More Kodak discontinuations

[Frank Petronio]

I wonder what color neg manufacturing capability exists in China? Doesn't (or didn't) Lucky brand make color neg for Chinese consumers using technical help from Kodak?

I think they might be a lot of hobby large-format photographers in China, maybe more than anywhere else? Not sure but they must make a lot of Shen-Haos and Chamonixs, they have very nice glossy photo magazines and big photo forums.

Maybe a Chinese company could buy Kodak, Chuck Schumer could help make a free-trade zone or something?

[Roger Cole]

I believe Kodak and Fuji have made an agreement and posted about that a couple of years ago.
Fuji will stay on the positive side and Kodak on the negative side

But Kodak still has excellent color positive films, even one in LF (although, while listed in 4x5, I wasn't able to actually find any E100G 4x5 in stock.)

Fuji and neg film, well...

I've never heard of any formal agreement between Fuji and EK. But I assumed that at
a certain point they mutually figured out that neither one of them was making any
money constantly fighting over the same buck. So EK went forward concentrating on
color neg film while Fuji retained dominance with E6 film. They still fight over the paper
market, and Kodak still makes a very fine chrome film, even though Fuji's share seems
larger. Everything would change if Kodak stumbles, but even a bankrupty wouldn't
automatically change what does or does not continue to be marketed - it all depends
on the philosophy of whoever purchases the leftovers. They could be either smarter
or dumber than who's there now, or could chop up things and sell them in pieces
resulting in either catastrophe for film supplies or even an improvement. None of us
has a crystal ball telling us exactly what will happen.

It's hard to imagine how they could be any dumber!

[Tom J McDonald]

I wonder what color neg manufacturing capability exists in China? Doesn't (or didn't) Lucky brand make color neg for Chinese consumers using technical help from Kodak?

I think they might be a lot of hobby large-format photographers in China, maybe more than anywhere else? Not sure but they must make a lot of Shen-Haos and Chamonixs, they have very nice glossy photo magazines and big photo forums.

Maybe a Chinese company could buy Kodak, Chuck Schumer could help make a free-trade zone or something?

Lucky are making C-41 colour film again, in 35mm and 120 sizes. Maybe they will make sheets too.

EDIT: I can't find anything about 120, but you can buy 35mm rolls 600m long. http://www.luckyfilm.com/html/produc...164230_35.html

[Tom J McDonald]

Also you can buy X-ray film in all the right sizes...
http://www.luckyfilm.com/html/produc.../16525_31.html

[georgl]

How much does a master roll from Kodak roughly cost? TMZ/TMY2/Color ?

I think I read the size is 54" (137cm) x 1000-4000feet (300-1200m) that would translate into roughly 8000-32000 sheets of 8x10" ?

I think Kodak should start direct marketing with an online-shop, sending exotic film worldwide directly from Rochester. German dealers for example want twice as much for color sheets than US-dealers!

Putting production to China would only create new problems - we have tried it in other industries as well...

[ljsegil]

Film holders would get even heavier to truck around with that Chinese lead added to the film emulsion.
LJS

[Sevo]

I wonder what color neg manufacturing capability exists in China? Doesn't (or didn't) Lucky brand make color neg for Chinese consumers using technical help from Kodak?

Going by their own publicity Lucky is now making LCD panel laminates - a process similar enough to film casting that it has gobbled up quite a few film production plants.

But China being a major (if not the biggest global) remaining market for film (only the small stratum of its new middle class has the budget to upgrade to digital) they must still have some source for CN film left - there certainly is fresh Lucky labelled film about. Perhaps Lucky did not convert all production lines, or another maker has jumped in.

[Roger Cole]

Going by their own publicity Lucky is now making LCD panel laminates - a process similar enough to film casting that it has gobbled up quite a few film production plants.

But China being a major (if not the biggest global) remaining market for film (only the small stratum of its new middle class has the budget to upgrade to digital) they must still have some source for CN film left - there certainly is fresh Lucky labelled film about. Perhaps Lucky did not convert all production lines, or another maker has jumped in.

I haven't seen Lucky color film for sale anywhere, but I have a roll of 35mm ISO 200. In a discussion on APUG I was asking where it might be available here because I was wondering about a CN film with a much more subdued saturation than anything I'm aware of anymore, a pastel looking film for some things. Someone had a roll in his freezer and sent it to me free. According to him it's in date. I'll be interested in seeing the edge markings once I shoot and process it.

[Brian C. Miller]

More of a PR quotation there and not really an indicator of the real-world fate of certain desirable 8x10 films.

The ultimate fate of all film emulsions is that they will go away. Paul Simon's pleas notwithstanding, Kodachrome is gone. The near-term fate of specific formats is decided $15,000 at a time, now. That being the case, what the Kodak rep said has been, and continues to be, put into practice.

It's getting harder and harder to keep track of the discontinued emulsions.

But it's so easy to keep track of the available, in stock, B&W 8x10 emulsions! Zero is an easy number to remember.

I wonder what color neg manufacturing capability exists in China? Doesn't (or didn't) Lucky brand make color neg for Chinese consumers using technical help from Kodak?

Lucky makes one or two color negative emulsions. They also make B&W LF film. Yes, they could coat color negative LF. Now which would you want more, Lucky or Fuji? If you want to sample the product, buy some on eBay.

[Sal Santamaura]

This morning's remaining 8x10 TXP count:

Adorama - still 15 boxes
B&H - down to 37 boxes
Badger - 18 boxes (14 that were in the distribution pipeline apparently reached Jeff)