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Post by GeneW on Jul 16, 2006 10:47:34 GMT -5
On flickr I've noticed an interesting phenomenon. Some of my newer contacts there are very young Japanese photographers (male and female) and they're shooting a lot of FSU gear, including Kiev 66 MF's etc. Kiev and Zorki RF's appear to be popular.
They're young and creative, and I find I really like the images they're producing. They all tend to be each other's contacts too, so there's a strong core group of old-camera film shooters.
I don't know if this is a cult kind of thing or what, but it's so surprising to see coming from the Land of Digi. Wouldn't it be neat if it were the new 'next thing' amongst the young, spreading to NA and Europe?
Gene
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jocko
Contributing Member
Posts: 29
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Post by jocko on Jul 21, 2006 6:21:17 GMT -5
That's very intriguing Gene - and from what I can see happening elsewhere, something similar may be starting in the West.
I think people often have a rather distorted view of Japan, particularly Japanese young people and the overall attititude towards technology. Whilst there is certainly an avid desire for novelty, there is also a much older tradition in which manufactured items are regarded as animate beings, their use laden with sensual pleasure and what one can only term mutual respect. Plus one has a culture which sees craftsmanship as a profound spiritual exercise. I have nothing against digital, but I think it would be true to say that classic film cameras provide a richer, more personal and less "safe"experience, thus resonate with such a heritage.
Perhaps more importantly, there is also the tradition of the Ronin: The "masterless man" who moves against the tide of his times, true only to himself. Like most supposedly conformist societies (Victorian Britain is perhaps a good example), the Japanese have a culture of heroic individualism and rich eccentricity. In many ways I feel that western popular culture - especially as it affects young people - is by comparison imaginitively impoverished and much less individualistic. Good luck to your friends! They have much to teach us!
Cheers, Ian
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Post by Randy on Jul 21, 2006 6:55:28 GMT -5
I know a person that was in Japan recently, and he says the youth there has adapted a new Nostalgia Culture and like to use everything from the '50s and '60s they can get their hands on from music, to their dress. Some of this Culture is featured in the movie Kill Bill by Quintan Tarantino.
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Post by fkt on Jul 25, 2006 23:24:31 GMT -5
I usually get to Tokyo once or twice a year on business. When I make the trip, I always try to spend an afternoon in a number of the better known used camera stores in the Ginza. These stores are almost like shrines to classic cameras. There's usually a mix of customers -- younger folks and the older crowd that probably got started in photography when some of the gear on the shelves was current. Those stores are reminders that there's still an active classic camera market in Japan. The picture is different when you visit new gear shops. In May, I spent a couple of hours in BIC Camera in Yurakucho, which has most of a floor devoted to cameras. Apart from the Leica display, and a few MF cameras, almost all of the gear (not surprisngly) was digital. And there was no shortage of customers. I find that the nice thing about Japan is that both classic camera and digital markets seem to co-exist rather well.
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Post by herron on Jul 26, 2006 9:42:29 GMT -5
I have not been to Japan in a long time...certainly before the advent of digital...but I find that some of the most avid collectors of my favorite Mamiya 35mm cameras are Japanese...and I also discovered one of my frequent competitors in the Mamiya rangefinder section of evilBay buys for Japanese collectors!
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Post by GeneW on Jul 29, 2006 20:31:21 GMT -5
Thanks for your very interesting responses and observations. One thing I also noticed is that the group I look in on occasionally moves seamlessly between film and digital. I think it's all one continuum to them and they're comfortable with their media.
One young Japanese lady shoots a lot of 6x6 chromes. Very creative stuff, but unless film prices and processing are much cheaper there, it must be a very expensive way to go!
Gene
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