No film shooters

I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film. (This may not be exactly true since many
point and shoots look like their digital brothers).
Another thing I noticed is that there were very few people using
disposable cameras either. It seems that people are willing to
buy a digital camera where in the past they weren't willing to
buy a reloadable film camera.

I must say that the trend towards shooting while looking at the
back screen is now almost universal. Nobody seems to use the
viewfinder (if they even have one). This posture can't be good
for minimizing camera shake, especially since many older folks
need to hold it fairly far out to see the screen in focus.

I did meet a few people with battery problems which put a
sudden end to their shooting.

--
Robert D Feinman
Landscapes, Cityscapes and Panoramic Photographs
http://robertdfeinman.com
mail:

"Robert Feinman" wrote

I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film.

On a trip to Montana's Glacier National Park last year I saw
3 other people shooting film, and one of those only has
the benefit of doubt: I couldn't see the camera but he was using a
tripod -- it was also the only other tripod I saw.

But that's a whole lot more people than I saw using
view cameras. In a dozen visits over the past 40 years
I have only seen two other view camera photographers.

Are the number of die-hard film shooters enough to sustain film
production? Ferrana [?] in Italy still makes 126 Instamatic
film and I haven't seen a 126 camera in use for 30/35/? year.

If 0.1% of the public takes pictures on film that leaves
300,000 film photographers in the US. ~600,000? in the ROW.
Is that enough to sustain film? At 0.1% one would meet
someone else with a film camera around their neck very,
very rarely. I notice that on vacation folks with digital
cameras usually have them dangling from their wrist and
are easy to spot.

In the late 70's early 80's I noticed lots of Suburban Dads
with a cheap automatic SLR on a strap around their
neck and always with a mounted 80-200 f5.6 zoom dangling down
as a substitute phallus. Now Suburban Dad has Viagra and
only needs a DP&S.

--
Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio
Darkroom Automation
http://www.nolindan.com/da/index.htm
n o lindan at ix dot netcom dot com

Robert Feinman wrote:
I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film. (This may not be exactly true since many
point and shoots look like their digital brothers).
Another thing I noticed is that there were very few people using
disposable cameras either. It seems that people are willing to
buy a digital camera where in the past they weren't willing to
buy a reloadable film camera.

I must say that the trend towards shooting while looking at the
back screen is now almost universal. Nobody seems to use the
viewfinder (if they even have one). This posture can't be good
for minimizing camera shake, especially since many older folks
need to hold it fairly far out to see the screen in focus.

I did meet a few people with battery problems which put a
sudden end to their shooting.

--
Robert D Feinman
Landscapes, Cityscapes and Panoramic Photographs
http://robertdfeinman.com
mail:

I'm just back from Austria and saw at least five people shooting film.
Three of them, apparently members of a photographers club, flocked
around my Pentax K-1000. Almost drooling. Beats me why, it isn't that
special.

"Huisman" wrote in message
ups.com...

I'm just back from Austria and saw at least five people shooting film.
Three of them, apparently members of a photographers club, flocked
around my Pentax K-1000. Almost drooling. Beats me why, it isn't that
special.



Those of us that tend to buck trends are going to be seeing this more and
more, as our legacy film cameras are perceived as exotic items. And they
can even take great shots, too!

Huisman wrote:
Robert Feinman wrote:
I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film. (This may not be exactly true since many
point and shoots look like their digital brothers).
Another thing I noticed is that there were very few people using
disposable cameras either. It seems that people are willing to
buy a digital camera where in the past they weren't willing to
buy a reloadable film camera.

I must say that the trend towards shooting while looking at the
back screen is now almost universal. Nobody seems to use the
viewfinder (if they even have one). This posture can't be good
for minimizing camera shake, especially since many older folks
need to hold it fairly far out to see the screen in focus.

I did meet a few people with battery problems which put a
sudden end to their shooting.

--
Robert D Feinman
Landscapes, Cityscapes and Panoramic Photographs
http://robertdfeinman.com
mail:

I'm just back from Austria and saw at least five people shooting film.
Three of them, apparently members of a photographers club, flocked
around my Pentax K-1000. Almost drooling. Beats me why, it isn't that
special.

I still see lots of people shooting with film. It has been an
invaluable medium for years and years. Digital is here to stay, but so
is film. It's just a matter of choice, and for me film is more tangible
than digital.
Kudos to you "Huisman" for using a perfect classic SLR camera as the
Pentax K1000. It does exactly what an SLR should do, depending on the
photographer to make all the decisions. It brings one back to the
perspective and the basics of "taking a photograph".
Helen

"Nicholas O. Lindan" wrote
"Robert Feinman" wrote

I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film.

If 0.1% of the public takes pictures on film that leaves
300,000 film photographers in the US. ~600,000? in the ROW.

There's like, what, 300 million US citizens? There's like 7 billion
people in the world in total. Your calculation might be off by
just a wee bit.

Cheers,
ink

Robert Feinman wrote:
I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film. (This may not be exactly true since many
point and shoots look like their digital brothers).
Another thing I noticed is that there were very few people using
disposable cameras either. It seems that people are willing to
buy a digital camera where in the past they weren't willing to
buy a reloadable film camera.

I must say that the trend towards shooting while looking at the
back screen is now almost universal. Nobody seems to use the
viewfinder (if they even have one). This posture can't be good
for minimizing camera shake, especially since many older folks
need to hold it fairly far out to see the screen in focus.

I did meet a few people with battery problems which put a
sudden end to their shooting.

It has been over a year now since I have seen someone using a film SLR.
It is rare to see anyone shooting film now and mostly they are using
either a cheap point and shoot or a disposable camera.

Two years ago it was rare to see someone using a DSLR now I see it all
the time.

On an Alaskan cruise we took this spring we only saw one couple that
was using film, during a whale watching tour. Whereas not one battery
ran down they ran out of film just as the whales were getting active.

I don't believe any of my friends are still shooting film any many of
them were film camera buffs.

When I first stated using a digital camera the question I heard most
often was how was I going to get prints made? In 10 years I image
people using film will be asked, but how do you get prints made?

Scott

Scott, your relentless digital cheerleading is getting tedious.


"Scott W" wrote in message
ups.com...
Robert Feinman wrote:
I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film. (This may not be exactly true since many
point and shoots look like their digital brothers).
Another thing I noticed is that there were very few people using
disposable cameras either. It seems that people are willing to
buy a digital camera where in the past they weren't willing to
buy a reloadable film camera.

I must say that the trend towards shooting while looking at the
back screen is now almost universal. Nobody seems to use the
viewfinder (if they even have one). This posture can't be good
for minimizing camera shake, especially since many older folks
need to hold it fairly far out to see the screen in focus.

I did meet a few people with battery problems which put a
sudden end to their shooting.

It has been over a year now since I have seen someone using a film SLR.
It is rare to see anyone shooting film now and mostly they are using
either a cheap point and shoot or a disposable camera.

Two years ago it was rare to see someone using a DSLR now I see it all
the time.

On an Alaskan cruise we took this spring we only saw one couple that
was using film, during a whale watching tour. Whereas not one battery
ran down they ran out of film just as the whales were getting active.

I don't believe any of my friends are still shooting film any many of
them were film camera buffs.

When I first stated using a digital camera the question I heard most
often was how was I going to get prints made? In 10 years I image
people using film will be asked, but how do you get prints made?

Scott

"Robert Feinman" wrote in message
...
I'm back from a trip to New England and I didn't notice a single
person shooting film.
************************************************** ***********
Here in rural Wisconsin I can go into any mom and pop store or conveinience
gas station and get 35mm film. I can't get digital film at many of these
places. (Not that I tried as I don't have a digital.) Why do they carry it?
Usually it is something like $5.00 a roll where as it is $3.50 at Wal-Mart.
This is a tourist area and perhaps we rate high on the hick scale but if you
are out in the booneys and you can get 35mm film anywhere, then that tells
something about film. If nobody was using it, you can bet these places
would not be selling it. Ric in Wisconsin.

In article .net,
Nicholas O. Lindan wrote:
If 0.1% of the public takes pictures on film that leaves
300,000 film photographers in the US. ~600,000? in the ROW.
Is that enough to sustain film? At 0.1% one would meet
someone else with a film camera around their neck very,
very rarely.

With SLRs, how you can tell from a distance? Yes, if people are looking
at the back of the camera, it is probably digital.

I assume that the majority of the people who continue with 35mm film use
SLRs (after single use cameras).


--
That was it. Done. The faulty Monk was turned out into the desert where it
could believe what it liked, including the idea that it had been hard done
by. It was allowed to keep its horse, since horses were so cheap to make.
-- Douglas Adams in Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency