(erielack) Kodak/traditional photo supplies

[Edward Mines <ed_mines_@_yahoo.com>]

I started my professional career with Kodak in 1973 and lasted 5 years. After 2 weeks I knew I had made a dreadful mistake going to work for them. At the time I left they were considered to be one of the best employers in the US. Potential employers couldn't understand why I wanted to leave or had left Kodak. I ended up the rest of my "career" working for third rate employers. The new guy who's "pretty smart" was always seen as competition by the long time employees and subject to frequent character assassination.
 
The management at Kodak felt Kodak was the best company in the world and that everyone else in the world was obligated to buy whatever products Kodak wanted them to sell. Current sales prove them wrong. The chickens have come home to roost.
 
I am glad to see Kodak get what they deserve but I am sorry to see hard working people in Rochester loose their jobs. I am sure many of them are my age (mid '50s) or older - to old to start a professional job somewhere else, particularly with obsolete technology.
 
I collect B&W photos of steam era rolling stock. The number of men offering these prints is decreasing and the cost of photo supplies is going up fast. Kodak stopped making B&W paper in Rochester a while ago and is going to discontinue making it overseas in the next year.
 
The other companies making B&W photo paper - Agfa, Illford .... - are not doing well either (read near bankruptcy). Some one (maybe a manufacturer in a third world country) will still probably still offer B&W paper. If it costs too much or is poor quality more of the men offering steam era prints stop offering prints. 
 
I'm sure that equipment to make electronic prints from silver halide negatives is available today, but there's not much market for it and I doubt any of the old timers currently offering railroad prints would be willing to invest in it. 
 
Things are going to get worse for a while before they get better. The number of men selling steam era railroad prints will continue to decrease, but as long as the negatives remain, eventually new sources of steam era prints using electronic reproduction will show up . I can't wait until some of the museums start offering prints, but it may not be in my lifetime.
 
Ed Mines



		
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