Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/10/11

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Subject: [Leica] RE: Film days numbered?
From: "Lee, Jonathan" <Jonathan.Lee@hrcc.on.ca>
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 1999 13:55:31 -0400

The days of film are numbered?!

Ha! People who say this are the same people who told us 10 yrs ago that the
copmuter will lead to a paperless office!

Film will stay around for a long time because:
1.  Storage.  The information per volume and per $ of film is very high. If
I shoot 30 rolls of film, that information can be easily stored in a binder.
1080 digital images are going to take a up a lot of expensive memory and/or
disks.
2. Cost.  The penetrance of computers is not 100%.  Right now, it costs $20
to buy a disposable camera and get prints.  Untill an imaging setup is
available that can duplicate this, film will continue to exist. 
3. Convenience.  There are no and are unlikely to be in the 10-15 yr
horizon, 1 hr imaging places so dig prints can be made for $10.
4. Silver's importance.  Never count anything out.  15 years ago, people
were saying that the view camera was dead and rangefinders would die soon.
Now look at it, rangefinders and view cameras everywhere.  ANother thing,
platinum printing is aslo making a comeback.
5. Archivability.  Save your digital images on a ZIP drive today.  10 years
from now, you probably will ahve a hard time accessing that information.  It
will be like trying to access all those letters and files that you saved on
5.25" disks back in the deep dark days of the late 80s.

JOnathan Lee