Digital Imaging: the Death of Film?

By: Adam Singleton

If the pattern of adoption for digital imaging currently happening in the USA is repeated in the UK, then it could sound the death knell for traditional film. Between May 2006 and May 2007 the volume of digital photos prints produced in the USA grew by a staggering 34%, with online photo services seeing an 80% rise in popularity, according to the Photo Marketing Association International.

Technical innovation has been credited with the shift from film to digital, in particular the growth of high speed Web access, which makes uploading images so much faster. With well over half of all web users in the UK now on broadband uploading here is just as fast and simple as in the US and usage is expected to rise in line with the American uptake.

However, digital imaging prints are just half the story, with sales of traditional film cameras completing the picture. Over the same period as the rise in digital imaging print production, sales in traditional film cameras have fallen 49%, while digital camera sales rose 5% over the same period, with nearly nine out of ten digital cameras offering resolutions in excess of 6million megapixels. Affordable 10 million megapixel cameras are now retailing at less than half of the price that they were two years ago; combined with the fact that shutter speeds and specifications have improved, this has made digital cameras a real alternative to film. Plus the cost savings of using digital imagery cannot be underestimated. Rather than waste several rolls of expensive film to get that one elusive shot, with digital cameras any picture not up to scratch can simply be deleted after being reviewed on screen.

Another attraction of the switch from film to digital is that the storage of digital images is becoming much easier. Many new computers are equipped with much bigger storage capacity on their hard drives, or if not big enough then storage devices such as USB pens or USB hard drives can be plugged in, allowing for the increased storage of treasured images. In addition many websites offer online vaults meaning that pictures that would have taken up valuable hard drive space can now be stored online and accessed through the web.

Of course, there is always the old-fashioned way; home photo development is extremely easy now with home-printing equipment available with most cameras, while there are also many instant print booths in photo shops, supermarkets and chemists.

With the ease of use, uploading and storage of images and tumbling prices of high quality digital cameras it is easy to see why digital photography is taking America by storm. It is only a matter of time before it happens here in the UK.

About the Author

Adam Singleton is an online freelance journalist from Scotland. His hobbies include tavelling and hiking.

(ArticlesBase SC #209990)

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