when does the cost of film become too high for you?

[mwoenv]

With the cost of color film (135 and 120) increasing rapidly and 120 black and white film also going up quite a bit in price, I now bulk load 135 black and white and develop all my color film. Making these changes helps pay for the film going up in price.

Processing is easy and low-cost (about $0.70 per roll of 135 and $1.20 per roll of color) but you have to enjoy doing it - it has to be learned and it is work. Fortunately, I've enjoyed doing it for a long time (black and white for about 40 years, color for 3 years) and it's a major reason for not going digital.

Shooting a total of about 60 rolls of 135 and 120 a year is still reasonable froma cost point of view.

 

[thegman]

With the cost of color film (135 and 120) increasing rapidly and 120 black and white film also going up quite a bit in price, I now bulk load 135 black and white and develop all my color film. Making these changes helps pay for the film going up in price.

Processing is easy and low-cost (about $0.70 per roll of 135 and $1.20 per roll of color) but you have to enjoy doing it - it has to be learned and it is work. Fortunately, I've enjoyed doing it for a long time (black and white for about 40 years, color for 3 years) and it's a major reason for not going digital.

Shooting a total of about 60 rolls of 135 and 120 a year is still reasonable froma cost point of view.

If we consider the heyday of film to be in the 90's, maybe 1995, according to an inflation calculator, film is cheaper now than it was then. Simply looking at numbers of dollars or pounds does not tell the story, as the value of money has decreased significantly since then. At least it has in the UK and USA.

 

[lrochfort]

My volumes are low enough for it not to be a problem. The cost of film could double, and it's still not a huge deal.

10 sheets of Ektar 4x5 costs $34.99, it sounds a lot for 10 shots, but this evening chances are I'll order a takeaway which will cost about the same.

Just recently I spent £110 on film for a once a year trip, again, sounds a lot, but my gym membership is £120 *a month*.

In real terms, inflation included, film is cheaper now that it was in 90's. I can buy a roll of Kodak ColorPlus for £1.69, two rolls of Rollei slide film for £6.99. In 1990, inflation adjusted, that is £3.63. That means a roll of slide film is the equivalent of £1.82.

Prices feel like they are going up as we're comparing numbers of pounds/dollars, but that only tells half the story. In the UK at least, now compared to 1990, money is worth roughly half what is was.

Where do you buy your film in the uk?

 

[shadowfox]

If enough people are shooting film, even sparingly combined with digital, we'd be okay.

The problem is the lack of awareness that film does offer something different than digital. This is hard to do when the benchmark nowadays are Megapixel, LCD resolution, and FPS, instead of texture, tones, and the process.

 

[thegman]

Where do you buy your film in the uk?

http://www.discountfilmsdirect.co.uk/
http://www.ag-photographic.co.uk/
http://www.firstcall-photographic.co.uk/

Between them they have everything I need, I find. AG Photographic recently have been a bit slow in getting stock, but otherwise, they're very good and responsive to emails.

Discount Films Direct are good for bargains, and First Call have some cheap stuff although their postage is pretty steep.

 

[Leica All Day]

It's a good question and I think there are a lot of factors involved and it is going to vary on peoples incomes and other things....... I pay about 2.25 USD a roll for color film and it costs me about 3.00 USD to have it developed and scanned to a cd at my local lab....As far as black and white goes, that is a different story, I develop and print in my darkroom and I don't even want to think about how much it costs because I enjoy it so much, that the cost doesn't really bother me....that said, I am sure if I were to move back to Italy or California, I would think a lot more about how much film costs, but as of now, I don't really think about it....

cheers, michael

 

[furbs]

The problem is the lack of awareness that film does offer something different than digital. This is hard to do when the benchmark nowadays are Megapixel, LCD resolution, and FPS, instead of texture, tones, and the process.

While in Chinatown a few days ago, after shooting and advancing a frame on my M4 a local woman in her 50s asked, "is that a film camera?" She said she hadn't seen or heard someone advance film in years. It was clear from her enthusiasm that she could appreciate a film camera, having seen probably thousands of film prints over the years like most people her age.

I think even younger people can grow to love film if they are exposed to enough film images. Share your love for film, especially with younger folks, as they will be carrying these film companies through the next few decades if they realize how different and lovely film can be.

 

[jsrockit]

The problem is the lack of awareness that film does offer something different than digital. This is hard to do when the benchmark nowadays are Megapixel, LCD resolution, and FPS, instead of texture, tones, and the process.

Are you saying that users of digital only care about camera specs and that users of film only care about their craft?

 

[benlees]

35mm colour has been a dead fish for me for a long time. Medium format still rocks, however. Getting to the lab and having to rescan the negs does not. Developing in large batches so the colour chems are still on song is a pain. What can I say? I don't shoot a lot and I'm lazy. For colour digital wins for me.

 

[furbs]

Are you saying that users of digital only care about camera specs and that users of film only care about their craft?

Megapixels, high ISO, LCD size, FPS - that's where the advancements are being made with digital technology, that's what the companies are marketing, and that's what people are believing is important. Whether those things are important to each individual is a matter of taste. I think plenty of digital shooters exist who care about more than camera specs, though the marketing dept would have us believe otherwise.

For what it's worth, camera and film companies have been pushing specs since time began. They're "what sells," apparently.

 

[Leica All Day]

35mm colour has been a dead fish for me for a long time. Medium format still rocks, however. Getting to the lab and having to rescan the negs does not. Developing in large batches so the colour chems are still on song is a pain. What can I say? I don't shoot a lot and I'm lazy. For colour digital wins for me.

As far as getting to the local lab goes, it costs me .30 cents (U.S.) on a motorcycle taxi (4 minutes) or a ten minute walk (I prefer walking as I usually finish a roll on the walk to the lab).....so I guess, it's about a 20 minutes round trip to my local lab.....which is not that bad


I forgot about medium format, I use my Hasselbad occasionally and I forget how much it costs to develop and scan a roll of color....but than again, it's not too much.....

cheers, mcihael

 

[thegman]

While in Chinatown a few days ago, after shooting and advancing a frame on my M4 a local woman in her 50s asked, "is that a film camera?" She said she hadn't seen or heard someone advance film in years. It was clear from her enthusiasm that she could appreciate a film camera, having seen probably thousands of film prints over the years like most people her age.

I think even younger people can grow to love film if they are exposed to enough film images. Share your love for film, especially with younger folks, as they will be carrying these film companies through the next few decades if they realize how different and lovely film can be.

That's interesting, here in London in the UK, I see film cameras all the time. I've seen everything from Leica III to Toyo 4x5, Rolleiflex to OM4Ti. Living here you'd think film was still normal, of course you see smartphones constantly, but actual digital camera vs. film cameras is less of a difference than you'd think.

 

[jsrockit]

For what it's worth, camera and film companies have been pushing specs since time began. They're "what sells," apparently.

Yes, this... that was my point.

 

[Lauffray]

Yes, this... that was my point.

I'm sure back in the day companies would tell you anything to get you to buy the latest and greatest new film pack of whatever, it's commerce 🙂

 

[furbs]

I'm sure back in the day companies would tell you anything to get you to buy the latest and greatest new film pack of whatever, it's commerce 🙂

Which is why I think it's so important to share our love for film if we want the prices to stay reasonable. The companies certainly aren't putting a penny into marketing their products, so we're left to spread the word among family and friends. Not so bad in the end, since others' honest passion for film and rangefinders is what led me here in the first place!

 

[thegman]

Which is why I think it's so important to share our love for film if we want the prices to stay reasonable. The companies certainly aren't putting a penny into marketing their products, so we're left to spread the word among family and friends. Not so bad in the end, since others' honest passion for film and rangefinders is what led me here in the first place!

I guess marketing film is like marketing petrol (gasoline), in the UK, I don't remember the last time I saw petrol advertised on TV or even billboards, it's just one of those things you buy or you don't.

 

[Lauffray]

I guess marketing film is like marketing petrol (gasoline), in the UK, I don't remember the last time I saw petrol advertised on TV or even billboards, it's just one of those things you buy or you don't.

If you have a car then you need the gas, simple, it basically sells itself. Similarly, if you have a film camera, you need film, so let's advertise film cameras 😀

 

[furbs]

I guess marketing film is like marketing petrol (gasoline), in the UK, I don't remember the last time I saw petrol advertised on TV or even billboards, it's just one of those things you buy or you don't.

When I was young my grandfather pointed out that you never see ads for Hershey's chocolate. Everyone knows Hershey's, so the product sells itself. With film I guess Kodak and perhaps Fuji are recognizable.

As I've gotten older I've seen ads for both Hershey's and petrol - the Hershey ads were closeups on flowing streams of chocolate, though I doubt that would work with the petrol!

 

[Jani_from_Finland]

I think that for 35mm and mf the limit is about 6e/rll and that is what i would pay for if nothing else is available at that time for a HQ film. For Sheet i cant answer yet as i am yet to start in that part of photography. I evaluate that for a 10 roll 35mm pack a good price is about 30-35e and max 40-45e, for mf 5 roll pack a good price is around 20e and max 25-30e. Sheet film (4x5) at the moment feels a bit high, but i have so little experiance of this that i cant say for sure, but 80e for 20 sheets 4x5 is on the high point, i would much likely pay max 50e for this. Will need to get a pack of some foma or alike cheaper quality to test how they look.

 

[Joosep]

Talking from an economist angle, if the price of gold gets too high, I will buy silver, if that gets too high, then something else, they are replaceble goods. If the price of moose meat skyrockets, I wont buy it anymore. But I will still need food. I have the same perspective towards film, if film A gets too pricey, I will get film B, but I will always get film. Atleast as long as I am alive or as long film is still available.