Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 22, 2012 10:58:48 GMT -5
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Apr 22, 2012 11:17:41 GMT -5
It's not only about film, Wayne. I can't even remember, when somebody showed me a printed photograph ( I mean, on paper ) last time. The viewing and sharing of pictures is mostly digital meanwhile.
However ... I also see benefits for film in that. People can suddenly see, how good the quality of a properly scanned medium format silde film or even 35 mm actually is ... or the quality of vintage cameras. We have often seen just relatively tiny prints out of them in the past.
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Post by grenouille on Apr 22, 2012 13:44:19 GMT -5
D'ont think it will fall any further otherwise supermarkets and photographic shops will take them off the shelves. All the supermarkets as well as photographic shops in our region carry them on their shelves.
Most of our club members are still using mechanical SLRs and doing our own B/W development & printing.
Hye
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Post by nikonbob on Apr 22, 2012 15:48:40 GMT -5
In my area you can't give darkroom equipment away never mind get real money for it. All the retail outlets that still do carry film have only a very limited amount on display, lucky if the display area is 1 meter square. The one supposed pro is is also a joke as far as film is concerned. I don't belong to any clubs but I would guess most of the club members around here are digital shooters. Most people I know could care less if a print, even a fairly big one, was made from a digital file or film. Maybe in the "Fine Art World" it still matters but even there less so there than before. Not making any judgements but it has really changed from what it was 10 years ago and not likely to reverse course any time soon.
Bob
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Post by Deleted on Apr 22, 2012 19:01:20 GMT -5
That enlarger and the gear with it would have probably set someone back at least $500 10 years ago. Now it's "would someone please get this out of my house." There may be a camera club in our area where the members are still shooting some film. But if there is, I haven't heard of it.
W.
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Apr 22, 2012 22:58:48 GMT -5
The only thing, I can say is: I am happy, that film is still around. It's everybodies own choice if he wants to use digital or film and I wouldn't even care if 99 percent are shooting on digital ... as long as I can still shoot on film  Talking about Tokyo, at least the C41 process is still available in every local photo shop in the neighbourhood here. Costs between 8 and 10 dollar incl. CD and takes about one hour. E6 and B/W developing is available at the bigger shops in the bigger centers of the city. Small shops do only have color picture film for sale ( 400 and 800 ASA ), but in the bigger stores, every common film type is still available. More exotic films like B/W slide film or panchromatic B/W, I order online. So ... how small the shelves for film are, there is still a chance for shooting film if somebody wants to. I am already happy about just that. |
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Post by grenouille on Apr 23, 2012 3:39:34 GMT -5
The silence of the darkroom is good Zen
Hye
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Post by nikonbob on Apr 23, 2012 7:08:18 GMT -5
I have no doubt that in some larger centres like Tokyo, New York and some others a good variety of film types are available in quantity and so is the processing for it. I an envious of that. It is a different picture for the rest of us stuck in the hinterlands. I do care that if 99% of the people are using digital it will have a greater impact, than I have already seen, on the supply and choice of films and processing that I have available to me. Not to mention huge increases in cost, more than I have already seen. I would dearly like to run both film and digital in even portions to use those beautiful old cameras but that option is slowly being taken away as it becomes less and less feasible economically in my retirement. It has never been about which is better as in Beta vs VHS or cassette vs 8 track but what the majority of consumers buy. No getting around it, it is a sad state of affairs.
Bob
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mickeyobe
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Post by mickeyobe on Apr 23, 2012 9:32:13 GMT -5
As I found out when I wanted to try my refurbished Medalist with 120 film. Forget 620. It does not exist. The cost of film and the outrageous cost of processing it means my Medalist will probably go unused.
I was quite willing to process it myself but to have to buy liters of chemicals, almost all of which would turn to brown goop, did not appeal to my miserly sensibilities.
Does anyone remember Kodak's Tri Chem Packs? Even a kid could afford them.
Mickey
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Apr 23, 2012 9:51:09 GMT -5
I'm not sure if I do or not. I didn't tend to use Kodak chemicals
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Berndt
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Post by Berndt on Apr 23, 2012 11:03:59 GMT -5
I think, getting film processed is the main problem. Buying film is the easier part. Even living in a big city like Tokyo, I order nearly all films online - mostly from overseas, www.fotoimpex.de/anglicus/index.html is a good suplier for me, because they actually do have all type of films, chemicals or whatever at a decent price and offering a good service. Film doesn't expire so soon. So, I usually order a bunch of different film types and saving the consumer tax if ordering from overseas, it's getting cheaper than buying stuff here in a local store even paying for the shipping. Getting all the stuff processed is more difficult though. But I am pretty sure, that there are online services for that too. As I remember, even in the golden age of film, the E6 process hasn't been available in local stores ( at least in Germany ). They sold slide films always with an envelope and it had to be processed somewhere in a central lab. Even more adventurous, the famous Kodachrome or 8 mm formats. As I remember, the only 8 mm film I shot as a little boy with my grandfathers super 8 mm motion picture camera needed to be send to the United States for becoming developed. It took about two months until I got it back and that must have been somewhere in the 70s. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2012 11:06:01 GMT -5
That's my problem with developing myself. The chemicals usually go bad before I use them much. Right now I have several packs of D76 developer store away along with the chemicals to make Rapid Fix. Don't know if unmixed Rapid Fix goes bad.
Did the TriChem packs include stop bath? I can't remember. If they did, that's the only time I ever used that chemical.
W
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Apr 23, 2012 12:52:30 GMT -5
Stop bath: the old standard was acetic acid diluted, if I remember correctly, 1/50 or more. It works on fish and chips too. Developer: in the powdered form, if dry, I would imagine it would be okay, but not if damp. Does fixer go off? I suppose it must do, particularly if badly stored. Mind you, we might go off before it does.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 23, 2012 14:29:11 GMT -5
Acetic acid:
Those of you who have been around the chemical are aware, I'm sure, that it has a odor that will absolutely take your breath away.
When I was in the Army our darkroom was on the floor below a General's office. One day he came downstairs and complained that some kind of fumes were getting in his office--supposedly from our darkroom.My buddy Dave suggested the General go in the darkroom and see if he could identify the chemical making the smell.
Now is just so happened we really didn't care much for this particular General. But normally there's not much you can do if you are only a sergeant. Anyway my buddy Dave started uncapping bottles and handing them to the general. He would hold the mouth of the bottle up to his nose and take a big sniff. "No, that's not it," he would say and hand back the bottle.
The General and Dave worked their way through all the black and white developers and E6 chemicals. Then Dave reached under the sink and pulled out a bottle of glacial acetic acid, took off the cap and handed it to the General. And Dave smiled at me as he did it.
The General put the mouth of the bottle under his nose and took a BIG snort. Then he sort of froze in place, his face turned a off shade of purple and I think I could hear the hairs inside his nose shattering. He handed the bottle back to Dave, sort of gasped "That's not it," did and about face and marched out of the darkroom. He never bothered us again.
W.
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daveh
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Post by daveh on Apr 23, 2012 15:19:01 GMT -5
I always found acetic acid to have a pleasant pungent smell as opposed to some of the sulphur salts, even if a little goes a long way. A bottle of distilled white vinegar further diluted works and hasn't the pungency of glacial acetic acid. Any acid works and there must be several non-pungent options. Alternatively water does the job, just not as quickly. I suppose you could use some pH-down (as used for aquarium fish) - absolutely no smell there.
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