Will LF and Film Become An Artistic Medium Only?

Given the dominance of digital imaging in everything from cameras in smart phones to commercial image making, it sure seems film has been relegated to a specialty niche. Will film continue to slowly spiral downward to near zero or will there come a time when film will make a return?

What is happening reminds me very much of what happened to vinyl phonograph recordings. When digital audio appeared on the market, it displaced vinyl phonograph recordings very rapidly. Recently there has been a resurgence in vinyl phonograph recordings. Will there be a time in the future when film might make a significant return or has digital imaging, instant gratification, post process image control and ease of image making taken over completely and from this time forward?


Bernice

To get the answer to that, examine the entrails of an owl.

The problem with your analogy is that you buy a vinyl record once, and now you own it. As long as you have a working player, you can enjoy that record forever (assuming you take care of it and don't let it get damaged).

But with film, someone has to be manufacturing it constantly. You can't use your film camera without the raw material. There may become a time that the demand is so low that a small box of b&w would cost hundreds of dollars to buy - will anyone shoot it anymore at that price?

I think coating plates may be the only way to go at some point. But hopefully it'll be economically viable to produce film for another 40-50 years at least.

Close but, they ARE pressing new vinyl. More to the point though, I'm guessing that manufacturing and packaging film is much more capital intensive than pressing vinyl based on what I know about both processes.

Plus buying a record and playing it is MUCH easier than getting a film camera and lens, exposing the film getting it processed etc.

I don't think it's EVER coming back. Further, I guess that 98% of those who try it today are compelled by some naive romantic notion. They think using film will "slow them down..." Which, for the life of me, I'll never understand. As if using digital forces them to rush through a shot and they have no choice in the matter. Rubbish. Then, they send the film off for processing and then view, edit and print on their computer. Some film experience. Those 98% will soon get over it and you will see their cameras on Ebay within six months.

The other 2% will continue to explore the medium and immerse themselves all they way. Some will graduate to LF and even complete film processing and the printing process in their own darkroom. Those are the craftsman that will support the ratailers and manufacturers. These are the same type of folks who make their own beer, knit their own sweaters, make their own furniture, fix their own cars, etc.

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Originally Posted by Corran

The problem with your analogy is that you buy a vinyl record once, and now you own it. As long as you have a working player, you can enjoy that record forever (assuming you take care of it and don't let it get damaged).

But with film, someone has to be manufacturing it constantly. You can't use your film camera without the raw material. There may become a time that the demand is so low that a small box of b&w would cost hundreds of dollars to buy - will anyone shoot it anymore at that price?

I think coating plates may be the only way to go at some point. But hopefully it'll be economically viable to produce film for another 40-50 years at least.

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I know I've seen this discussed before, probably more on APUG than here.

Film is a highly industrial process, and while it can be done at home (Light Farm) it isn't near to what is done commercially. From what has been said on APUG, all of the film manufacturers are producing their own base support material, so if Kodak goes then Fuji or Ilford won't necessarily follow. Coating machines are made for many different applications, and black & white emulsion is not difficult to start up. What is extremely hard to start up is a color film line, and that's the weak spot, of sorts. There is still a huge amount of film being manufactured. Unfortunately the Kodak equipment was built for world supply, and the demand means that the equipment isn't being run as often. When will it be lights out? Uh, I think it's goat entrails at dawn or something like that. But that would be for one manufacturer, and that would mainly affect the color supply.
And then what would Fuji do? They've said they would "consider" bringing back certain color emulsions or formats if Kodak died. And currently I can get 8x10 Fuji Provia, 20 sheet boxes. At what point will Ilford turn off the lights? It would probably have to do with the lease on their location. I know they've had to move before. But without Kodak, that means that demand for Ilford products will go up. Fuji doesn't have the B&W lineup of the past. Kodak has discontinued TMZ, so Ilford is the only source for 3200-speed B&W film. And if there's no Kodak, then Ilford will have increased revenue for its products.

And of course if all fails, LF will continue because wet plate has never stopped! Bwahahahahaha! And in Seattle there is a fellow who is doing commercial wet plate portraits. (I know I've posted a thread about him some time ago.)

I'm going to be an artist?

Don't tell my mom. She'll be awful disappointed.

:) Mike

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Originally Posted by Drew Wiley

To get the answer to that, examine the entrails of an owl.

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I prefer to observe birds' flight. It is less messy and owls are expensive and hard to obtain.

There are practically supermarkets in this town just for do-it-yourself beermakers. Some of these types
have gone on to found highly successful breweries of their own. So there goes that analogy. And if every generation of teenagers in this country continues to rebel against the culture of their parents (who are currently obsessed with every idiotic techie electronic gadget that comes out) - then maybe millions of young people will want film again. Maybe an asteroid will collide with earth; and the only animals left suitable for entrail divination will be gophers.

It always has been for me. Oddly enough, most of my photos resemble owl entrails.

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Originally Posted by Dan Fromm

I prefer to observe birds' flight. It is less messy and owls are expensive and hard to obtain.

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The correct way, a la the Shang dynasty, employs turtle shells (plastromancy).