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35mm will they stop processing it soon?


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<p>I just started shouting film and love it, I especialy like the fact that I find 35mm print film on sale at $1 or less per roll. I buy dozens each time I see them on sale.<br>

many place like walmart or maxi will process them at a resonable price, however some places charge 3-4 times as much for the same service, this make me wonder if procesing prices will sky roket until it simply dont make sens to shout film anymore?<br>

also are the film days near doom?<br>

whats your opinions on this.<br>

rgds</p>

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<p>This question has been asked as long as I've been here. In 2003, there was a guy named Jay on the Leica forum, who confidently predicted there would be no more 120 film in five years. Well, it's been seven years now, and I'm still shooting 120 film, but the selection of film and processing in my city isn't as good as it was, so now I use mail order for both.</p>

<p>Nobody knows, but I think you will find the same thing happens with 35mm. In a few years, you may not get your C41 (color neg) processing at Walmart, but you'll be fine sending it off to North Coast or Dwayne's. If you use black and white, you'll have no problem getting materials for developing and printing for decades to come, but you might have to mail-order them.</p>

<p>And no, the film days are not near doom. Film is still used by a lot of high-end amateurs and professionals for their personal and creative work, so there's a market, but it's much smaller than it was 15 years ago.</p>

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<p>I think it's not going to disappear. It's declined but sort of leveled out. It seems like I'm seeing more film shooting going on now than a couple years ago.</p>

<p>Cheap processing and expensive processing have always coexisted. $3-4 isn't really expensive, it's medium. Expensive is $10-20 and gets you pro service. Cheap is $1-2 and gets you service that might be good or might not - the machine may not have been calibrated recently, the chemicals might not have been changed recently, colors might not come out great or you might get scratches or fingerprints. $4 at a local shop usually gets you better service than a chain drugstore, with employees who know what they're doing.</p>

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<p>i think the issue will come when the infrastructure starts taking a hit. there are a lot of things that make film work. camera repair could become a thing of the past, and my FD equipment isnt getting any younger. but, i'll worry about it when i have to worry about it. for now, i'll just grumble over 13 f%^n dollars for slide film that came back with a perfectly straight line 4mm from the top of each frame.</p>
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<p>Les and Larry, why so rude to the poster? This question deserves to be asked again and again because the answer can change as time changes. So the answers provide X years ago are far less accurate then those of today.</p>

<p>I was told by a big-wig at Walmart three weeks ago that new stores and stores that are to be renovated will not provide film development. Many other chains are dropping film development.</p>

<p>Now having wrote that, this is not to say that film is going away. I think this is indicative of the fact that convenient film processing is the thing that is going away.</p>

<p>The bigger worry is not so much when film is going way, but rather at what cost will film and processing shoot up to. As less and less of the general public shoo film there will be less of a demand for processing in every drug store, Walmart, Target, Sears, etc, etc, and that will force costs up.</p>

<p>I think 120 will be available 10 years from now but it will cost you a lot of money. 35mm will be with us even longer.</p>

<p>Really, the number one reason to shoot film over digital is the wider dynamic range that film provides over digital, and I think what will really damage film usage is when digital finally matches and exceeds film for DR, and when that happens I would not want to be carrying any stock in any film companies.</p>

<p>Of course there is the film look that strongly seduces us all, and perhaps that will keep us paying $20 a roll in 15 years for the stuff.</p>

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<p>I am shooting more film then ever. I recently purchased a medium format camera. I was worried about the costs. I send out through walmart and develop and 10 proofs cost me $1.44. The proofs look fine and the negatives are clean and have not been scratched. E6 ran me around $6.00. <br>

$1.44, I thought it was a mistake. I feel free to shoot almost "limitless" now. <br>

There are film lovers and artists all over the world. I wish they could buy film as inexpensively as we can here in America. The markets will change but film will always be there. <br>

I also think that someday digital cameras will be so commoditized (spelling?) that there won't be much profit in the cameras and the marketing guys will turn back to film. </p>

<p> </p>

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<p>my question is of actuality, I too have seen one hour labs close in my erea, they still offer the 24h service but send it to a broker.<br>

in fact 4 different comerce in mt town send the c41 to the same broker, yet they charge different prices?<br>

I see the cheeper service raissing there prices fast, thats why I wondered if this trend was going to burn film photography.<br>

call me cheep but I got the manual focus bug not only because of the exelent gear but also because its cheep to buy, but if processing get overprice then film gear will loos its apeal for me. many pepoles will feel the same way too.<br>

cheers</p>

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<p>I dont feel anyone was rude!<br>

on the contrary I am the one whos rude as my english is terrible lol<br>

thanks for your understanding<br>

I love this forum for the opinions every body shares<br>

rgds</p>

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<p>The problem there .. and I do process my own B&W is that in some places getting C-41 or E6 chemicals can be a problem. I send my E6 out through Wal-Mart tor use Fuji mailers and the C-41 here I still have a few choices localy but the problem is I had to get to know the people at the labs and their turn over is a mess but the Manager has been there for a few years at the local Walgreens so he has instructed his people to just do what Larry ask and to be careful. It should ot be that way but in a world where the lowest price an profit is put ahead of anything the problems are there.</p>
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<p>A couple of years ago my local camera store would not touch used film cameras except maybe the odd mint boxed example now they seem to have quite a few used film bodies again. They seem to sell as the stock does change. A bit of topic but Marshal, Vox, Fender and a few other companies are all making practise 5 watt tubes amps again.</p>
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<p>Hey Dan,<br>

I was just in my local Mal*wart and the whole store's being renovated. I figured film processing was history, but they just moved it to a different area.<br>

So at least one SoCal store will still have it! And I'm sure they'll still drag one end of the developed rolls on the floor.</p>

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<p>you're funny, Howard... but digital is like shaving your legs... it may be smooth, but its completely unnatural (women need not apply here - you can keep shaving, thanks). but, really, if you dont like film and have some sort of retarded animosity for it, why bother looking, let alone posting, in the film section of the website?</p>
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<p>I can't help but wonder if these "film is dead" guys - either asking the question about film's demise or posting confidently how it's certainly going away - are paid by digital camera companies to do just that. Those who use only film, and there are a LOT of them in the mom and pop category (neither of my kids grandparents own or use a digicam, for example) are probably the greatest potential source of new digital camera sales.</p>
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