Film—if you can even find it in stock—is already pretty pricey, and things might be about to get worse. According to PetaPixel, who have translated a note sent out to camera shops in Japan, Fujifilm’s film prices will increase by up to 60 percent over the coming months. Let’s dig in.
About the note
This story starts with a real-life game of Telephone: Print Koubou, a camera shop, film retailer, and photo lab in Japan shared a note it received from Fujifilm about price increases on Twitter. Japanese camera site DCLife spotted the Tweet and wrote about it—the story was then picked up by PetaPixel. And now you’re reading about it here on PopPhoto.
All this is to say that while we can’t verify the authenticity of the note, we (sadly) believe it to be genuine.
What the note says
According to PetaPixel (via Google Translate), the note says:
“We would like to thank you for your continued support and would like to express our sincere gratitude for your continued support.
“We have endeavored to absorb costs by improving production efficiency and reducing costs in response to the continuous decrease in demand for photographic film, photographic paper and printed products. However, due to the soaring prices of materials and raw materials in Corona, and the rise in transportation costs, it has become difficult to absorb them only by corporate efforts. I would like to say. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience but thank you for your patience. We look forward to your continued patronage of Fujifilm products.”
It then goes on to list the expected price increases and timeframes:
- Photo film will increase by 20 to 60 percent starting in April.
- Color photo paper will increase by 10 to 20 percent starting in May.
- Color photo chemistry will increase by about 10 percent starting in May.
And a range of other Fujifilm photo products will have between 8 and 164 percent price increases. It really sounds like Fujifilm will be bumping prices across the board.
Why is this happening?
In the note, Fujifilm points to the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in transportation costs (likely caused by the supply chain crisis), and a decrease in demand for film products (which presumably has reduced the production economies of scale) for the need to increase prices.
Will this happen worldwide?
Although the note only applies to the Japanese market, it seems likely that there will be price increases worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain crisis are also affecting things in North America, Western Europe, and elsewhere. Don’t be surprised if, over the coming weeks, we run a story confirming the price increases in the US market.
What does this all mean for Fujifilm film prices?
Fujifilm lists seven 35mm film stocks, of which five are currently available in the USA (both Fujicolor Pro 400H and Fujichrome Veliva 100 have been discontinued).
If these price hikes end up being worldwide, the price for a single roll of 35mm film would go from:
- Fujifilm 200. Currently: $9.99. New Price: $11.99 to $15.99.
- Superia X-TRA 400. Currently: $9.99. New Price: $11.99 to $15.99.
- Fujichrome Velvia 50. Currently: $20.99. New Price: $25.19 to $33.59.
- Fujichrome Provia 100F. Currently: $20.99. New Price: $25.19 to $33.59.
- Neopan 100 Across II. Currently: $12.99. New Price: $15.59 to $20.79.
Those are some serious increases, and that’s without taking into account photo labs pushing their prices up to account for the additional costs of chemistry and paper.
What can I do about it?
I don’t know about you, but I’d suggest stocking up on film right now. I’m going to be putting in an order with my local camera shop as soon as I file this article!
You could also check out our article on how to save money shooting film.
The post Fujifilm Japan will soon hike film prices by up to 60% appeared first on Popular Photography.