A recent post on UHH entered into a discussion of color film cost.
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-748476-1.htmlOddly, people still try to compare film and digital. They are two entirely different media that accomplish close to the same thing. I can do things in each that are difficult or impossible to accomplish in the other. I thoroughly enjoy the entire process of taking and processing film photographs.
There were comments made to the effect that film was dead, which is erroneous. There are quite a few people shooting film in various formats and posting them on Facebook.
Another was the cost of film. So, I'll address this cost and primarily black and white film, as that is what I use.
Film expense:
1 roll of 100ft Ilford HP5 - $80.00
1 liter of developer Ilford DD-X - $20.00
1 gallon of Kodak fixer - $13.00
100 feet of film yields 18 rolls of 36 exposures Cost per exposure is $0.12
1 liter of developer - 50 rolls or 900 exposures Cost per exposure $0.02
1 gallon of fixer - 50 rolls or 900 exposures Cost per exposure $0.01
Each exposure costs $0.15.
120 and 4x5 formats are going to be higher. If memory serves, each 120 negative costs $0.75, and a 4x5 negative costs approximately $1.50.
Now, these numbers are from about a year ago. Some of the items may have gone up in price. However, the actual cost is still not all that much. So, people who are declaring film to be too expensive to use are making statements based on other than fact.
For me, nothing compares to the excitement of seeing images on film as it is pulled from the wash and set up to dry.
--Bob