There's still hope for analog photography

[Diapositivo]

Yes I thought about the APS-C after writing the text. If the next X100 is full-frame, then I think it is really feasible. In that case, besides the electronics, all the rest would be usable. The rangefinder is an expensive part and using the same rangefinder for two cameras would be advantageous. The shutter, the flash, and maybe the lens could be the same.

[MattKing]

Here's one retro affectation.

http://www.finepix-x100.com/

It's a very interesting and nice looking camera. And the one I've seen "in the flesh" was bought by a staff member at a store which sells and rents a lot of pro gear, both digital and film.

He was showing it to a friend and customer who is a very good black and white photographer - both film and digital, although most of his commercial work is digital now.

The feature that both of them appreciated the most, and which appealed to me as well, was the viewfinder.

Its control layout appeals to me more than any other digital camera I've seen. I can only hope it sells well, and gets copied.

And convinces a few photographers to either try or go back to good film rangefinders.

EDIT: As for the APS-C issue, I could live with a half-frame film version

[moki]

I like that Fuji too... it's a good concept and very nice design, but way too expensive for me. For that kind of money, I can get a decent DSLR and one or two good lenses for it (assuming I'd want to buy a digital camera). If there was a true compact digital camera with optical viewfinder and made from metal and leather, I'd sure buy it, even if it cost a little more than usual compacts - anything's better than these plasticky things today. They look and feel like single-use cameras...

And about all that "Yay, hipsters use film!"... you know what hipsters are? A very shortlived trend, like most so-called subcultures. A decade is a very long time for such thing to last... I bet, all that hipster-style is forgotten and replaced by something completely different by 2020. Maybe, people won't be that interested in photography anymore... or maybe start using large format or today's digicams for their bad image quality. I don't know. Nobody does. It's almost impossible to predict, what the next trend will be and I would never build my hope into one of these subcultures. I can't even imagining today's hipsters keeping what they're doing in 10 or 20 years. They'll mostly be parents in normal suburbs, maybe thinking about the good, old, wild time, having children that will have their own culture that their parents don't understand...
Still, I'm optimistic for analog photography to last a few more decades, but not because of some trendy hipsters. It's been booming for almost 200 years and a lot of film is produced today. Maco/Rollei even brought us new films and chemicals... probably wouldn't do that, if it was going downhill.

[brucemuir]

This may sound like b*itching but really bugs me is when these "people" shoot film for 6 months or so in a holga and are immediately some sort of "expert" on all things related to film shooting or processing.

As evidenced by countless blogs and forum posts.

This fad will pass quickly.
I don't think it really boosts film sales all that much because they mostly buy outdated stuff.

I buy a lot of past date stuff myself but probably not for the same reasons.

[Mainecoonmaniac]

"people" shoot film for 6 months or so in a holga and are immediately some sort of "expert" on all things related to film shooting or processing.

Just like teenagers. They don't know enough to know that they're not experts. My hope that they will keep the use of film alive.

[Diapositivo]

If it's teen-agers that keep the supply of films alive, then let's hope that teen-agers supply never ends

This might be a passing fad, but it's much needed by the industry at the moment so let's hope it grows. It might help crossing the desert.

The worst might be behind us. For no particular reason I happen to click on videos reporting "backstages" of pin-up girl calendars. I'm typically not less interested in the cameras employed (or lights etc.) than in the models. Lately I've seen two of those videos where the work is conducted with MF film cameras and proofs are made with instant material. It was years I didn't see that. Recent videos I mean, not vintage ones.

Film is coming back.

[Josh Harmon]

I am all for the hipster movement. I am 17 years old as well and shoot 80% of my work on film. Film has a quality level and character so different than digital. I am surprised occasionally at the ignorance of some of my class mates (*His* $2000 dSLR takes better photos than my ancient Graflex...)

Anyway, found this funny:
"... an analog camera that uses actual film"
I always hate when I load my camera and realize I had put in fake film :P

Josh Harmon

[Jeff L]

Today I saw a young girl shooting a Spotmatic on the street in Montreal. I smiled to myself.

[Sethasaurus]

Whew, thanks Amanda Golden. Thankfully, now I know there's still hope for 'analog photography' haha. /sarcasm off
It is good to know there are a few more people out there shooting film.

But.. Those kids ain't hipsters.

I know a fair number of punk/goth/grunge/metal people as well as some emo/indie/scenester/hipsters but trust me - there's no way to look cool in a cafe if your trust fund or rich parents are backing you up. The 'real' people always seem to have that indefinable something that the poor little rich kids are just never going to get (bless them for trying, though

[Mainecoonmaniac]

Don't know what to make of this encounter. I was at Trader Joes and saw a seinor with a digital Leica around his neck. In his cart was a case of $2 Chuck. I noticed immediately and complemented him on his camera. It was sure purrdy. I wonder if it's just a fashion accessory?