On Apr 28, 2005, at 7:29 AM, Steve Desjardins wrote:
... Anyway, what about the projected arc of film CAMERA business?
I just returned home from Keeble & Shuchat Photography in Palo Alto ... the largest photographic equipment and supply outfit in the area, a very well equipped shop. They cater to everything from rank amateur to full-time professionals. They've recently reorganized their two storefronts and integrated all the film and digital equipment where once they used to separate them.
My buddy there told me in no uncertain terms: film cameras and equipment are now the niche minority department. They sell more than 8x as many DSLR bodies and lenses for DSLR bodies as film bodies, most of their print-making supplies now are paper and inks for digital printers ... the darkroom department is 1/4 the size it was four years ago, and turns an even smaller volume percentage-wise. Medium format equipment sales are just about dead on the floor ... 1/8 the shelf and counter space they were just two years ago.
Godfrey
