet or that politicians grandstand on issues but neither of those examples are an indictment on labor laws in their entirety.
MikeL
Go Fish
Mods, can this be moved to that other forum that I have on "Hide".
Same folks, same thing to say, just threads of a different title. Is the world so boring we have this?
Same folks, same thing to say, just threads of a different title. Is the world so boring we have this?
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
Mods, can this be moved to that other forum that I have on "Hide".
Same folks, same thing to say, just threads of a different title. Is the world so boring we have this?
If you go back and look at my original post you'll see that it was about the public statement that George Conboy made and the interesting point (I thought) that he is an avid photographer and rangefinder user and obviously has a personal interest in Kodak's future.
It was never intended to be a 'digital v film' thread or 'film is dead' thread. Did you in fact read my original post or have you just jumped in here to express your displeasure at what you perceive this thread is, or has become?
Chris101
summicronia
Don't get me wrong Keith, I love Croatian film! In fact, should Kodak ever really go out of the film business, then I would look to Fotokemika to take up major slack. Fuji is a follower company when it comes to film - and would do well for a while in a (mythical) post-Kodak world, but would eventually follow them down the same path. Ilford is doing what they do, and would not likely expand nor contract.
But Fotokemika is out there, experimenting and even gaining a following and (dare I say it?) market share. Who doesn't love their ISO 25 film, and their two infrared films are (nearly) the only game left in town. If only they could get some ... uumph* into them.
* uumph being defined and any speed at all. ISO 25 is difficult to live with, but iso 6... C'mon!!!
But Fotokemika is out there, experimenting and even gaining a following and (dare I say it?) market share. Who doesn't love their ISO 25 film, and their two infrared films are (nearly) the only game left in town. If only they could get some ... uumph* into them.
* uumph being defined and any speed at all. ISO 25 is difficult to live with, but iso 6... C'mon!!!
skibeerr
Well-known
It is far more easy to reduce humans to numbers. If you want to "Make it" being empathic doesn't help, you can hire a spindokter for that.
I am old and cynical enough to know this is the way of the world but I don't have to like it.
And on topic,
yes in the end there will still be people riding horses.
W
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
What's their 100 like Chris?
I've been meaning to give Efke film a try for some time as I'm a fan of the classic emulsions.
cooltouch
Established
Like most folks here, I suspect, I would shoot a lot more film if it hadn't become so expensive. I prefer slide film but nowadays it's a chore finding a local processor, and when you do find one, it gets expensive, fast. A couple weeks ago, I had a 36-exposure roll and a roll of 220 -- both slides and both Fuji, as it so happens -- developed at a local pro lab, and it set me back $31. Add that to the cost of the film and we're pushing $50 for two rolls of film. Now I don't know about you folks, but to me, that's expensive. So I'm thinking that the fact that film costs are becoming prohibitive -- at least in the case of slides -- is only exacerbating Kodak's problems. But then again, Kodak is down to only two slide emulsions anymore anyway, so I guess they don't much care anymore about that aspect of their business.
I'm in agreement with others who suspect that Kodak will spin off its film division if/when the company goes into Chapter 11. And since the company is so poorly run, this might be the best thing that could happen to Kodak films.
And while I have to use the Search function at Kodak's website to find its offerings of slide films since they are now all but hidden from public view, at least Fuji's films are still easy to find at their website and to learn about.
Me, I'll start getting worried for real about the future of film when Fujiflim drops "film" from the company name.
I'm in agreement with others who suspect that Kodak will spin off its film division if/when the company goes into Chapter 11. And since the company is so poorly run, this might be the best thing that could happen to Kodak films.
And while I have to use the Search function at Kodak's website to find its offerings of slide films since they are now all but hidden from public view, at least Fuji's films are still easy to find at their website and to learn about.
Me, I'll start getting worried for real about the future of film when Fujiflim drops "film" from the company name.
Ade-oh
Well-known
And this will continue to happen because film can be digitally resampled over and over again as the digital technology improves.
My guess is that much of the consumer photography market - digital and film - will evaporate as the quality of cellphone cameras improves. Film will bottom out first but even now my iPhone takes a very acceptable shot which can be more or less instantly put up on Facebook, Tumblr, flickr or sent to a photofinisher to be professionally printed. What does this mean? Presumably much less profit for big photographic corporations and thus less money available to support R & D. My understanding is that consumer camera sales have always supported the pro-camera business, but in any case, technology seems to be advancing quickly enough that perhaps we will see the demise of the 'traditional' DSLR in favour of something quite different for pro use before too long.
Technology is always slightly precarious; there is no benefit in lying awake at night worrying that my collection of film cameras will become useless overnight, anymore than there is a point in worrying that my DSLR gear will become suddenly obsolescent as technology moves on. If it happens, it happens but I doubt it will with the degree of finality that some here seem to assume.
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Of course he could be right.
But given the heroic track record and predictive powers of 'financial advisers' of all kinds, he could very easily be wrong, too.
Cheers,
R.
But given the heroic track record and predictive powers of 'financial advisers' of all kinds, he could very easily be wrong, too.
Cheers,
R.
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
This particular exec/advisor started shooting an M3 and Summicron at nineteen while working in a camera shop part time and studying. He still owns two M6's and checking the few pics he has posted in his gallery at p.net he's a pretty good photographer.
Because Eastman Kodak are in his neighbourhood he obviously feels qualified and interested enough to comment on their possible future and would have concerns of his own being a fim shooter no doubt.
This thread has gone very astray from where I intended it to go ... I naively assumed that people might be interested in this guy and his opinions because effectively he's one of us ... but the only person who actually made any comment about this oddity was Frank P.
Onya Frank!
Personally I could care less if Kodak bring themselves undone financially ... as long as their manufacturing equipment doesn't lay idle, I'll be content enough.
rxmd
May contain traces of nut
I think the original proposition was being "welcome to buy film made in other countries by companies that barely pay their workers anything or follow any environment rules". You are also free to choose whether you consider your own country to be one of these.
One could argue that the business model of a company that depends on barely paying their workers and not following environment rules (to the point where everything else threatens their existence) may not be that great to begin with, no matter whether a small group of people appreciates the low price point of the final product.
Then again, as far as I know Efke/Fotokemika is endangered more by environmental legislation forcing them to filter things like heavy metals rather than by labour laws, so this is a bit of a moot discussion to begin with.
Roger Hicks
Veteran
Dear Keith,
I still don't understand why his credentials as an analyst of Kodak are worth very much, or why we should be especially interested in his views. He's an amateur photographer and 'financial adviser'. My wife was born in Rochester; her uncle was a pilot for Kodak; her father worked for them for a while; she still has friends and relatives there, some of whom, I suspect, are better qualified than this fellow to pontificate.
Cheers,
R.
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rxmd
May contain traces of nut
Summary: "A guy from Rochester, who is nice, a decent photographer apparently, and the president of an otherwise unrelated company dealing with minimizing income tax, is worried about the future of film."
Did you expect anything else than a rehash of people worrying about the future of film?
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Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
Credentials ... are you kidding? I said he was like one of us ... what sort of credential is that I ask you?
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
I don't know.
Roland asking which films freeze best.
Worry about X-Rays fogging high-speed film, even when frozen.
I'm thinking the companies that make Nuclear Bomb Shelters for your backyard should reinvent themselves for die-hard photographers wanting fog-proof film chambers able to survive into the next millenium. Then, even if the BIG ONE comes crashing down, we will all be gone but FILM will Survive.
And now for song lyrics from Gloria Ganor.
First I was afraid
I was petrified
Kept thinking I could never live
without you by my side
But I spent so many nights
thinking how you did me wrong
I grew strong
I learned how to carry on
and so you're back
from outer space...
Roland asking which films freeze best.
Worry about X-Rays fogging high-speed film, even when frozen.
I'm thinking the companies that make Nuclear Bomb Shelters for your backyard should reinvent themselves for die-hard photographers wanting fog-proof film chambers able to survive into the next millenium. Then, even if the BIG ONE comes crashing down, we will all be gone but FILM will Survive.
And now for song lyrics from Gloria Ganor.
First I was afraid
I was petrified
Kept thinking I could never live
without you by my side
But I spent so many nights
thinking how you did me wrong
I grew strong
I learned how to carry on
and so you're back
from outer space...
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j j
Well-known
Man buys digital camera and pronounces film dead. I've heard that a few times over the years; I may even have said it at one point!
Frank Petronio
Well-known
I'd give him more than usual credibility. He lives, socializes with, and knows Kodak management. He's the one local that journalists from the Wall St Journal to the TV news turn to, and the one that Kodak might "soft leak" information to.
Remember he said "may"....
It's more plausible than ever because management might feel that they need to do something dramatic to show that Kodak has become a digital company, this might be one of the signals it shows potential buyers, etc.
Or it could very well be just be another affluent amateur photographer trying to rationalize buying a M9?
I sold George some darkroom stuff and did some portraits for the company, he's a straight shooter and I don't see how telling us that Kodak might drop film would benefit him or his company, so I suspect the later.
Remember he said "may"....
It's more plausible than ever because management might feel that they need to do something dramatic to show that Kodak has become a digital company, this might be one of the signals it shows potential buyers, etc.
Or it could very well be just be another affluent amateur photographer trying to rationalize buying a M9?
I sold George some darkroom stuff and did some portraits for the company, he's a straight shooter and I don't see how telling us that Kodak might drop film would benefit him or his company, so I suspect the later.
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sevo
Fokutorendaburando
As there were? Croatia is a pretty average European country and soon to be EU member, and that pretty much reflects in their current standards and regulations.
The USSR, Poland and Hungary seem to have abandoned film production, the GDR was converted to West German standards two decades ago, and the remaining Chinese makers operate plants set up as Kodak or Mitsubishi joint ventures a decade or two ago - too new to be environmental hell.