Does ANYONE even shoot medium format anymore?

I happen to really like medium format. I love the huge positives, and the tonal range of the prints blows me

away. Beyond even that, the single most fun I have ever had with a camera has been using the Hasselblad ELM setup

I picked up on Ebay for 300 bucks. I really love that camera, more even than a Leica.<p>However, I wonder if

anyone, apart from flickr fans like me, actually even shoots medium format anymore? Will the films stay in

production? What is really going on? Will film really go the way of the 8 track or cassette tapes, or VHS after

DVD appeared?

<p>2x Mamiya 7II - 99% B&W film. I use Leica M's in small format but that big 6x7 neg is just magic, could never think of giving it up...<br>

<br /> <br /> <img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3076/2615478223_bdd1eaba55_b.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3532/3267155650_9c2645a417_b.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Darius, sure there are many of us still using medium format. Film will be around for a long time. I use two Rolleis more than any of my Leica gear also. Craig, those are awesome photographs! Ronald</p>

Saw a news item recently that Ilford found it's film business more or less flat last year - not bad when it had been shrinking for a decade and in the midst of a global recession. But medium format film sales jumped a lot, as hobbyists have been snapping up used equipment. My guess is that film sales probably are stabilizing, and any company - film and chemistry maker, local lab - able to make a profit at this level will be around for the long haul.

<p>All (or may be 99% assuming that, due to the cost only a minor part are shooting with digital backs) the people participating in this forum and in the "filme and processing" forum.<br>

keep shooting film, buy and process film and it will be available for a long time.<br>

Cheers.<br>

Diego</p>

<p>All (or may be 99% assuming that, due to the cost only a minor part are shooting with digital backs) the people participating in this forum and in the "filme and processing" forum.<br>

keep shooting film, buy and process film and it will be available for a long time.<br>

Cheers.<br>

Diego</p>

<p>I use lots of it. Also, when Kodak introduced Ektar 100 a while ago, the intention was to offer it in 35mm only. Due to popular demand, it is now available in 120 as well.</p>

Here in New York City, the labs still see plenty of 120, not just from fringe hobbyists who could never keep a market alive, but from working pros, especially in the fashion industry. Of course there are a lot fewer of those labs than there used to be.

<p>I shoot 100% medium format. If a picture is worth taking, it's worth taking with a Hasselblad!</p>

<p>If it is black and white it is Medium format for me. Neither of my medium formats handle color very well (non coated lenses) but it is unrivaled for black and white pictures. Nothing like a 6x9 negative. </p>

<p>Judging by the size and activity level of this here forum, I'd suggest it's doing fine. But then I also play cassettes in the car and have shelves of VHS tapes. The cutting edge is a fun place to visit, but real life actually happens a bit further back.</p>

<p>Indeed, I shoot plenty of it. Thanks to the digital rush, I now have a pretty good pile of Bronica gear I could never justify purchasing when it was in current production. And for those travels where I don't relish dragging that much camera along, I have a Perkeo II 6x6 folder that is compact and quite respectible optically. Just added an Ercona II 6x9 folder to the mix also.</p>

If nothing else, the fact that digital and a slow economy has made the "drool" film equipment so accessible, I think medium format is going to be here for some time. Who knows, if it weren't for the Leica enthusiasts, it could outlive 35mm (wouldn't THAT be ironic).

 

Like others, my favorite camera in my (ever growing) collection is my $400 RB67; a camera I wouldn't have been able to consider a few years ago is less than an entry level D-SLR? Yah, I'm buying up Fujichrome like nothing, and my local camera store always has plenty more of it.

 

Rest easy, Darius. 120 isn't going anywhere except into your camera.

<p>I think the 120 rollfilm will continue to be available side by side digital for a long time to come because:<br>

1. Digital medium format cameras and supporting hardware are way too expensive.<br>

2. The film image is tangible (can be seen directly).<br>

3. Film image captures nearly infinite tones and hues.</p>

<p>Well I certainly do - I use 120 roll film 100% of the time and project my images as 6 x 6 slides. Don't know what I'm going to do when film is no longer available.</p>

<p>Well I certainly do - I use 120 roll film 100% of the time and project my images as 6 x 6 slides. Don't know what I'm going to do when film is no longer available.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>However, I wonder if anyone, apart from flickr fans like me, actually even shoots medium format anymore?</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Is this a trick question? You do realize you are asking this question in the Medium Format forurm. Stop worrying, shoot MF, be happy. I still use my Bronica SQ-A's, RZ67 and untold number of TLR's. Why? Because it kicks digital butt for a fraction of the costs.</p><div></div>

<p>Darius, as some of the previous posters have already pointed out, digital has been a godsend to those of us who love MF but up until recently have been priced out of the game. I've had a Rolleiflex for quite a number of years, but have lusted after an RB67 since using one in school in the early 90's. I was finally able to aquire one about a year ago. It's a sweet Pro SD along with a couple of lenses fromn KEH and the price was quite reasonable. Now I have two MF cameras to choose from. I'm sure 120 well be around for quite some time and I get mine from B&H, no pain, no strain. It's a good time to be into MF. Cheers!</p>

<p>Love to shoot it, but hate scanning :-(<br>

<a title="Shilpa_NOV-08 by Photo Pimp, on Flickr" href=" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3496/3911690286_e271afff87_o.jpg" alt="Shilpa_NOV-08" width="639" height="810" /></a><br>

Bronica SQA, 80/2.8</p>

<p>I shoot 120 and increasingly so. My 35mm cameras are gathering dust much of the time. I try to turn my students in the direction of MF and when they see the difference they are hooked.<br>

Craig - love those pictures - superb! I've been mulling over the idea of buying a Mamiya 7 - now I'm convinced it's the way to go.</p>

<p>I'm shooting MF more and more lately - and I only just got interested in it a few months ago. <br>

6x6 is now my favorite format but I just got a Fujica GS645 as I'm partial to rangefinders. I certainly hope the film will be around for a long time to come!</p>

 

<p>Craig, That's a wonderful classic picture of the Bromo and the Semeru. It reminds of one I have taken by a Japanese photographer in the 1920s from the same viewpoint. He certainly didn't use 35mm!</p>

<p>Darius, all those MF cameras on e-bay and in all the shops must go somewhere and its a safe bet people dont buy them all just to look at. Many big companies are making film which makes me wonder; does any one reading this work for one of those companies and if so could you tell us all how much MF film is made a year?<br>

I use 4 MF cameras, one large format and one ultra large format.<br>

I have no evidence bit I would guess the number of people using MF around the world could be measured in hundreds of thousands if not millions.</p>

<p>I haven't shot medium format since I bought my Crown Graphic, I either shoot with it or 35mm p&s. Some day I may get a Fuji 645 rangefinder but I don't think I'll be using any of my 6x7 or 6x9 cameras any time soon.</p>

<p>I don't. I shoot large format (4x5)!</p>