Digital cameras don’t spell photo finish to print

Film may be a thing of the past, but that hasn’t stopped Australians from printing their photos in greater numbers than ever before, according to the Photo Imaging Council Australia.

A recent article in the ABC bemoaned the extinction of traditional photo printing shops, claiming that in the last decade, 1,600 shops had closed down. But Dave Marshall,  (pictured), said that the rise of digital photography has actually boosted the industry – particularly when it comes to printing.

“Right now, the market is producing around 800 million prints [a year], which is bigger than it was in the peak of film,” he told Print21.

The reason for this, he believes, is the number of kiosks available in Australia (Fujfilm already has 7,500 kiosks around the country, with more to be installed throughout the year).

Marshall also attributes the rise of online printing, where consumers normally print between 120-150 prints per session, at a rate of approximately four times a year.

Young mothers with kids are the prime market for digital, according to Marshall. “They will normally print on average of 42 prints per sitting and do 13 sittings a year,” he added.

Photo shops that exist without a kiosk do so at their own peril, Marshall said. “What we saw happen in the independent area was the good stores demonstrated forward-thinking and invested in their business. The ones with only basic equipment who were too scared to invest in digital soon went out of business.”

Despite living in an electronic age, people still see the need to print their photos.

“The trick for us is to educate consumers never to stop printing,” Marshall said. “If you lose your hard drive in a fire then good luck; if your photos are on Facebook, they could disappear, and are often low resolution. There’s every reason to print every image that is important to you, because you know that you’ve got it.”