Who's Fighting For Film?

[denniswms]

<p>I am not concerned about film and its survival.</p>

<p>Short of having Agfa Pan 100 120 made available again, I have all the film I need from Fujifilm in Acros and Provia/Astia. I only use one speed and the one size/ format which keeps things simple. I have access to excellent labs in both states for E6, both film ready by noon the next day Mon-Fri, and I process the B&W myself. </p>

<p>Never was a fan of Kodak film so its demise went unnoticed, however I do like Dektol developer and a few of their other chemicals.</p>

[steve m smith]

<blockquote>

<p>Never was a fan of Kodak film so its demise went unnoticed</p>

</blockquote>

<p> <br>

It hasn't actually happened yet!</p>

[wayne_crider4]

<p> Film rules for me for the good stuff, but everything else is digital fodder. </p>

<p> I admit that I shoot far more digital then film, although most of my cameras are film cameras. I find that living in flat bland suburbia does not get my juices running to shoot period, so over the last 10- 15 years I've had to travel thru SE Florida to find my landscape shots, and I've re-visited these places quite often. I'm actually bored of the local landscape so the only time I really get out to shoot anything beyond the backyard flower (digital) is when I get out of state and have transportation (and money) to drive around and use a roll up on new vista's instead of having it sit in a body for a few months. I'm now moving into painting instead and I'll hopefully be shooting some more E6 of subject matter if it ever stops raining in Florida. </p>

[russell_contreras]

<blockquote>

<p>Russel, sounds like you shot alot of colored-slide films, like me. If Ilford is independant they'll stick around for a good many years. Anyhow, doesn't seem too many worry-warts out here at photo.net.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>D F, I didn't shoot a lot of slide film because of the expense. But I certainly used it enough that the loss of Ektachrome was felt. I don't use Ilford that much. Although I am glad they are around and apparently going strong. I've been experimenting a lot with slow speed emulsions like Efke and Adox. I also got a boat load of Acros. For some reason they were selling 120 rolls for $3 a pop a few months ago. I couldn't pass that up. Adorama increased the price to $3.20.</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p>Never was a fan of Kodak film so its demise went unnoticed...</p>

</blockquote>

<p>dennis williams, some of us xpro and Ektachrome was pretty good for that. Besides if you only had two choices what would you rather have an oligopoly or a monopoly? There is zero pressure on Fuji now. I have never heard of anyone that uses a product that didn't notice when there became only one global supplier. Pretty short sighted.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>I find that living in flat bland suburbia does not get my juices running to shoot period...</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Yeah I hear ya'. Even though I don't live in suburbia it takes a lot of motivation to get out and shoot once you've lived in the same place for years... unless it's NYC or nonsuburban New Orleans.</p>

[k5083]

<p>This has been a more enjoyable thread than I expected.</p>

<p>I am happy with the choices right now in b&w and in color neg. Ektar is terrific and the Fujis are good too. I miss Kchrome and Astia, have not found a really good substitute for either. I use Velvia where I used to shoot K and Provia instead of Astia.</p>

<p>Dig is making more inroads into my photography as the gear improves but there is a core type of photo where I'll stick with film as long as I can, and then an even more central core where I'll stick with medium format film.</p>

 

[Edwin Barkdoll]

I never really mastered developing Technical Pan and I would like to do that well before I run out of my freezer stock!

 

Ditto for HIE B&W infrared film, particularly exposure.

[allancobb]

<p>Film will be here for a long, long time, at the least to satisfy what seems to be a growing niche market. Ironically, the earliest of formats, large format sheet film, may be the last to leave, if any ever do, because of the unsurpassed capabilities it still enjoys and its popularity in the fine-arts market. And like Arthur mentioned earlier, there really are more choices since manufacturers around the world (i.e., Efke, Orwo, etc.) have nudged their way into the forefront with better than ever quality standards. Heck, I can even get 127 film for my Yashica 44 from<em> two</em> manufacturers now, when 7 or 8 years ago you had to slit and/or respool it from other sizes.</p>

<p>I sure do miss Verichrome Pan though... nothing has ever been able to match it. I'm down to 34 rolls and still looking for more when it pops up from time to time! Regards, Allan</p>

[Alex_Es]

<p>When doing candid street photography I feel film is more discrete than digital. I have a fairly large number of film cameras and won't give them up. I live in Japan, where film is alive and well. I do not worry about the demise of film but of dedicated film scanners. </p>

[russell_contreras]

<blockquote>

<p>I do not worry about the demise of film but of dedicated film scanners.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>The <a href="http://plustek.com/mea/products/opticfilm-series/opticfilm-120/introduction.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Plustek OpticFilm 120 scanner</a>. I think this thing is supposed to dropped in late summer/early fall. Internet rumor is it's supposed to be a Nikon Coolscan 9000 replacement.</p>

[jens_g.r._benthien]

<p>There are many b&w films from Kodak, Efke, Adox, Ilford, Fuji, etc. on the market. There are many color films from Kodak and Fuji on the market, and finally there are still some slide films (E6) from Fuji on the market.</p>

<p>I personally use slide film for 99% of my project. It would be sad if they would disappear and probably force me to sell my equipment and invest into new technology, though I don't like it.</p>

<p>So yes, for my work and income: please Fuji keep the slide film material!</p>

[rossb]

<p> I have a Plustek 7600i scanner and I think it's great. </p>

[Karim Ghantous]

<blockquote>

<p>The <a href="http://plustek.com/mea/products/opticfilm-series/opticfilm-120/introduction.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Plustek OpticFilm 120 scanner</a>. I think this thing is supposed to dropped in late summer/early fall. Internet rumor is it's supposed to be a Nikon Coolscan 9000 replacement.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>If this thing is affordable... I'm going to consider buying one. Of course if it's $500 they won't be able to make enough of them.</p>

<p>I'd love to fight for film (so to speak) but Kodak and friends have to help us do that. I want to be able to buy any movie stock I want in 100' rolls without the Remjet (which makes it impossible to get processed in C-41 labs because Remjet will turn to gunk and clog everything). If you want a film that goes to ISO 6400 without pushing, Kodak 5219 is your money-melon. Portra 400 cannot match that. Though both are fine at ISO 50, FWIW.</p>

<p>Speaking of which, I just bought 5 rolls of Portra 400. Now, I'm not going to use it tomorrow. But at least I have it, ready to go. If you want to try 5219, which I will do eventually, be prepared to fork over $150 for five rolls:</p>

<p>http://www.ecn-2.com/store/</p>