Is analog photography dead?

[Alex Wilson]

A few years ago, I would have been inclined to agree that film would always stay around in some form in its niche market, but now I'm not so sure. The last few years have seen a way more dramatic shift to digital than most predicted.

"Film Cameras Officialy Dead In Japan"
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/0...ameras-of.html

Choices in paper and developer may become very limited very quickly. And I expect that new film gear (not just cameras, but enlargers, etc.) will also become rare, or at least much more expensive.

I'm not sure how the medium format crowd will be affected over time, as I'm not sure what the split is between commercial (who I would think are going/gone digital) versus art/hobby film folks.

Then again, large format film has been a very niche market for art photography long time, and it's managed to persist. That bodes well for medium and small format film users.

As for B&W film vs. digital, I don't want to hijack this thread, I think I'll start another...

[cdanddvdpublisher]

A few years ago, I would have been inclined to agree that film would always stay around in some form in its niche market, but now I'm not so sure. The last few years have seen a way more dramatic shift to digital than most predicted.

"Film Cameras Officialy Dead In Japan"
http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/0...ameras-of.html

Choices in paper and developer may become very limited very quickly. And I expect that new film gear (not just cameras, but enlargers, etc.) will also become rare, or at least much more expensive.

I'm not sure how the medium format crowd will be affected over time, as I'm not sure what the split is between commercial (who I would think are going/gone digital) versus art/hobby film folks.

Then again, large format film has been a very niche market for art photography long time, and it's managed to persist. That bodes well for medium and small format film users.

As for B&W film vs. digital, I don't want to hijack this thread, I think I'll start another...

I miss shooting film, personally. While there are days that I still grab the camera and go out with it, digital is more convenient for me. However, I suspect that I'll never give film up completely, unless I have to...