[shuttertalk]

Looks like film is going the way of the dodo in our sister industry, with major manufacturers of motion picture film cameras ceasing production of new units, only producing digital from now on. That's not to say that the studios are not using film anymore - the article goes on to say that filmmakers continue to buy and use second hand ones, and I'm sure there will be those holding on to their preferred ways, just like in our industry.

http://www.salon.com/2011/10/13/r_i_p_th...singleton/

An article at the moviemaking technology website Creative Cow reports that the three major manufacturers of motion picture film cameras — Aaton, ARRI and Panavision — have all ceased production of new cameras within the last year, and will only make digital movie cameras from now on. As the article’s author, Debra Kaufman, poignantly puts it, “Someone, somewhere in the world is now holding the last film camera ever to roll off the line.”

I find it interesting though, that of the studios that capture in digital, many still add the film grain back in through post processing, to mimic the film look, otherwise it looks too artificial. I've also read cases where the same was done to remastered footage of old movies - that the picture quality was so good that they had to add digital noise back in.

Anyway, I'm sure it all comes down to practicality and cost as well.

[EnglishBob]

We have members in the camera club that add film style grain to their digital images, and it's amazing the number of judges that still comment on 'wow, this one was obviously taken on film"

Watched Real Steel last night and pretty sure that that was all shot digitally, not to mention how much of it is CGI, but looks really good.

[Zig]

I'd also suggest that matters may be even more terminal, as it's my understanding that levels of yer actual real silver have been so greatly reduced in film emulsions over the past couple of decades, thus facilitating the jumping of ship to digital. I'm not saying this is gospel, just repeating and extrapolating something that Sebastiao Salgado said a few years ago.

...er...not personally to me, you understand...
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