Thoughts 16 May 2008 12:46 pm
Film is dying
Film is dead in Japan:
This comes after Japan’s trade body CIPA (Camera & Imaging Products Association) announced that film camera sales were so low, that it was no longer worth tracking. In the month of January, only 1,580 film cameras were sold compared to the 5,417,563 digital cameras.
Canon makes a EOS-1DS-Mark III, 21 megapixel camera that is about $8k for the body. I just bought a Nikon D300 12 megapixal (body only) for $1800. The Nikon D3 12 megapixel full frame is about $5k.
My point is that while these cameras are expensive now, but the price per megapixel is coming down.
If you don’t need an slr you can buy a 12.1 megapixel PowerShot A650 IS Digital Camera for $300.
And the truth is, the megapixel silliness is nothing more than advertising hype.
If you’re going to make poster it matters, if you’re going to make fine art prints it matters, if you’re going to look at them on your computer or email them to Aunt Jane it doesn’t. The extra megapixels just fill up your memory card faster.
Film will be around for quite some time but it will become a niche market. The guys making huge detailed panoramas can’t use digital and get the best quality…. Yet.
I have a small digital camera that I keep in my car and sometimes carry in my pocket. It’s somewhere between 5 and 7 megapixels, it has image stabilization(far more important to me than megapixels) and a 3x glass zoom.
It cost me $400 +/- a couple of years back and I can buy better, cheaper now. It’s strictly a point and drool camera and while I know how to take better pictures, by the time I’m done with the processing in Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 I find I don’t need to take better pictures, since all I do is stick them on the web or leave them on my computer.
Why would the average person want to use film? You need to buy the film, have it processed and then store the prints and negatives. Then when Aunt Jane wants to see them you can’t just sit in front of your computer and email them to her. You have to make extra prints and take them to the post office.
With digital you get instant gratification, no extra processing, and the memory card can be used over and over.
It’s a wonder that they sell any film except for professional/semi-pro use and the occasional disposable camera.