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Archive 2012 · Did this camera save the film industry?

  
 
rattymouse
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p.2 #1 · p.2 #1 · Did this camera save the film industry?


JohnJ wrote:
Yes. And without facts/figures my incoherent (and I might add bizzare) theories are about as strong as those that Lomo saved film!


I did not claim that Lomo "saved film". I merely stated that Lomo was good for film.





Nov 23, 2012 at 05:19 PM
carstenw
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p.2 #2 · p.2 #2 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I think the whole Lomo movement is far too small to change the direction of the film industry, the hype from the Lomographic Society notwithstanding.


Nov 23, 2012 at 05:41 PM
Johnny B Goode
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p.2 #3 · p.2 #3 · Did this camera save the film industry?


Exdsc wrote:
This camera [Lomo] actually killed film industry because it made it appear as if the only people interested in film are artsy teenagers, and artsy-teenager-wannabe adults.


How do the actions of one group of people shooting with film have any effect on a completely different group of people using film? And to presume the only people that shoot lomography are pimple-popping teenagers is absurd. Granted lomography appeals to a different group of people; The type that don't spend time on internet forums arguing which copy of what fast 50mm is sharpest.




Nov 23, 2012 at 07:30 PM
michael49
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p.2 #4 · p.2 #4 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I started shooting film again recently (not Lomo) and I'll admit that I do agree with this sentiment.....


"Photographer Toby Mason from Brighton in the UK, says the foibles of Lomography - the things that conventional photographers might regard as its aberrations - are what make it attractive. Photography all too often becomes a sterile, technical pursuit, in his view.

"I can't help feeling that the emphasis is more on the quality (and cost) of the equipment, the zoom lens and the rest of the kit as well as the photographer's ability to manipulate an image in Photoshop or Lightroom, than the act of taking photographs that evoke a sense of feeling," he says.

"The world around us is not air-brushed, and we would all do well to marvel at the quirks of everyday scenes and chance sightings. I like to use film because I feel this gives photographs more character, in the same way that while listening to music on vinyl isn't as 'perfect' as CD or digital, it does have more soul."



Nov 23, 2012 at 10:19 PM
JohnJ
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p.2 #5 · p.2 #5 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I suspect that Lomo's, Holgos and other toy cameras have been far better for the retailers than film manufactures. Every Art Gallery gift shop that I've been to in the last couple of years has had a selection of them. I'm sure they sell otherwise they wouldn't be there for long.

However, I do wonder how much film the average toy camera user actually buys. After trying a few rolls I suspect that most give up. If a small percentage of die-hards end up continuing to use them and buy film then that's great.

I wonder how sales of Lomo's (and cameras of their ilk) are now compared to a few years ago?

Incidentally, my avatar which is at least a couple of years old now is the result of a 'lomo' action in PS. Shot with a Leica Summicron-R 50/2, wide open, 1ds2. No Lomo cameras where harmed in the making of my avatar!



Nov 24, 2012 at 02:04 AM
luminosity
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p.2 #6 · p.2 #6 · Did this camera save the film industry?


Not that it's enough to sustain the film business, but I think many folks here are unaware of just how strong a presence film still has within art photography. It's not the dominant medium, but it still carries a great deal of weight via the number of art photographers who still use film (myself being one of them). I do my best work on film, and I plan to continue doing most of my work on film for the foreseeable future. I shoot primarily medium format, which is common amongst many art photo people, and I know many people using large format on a regular basis (at least three people I know are currently shooting with 8x10 cameras, which is a bit remarkable).=

As mentioned, though, it's not enough to sustain the industry.



Nov 24, 2012 at 05:00 AM
dasrocket
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p.2 #7 · p.2 #7 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I think by this point the withering debate between film and digital is for the sake of argument. The visible difference between the two is negligible if any and the debate is romanticism at best and more importantly about the process not the outcome..

The late interest in Lomography is a result mainly of hipster culture and arguably the hipstamatic app. Is it selling? Sure it is but as a fad not a movement and as such its longevity is questionable. Just like the movement by many DJs back to vinyl brought a surge in production on the indie music level but that has also subsided...



Nov 24, 2012 at 05:34 PM
luminosity
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p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · Did this camera save the film industry?


It's nonsense to say that there's no visible difference between film and digital. I use film because of how it looks, not because I like the process more.


Nov 24, 2012 at 05:39 PM
rattymouse
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p.2 #9 · p.2 #9 · Did this camera save the film industry?


dasrocket wrote:
I think by this point the withering debate between film and digital is for the sake of argument. The visible difference between the two is negligible if any and the debate is romanticism at best and more importantly about the process not the outcome..

The late interest in Lomography is a result mainly of hipster culture and arguably the hipstamatic app. Is it selling? Sure it is but as a fad not a movement and as such its longevity is questionable. Just like the movement by many DJs back to vinyl brought a surge in production on the indie music level
...Show more

Longevity in question? Lomography just turned 20 years old.

The film store where I buy my film has half the store devoted to Holga's and Lomo. The manager says that sales of that gear has never been better.



Nov 24, 2012 at 05:54 PM
michael49
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p.2 #10 · p.2 #10 · Did this camera save the film industry?


luminosity wrote:
It's nonsense to say that there's no visible difference between film and digital. I use film because of how it looks, not because I like the process more.


+1



Nov 24, 2012 at 06:31 PM
Two23
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p.2 #11 · p.2 #11 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I started with film 25 years ago, using 35mm. I then went to 120, then 4x5 as it gave me an advantage selling stock & calendar photos. In 2005 I bought a Nikon D80 and shot no film until about 2010, when I began shooting some 4x5 again. Then, two things happened. First, Nikon was unable to keep coming out with new stuff. Second, I just got totally bored with the "digital" look. Everybody's shots all had the same look. Just for fun I started using a 1959 Brownie that belonged to my mother-n-law. I liked the look; I liked the challenge. I then bought a 1914 Kodak 6x9 and had it restored. Then, a 1935 Voigtlander Bessa, a 1951 Rolleiflex. Lately I've been shooting a 1940s Leica IIIc and three 1940s vintage lenses. I love this stuff! I also have five lenses made between 1847 and 1858, and also about six lenses from 1900 to 1928 (which I shoot on my Chamonix 4x5.) I mostly shoot b&w film, usually Ilford HP5. I love the look I get from film! More importantly, I love the sense of connection to history I get using these ancient lenses and historic camear gear. Modern cameras will turn to trash in about fifteen years. Meanwhile, my pre-civil War Petzvals will still be on the job fifty years from now.


Kent in SD



Nov 24, 2012 at 11:54 PM
JimUe
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p.2 #12 · p.2 #12 · Did this camera save the film industry?


michael49 wrote:
+1


+2



Nov 25, 2012 at 10:07 AM
Gunzorro
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p.2 #13 · p.2 #13 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I went back to shooting film for fun in the last few years, starting with 120 "folders".

There is no denying film shooting has become a novelty and eccentric activity. Where I was once able to buy film from large camera stores, and have it processed in any number of custom photo labs, now almost all are gone in the Hollywood/Greater L.A. area (perhaps 5% remaining of what existed 25 years ago), once a prime stronghold of commercial film photography.

Some few people enjoy participating in Revolutionary War/Civil War re-enactments too. Nothing wrong with that -- gets people out and about with like-minded folks. It's unlikely that film will ever truly "die", but at some point we have to face the fact that film has crossed over to hobby-craft (excluding the infinitesimally minute fine art print crowd).

I mark the end of the Film Era as last year, when the last roll of Kodachrome was commercially processed.

Colloidal plates + pinhole = original Lomo photography.




Nov 25, 2012 at 10:48 AM
luminosity
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p.2 #14 · p.2 #14 · Did this camera save the film industry?


There may be fewer places to buy film, but you can easily still buy it, particularly online.

Comparing film usage to war re-enactments is just as nonsensical as the earlier bit of it. I think there are more film shooters than you think, including those who (like myself) shoot a lot of it. It's not a hobby for me. When I use film, it's almost always for something that matters to my work;.

There are also considerably more fine art photographers than you seem to think.



Nov 25, 2012 at 11:48 AM
Tomser
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p.2 #15 · p.2 #15 · Did this camera save the film industry?


rattymouse wrote:
Longevity in question? Lomography just turned 20 years old.

The film store where I buy my film has half the store devoted to Holga's and Lomo. The manager says that sales of that gear has never been better.


Good for them .
I have a case full of box style cameras , which I liked to use back then, but most of them are 6x6 or 6x9cm .
The Agfa Clack is one of my all time favs .

The Lomo look is that of a CCTV lens attached to a Nex or such, you can get them on Ebay for a few bucks , film has nothing to do with it .



Nov 25, 2012 at 12:31 PM
Tomser
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p.2 #16 · p.2 #16 · Did this camera save the film industry?


luminosity wrote:
It's nonsense to say that there's no visible difference between film and digital. I use film because of how it looks, not because I like the process more.


Do you make your own (analogue) prints from film, and do you fully understand the importance of film processing, and working with your lab for decent results ?



Nov 25, 2012 at 12:37 PM
luminosity
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p.2 #17 · p.2 #17 · Did this camera save the film industry?


I'm not much of a silver printer myself. I certainly understand what goes into it, and I've studied under masters of the art of both silver and color printing. I just don't have the patience to silver print, and I prefer to scan my film and edit my photos digitally. Having access to a Flextight certainly hasn't curbed that preference.

I've made silver prints, and I'm not particularly good at it. I've gotten to see work from people who are terrific at it, and that includes both fellow students and instructors.

To put it another way, I've got to leave shortly because I need to open up the 4x5 developing room so a couple students can develop their 4x5 black and white film,.



Nov 25, 2012 at 01:03 PM
redisburning
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p.2 #18 · p.2 #18 · Did this camera save the film industry?


dasrocket wrote:
The late interest in Lomography is a result mainly of hipster culture and arguably the hipstamatic app. Is it selling? Sure it is but as a fad not a movement and as such its longevity is questionable. Just like the movement by many DJs back to vinyl brought a surge in production on the indie music level but that has also subsided...


the trend in record sales says otherwise. things have improved year over year for the last handful of years.

btw there are still strong enough sales in 10k+ players that there are a good number of companies making them (clearaudio, vpi, sme, acoustic signature, kuzma, transrotor, goldmund, etc).

like most "old is new" trends these days it's driven by hipsters struggling to find their own brand identities in a very manufactured world. of course, it's a minor distinction but at least here in the US we are an exceptionally consumption driven people and that will probably never go away.



Nov 25, 2012 at 01:29 PM
Exdsc
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p.2 #19 · p.2 #19 · Did this camera save the film industry?


Film is nostalgia and seeing the grim state of still photography today with its future pretty uncertain, one can see why film will appeal to some people.

Film is going to be around for sometime, in fact still photography itself is in danger of dying because everyone and every electronic device takes pictures, which makes photographs as cheap as air and sand, there is just too many of it out there to make it valuable.



Nov 26, 2012 at 10:27 AM
Gunzorro
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p.2 #20 · p.2 #20 · Did this camera save the film industry?


luminosity wrote:
There may be fewer places to buy film, but you can easily still buy it, particularly online.

Comparing film usage to war re-enactments is just as nonsensical as the earlier bit of it. I think there are more film shooters than you think, including those who (like myself) shoot a lot of it. It's not a hobby for me. When I use film, it's almost always for something that matters to my work;.

There are also considerably more fine art photographers than you seem to think.


There's still some B&W out there, but even so, many "old faithful" types are gone from the biggest producers. Kodak ceasing says it all for me -- it's becoming a much smaller fishpond. Color film is getting sliced and diced -- even my old fave Fuji is limited in its offerings, and I live on color, not B&W. Since the 70s, B&W is a niche, and now a niche within a niche.

I do know something about the art world and galleries, being half a painter in my life. Of the galleries out there showing artists work, painters are by far the dominant majority. Very few are devoted to or feature photographers, and generally speaking, prices for photos of similar size are far, far below paintings -- and for good reason -- far less effort, skill and materials goes into a photo than a hand crafted original piece of art.

We can argue the inequities of the values of art, artists, and mediums, but there is no doubt fine art photographers are one of the least represented and lowest paid (in general) genres in the art world.



Nov 26, 2012 at 10:56 AM
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