Kodak in the UK - Big Mistake ?

[tony_brookes]

Here in the UK the Kodak announcement about their cessation of the

sale of film cameras in the North America and Europe was highlighted

by a statement from Lord Lichfield. He says that he is now entirely

digital and doesn't regret it. On asking a friend, who has digital

and film cameras, what he thought of Lord Lichfield's comments. His

reply was rather derogatory about Lichfield's photography and added

that digital would not improve Lichfield's pictures as he personally

had found. In fact he said digital tends to make peoples photography

worse as the thinking process is removed. He is certain that the

masses will use digital only - soon only employing the mobile phone

as a camera. Film will be used by amateurs and more involved

photographers.

[henry_ting2]

I disagree with Lord Lichfield. Photography is about creativity regardless whether the medium is film or digital. Just like a writer, if he is good, it doesn't matter if his creation comes from Underwood, IBM's Selectric, or the current Mac or PC.

[richard_milner2]

I would like to compare digital and film photography with motorboats and yachts. Motorboats are certainly more convenient than yachts, but a lot of people still enjoy yachting.

 

Bring on the rabbit with a waffle on its head.

[Spearhead]

<i>digital tends to make peoples photography worse as the thinking process is removed.</i><p>

 

Photography is about seeing. Plenty of people think a lot and take photos that hit the garbage can every day. It's important not to confuse photography with tools.<p>

 

One thing to think about...some people do much more thinking with digital because for the first time they are doing their own printing and that takes a fair amount of thought to do well.

[george_conboy1]

At a business dinner recently, I sat next to a woman who is an acquaintance. In an attempt at polite conversation I asked after her young daughter, and the woman gleefully pulled out her cameraphone and showed me a couple of photos.

 

The good news: those tiny screens on those phones means you can barely see the subject of the photo, thus I didn't really have to see a picture of her kid, I only had to pretend that I did.

[sprouty]

I was once asked a friend what he thought about Lord Lichfield's comments and he said "who's Lord Lichfield?"

[furcafe]

Who is Lord Lichfield?

[tom h.]

English photographer, the queens cousin. Does all the royal

weddings.

 

Tom

[OCULUS New York]

How fortunate that you have the likes of the good lord for the media to call upon for a kneejerk reaction to a global market issue. Here, in the colonies, I guess they'd call someone in Hollywood. You know, they make "films"....

 

Cheers,

Ray Hull

[david j.lee]

...well, i see i BIG advantage of using digital while shooting the royal

family,especially if a few hours of photoshop is used to help them a little. ( no

offense).

[david_chong2]

Article in Daily Telegraph re Kodak's announcement & Lord Lichfield's comment. He used to do (does he still?) the Pirelli calendar; if this is any recommendation.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/01/15/nphoto15.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/01/15/ixnewstop.html

[msitaraman]

They don't call him Anthony Armstrong Jones any more? Or is that someone else?

[Jeffrey L.T. von Glück]

No, Antony Charles Robert Armstrong-Jones was created first Earl of Snowdon in 1961. Snowdon was Princess Margaret's husband from whom she was divorced in 1978. Snowdon remarried the same year to Mrs. Lucy Lindsay-Hogg. Don't know if they're still together. Thomas Patrick John Anson is the fifth Earl of Lichfield.

 

(No, I'm not a royal watcher, but I have a 1979 edition of Dod's Parliamentary Companion which lists all the peers; anything after 1979 I can't tell you.)

[raymond_tai]

I thought Kodak is anticipating strong growth for film in developing markets?

[tony_brookes]

Please don't confuse Tony Armstrong-Jones with Lord Lichfield. Tony A-J is a superb photographer, up with the best.

[richard_milner2]

>I thought Kodak is anticipating strong growth for film in developing markets?

 

The announcement was that Kodak are stopping selling 35mm and APS cameras in the North American and European markets. They are carrying on in the rest of the world and anticipate strong sales growth in China and India.

 

Film will continue to be sold in all markets though Kodak did announce last year they were stopping development of new consumer film types.

 

All Kodak's film cameras are in the £50 - £200, point and shoot bracket which is being hammered by digital compacts (and increasingly, camera phones). There is strong competition in the same market segment from nearly every other manufacturer.

[terry_rory]

Who gives a flying duck what some minor royal 'hanger on' is pontificating about?

 

The man's photography is boring anyhow. It will simply be boring in digital as well.

[alan___2]

Those who criticised Lichfield might like to look at what he actually said. Always a good idea:

 

'After 40 years of shooting film, Lord Lichfield, 64, switched entirely to digital cameras five years ago with enormous enthusiasm. "I've never seen a reason to go back - for one thing it saves me £70,000 a year," he said.

 

"I am sad that film will go because it was the way I grew up, but it's the way forward." '

 

He made a decision as a professional photographer to go down a certain route and made no criticism of film. The additional comments were made by the poster's friend, not Lichfield.

 

Lichfield may not have the street cred of Snowdon, but he is an experienced, accomplished photographer who has survived for years in a very difficult profession. You don't get to photograph the royal family if you can't come up with the goods.

 

See ya

 

Alan

[._._z]

<i> I thought Kodak is anticipating strong growth for film in developing markets?

</i><p>

 

Kodak flacks say all sorts of things. What are the current sales in 'developing markets'

anyway? Sales from 1 million to 1.1 million are a "double digit" increase, after all.

Percentages are not as important as final numbers. <p>

 

According to a 9/02 Forbes article, still film sales were expected by the end of the

year to have decreased by 200 million rolls. This trend is not slowing. Also, according

to photoreporter.com, Fuji and Kodak acknowledge a drop in film sales and

processing each year (going out to 2005) of about 15 percent.

[leica ron]

Lichfield made comments like this over a year ago as well.

 

What bugs me is the tone of the 'Telegraph' article. Even the Heading is wrong ... Kodak hasn't said goodbye to film ... just the consumer P&S pieces of plastic they tried to sell. And I doubt that enthusiasts are moving to digital faster than commercial photographers ? Not on this forum !!!

 

It's a shame I like Tri-X and Plus-X so much, either wise I'd boycott Kodak and totally go Ilford/Forte/Efke/Bergger.

 

As for Lichfield and Snowdon, Lichfield is more 'glam' to me, while Snowdon's work has way more depth.

[alan___2]

"As for Lichfield and Snowdon, Lichfield is more 'glam' to me, while Snowdon's work has way more depth."

 

In general, that is an accurate assessment. Snowdon is one of my favourite portrait photographers: his work is so understated, that one is left with an impression of what the sitter is like, rather than the photographer. Lichfield has done some much less glam stuff, that is really rather good, but you just don't see it so much.

 

Cheers

 

Alan

[petteri_pavas]

I don't think the loss of Kodak's consumer point and shoots is very devastating. Personally I don't much care for Kodak Films either. The only one I was mildly interested any more, Kodachrome 25, is already discontinued.

 

Of course I am happy somebody still shoots Kodak, it helps to keep up some sort of competition. Velvia prices are already too high for my taste. Which will not prevent me from buying the biggest freezer I can get to fill with all sizes of Velvia, if it is announced to be discontinued.