On 3-Dec-2003, "John Horner" wrote:

At some point as digital image capture and non-silver based printing
continues to evolve I think it is reasonable to expect that various
governments will eventually regulate out of existence the use of silver
halide based photographic products. The production and processing of film
and paper is a chemical and water intensive process which inevitably leads
to some degree of real or imagined water pollution.

There is historical precedence in CFCs and mercury.

It seems only a matter of time until a bandwagon builds to first heavily
regulate and then nearly eliminate the medium and methods we have grown
used
to.

As the general public on one hand and professional photographers on the
other continue the rapid migration towards digital capture and digital
output there will be an ever smaller interest group attempting to defend
the
status quo.

I imagine that the first thing to be attacked might be the small scale
home
and small business processor. The economic impact to the photo industry
of
requiring special licenses facilities to be able to purchase controlled
substances is likely to come first.

I am not saying that this is likely to happen next week, but over the next
5, 10 or 20 years it seems highly probable.

Your thoughts ?

As the use of silver decreases there will be less and less pressure to pick
on photographers who continue to use it.



--
Tom Thackrey
www.creative-light.com
tom (at) creative (dash) light (dot) com
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