How many NEW LF Cameras were sold last year?

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Does anyone know where I find industry inforation as to how many NEW Large Format cameras of various sizes were sold last year. First, in the USA, then Europe, and then worldwide? I am looking for sales figures for 4x5, 5x7, 8x10 and larger if possible.

-- Dan Smith (shooter@brigham.net), November 16, 1999

Answers

There's a yearly photo industry report called the Wolfman Report; I have no idea where you'd get a copy, but I believe it's rather expensive.

-- John Hicks (jbh@magicnet.net), November 16, 1999.

Not to dissuade you, I'd be interested to know too, BUT

Here's what Lynn Jones, a former X.O. of Burke & James wrote in the View Camera article "The History of Lens Design" in the July/August issue.

"The smaller formats represent a volume of from 11 to 14 million units while in the biggest year in the view camera business, there were between 15 and 20 thousand units sold (and some of those sales figures are suspect since some manufacturers represent large accessory sales as camera sales.)"

Lynn could be reacj=hed that year at:

Austin Community College 11928 Stone Hollow Drive Austin, TX 78758 512-832-4793

-- Sean yates (yatescats@yahoo.com), November 17, 1999.


1: The Wolfman Report is no longer published. 2: The Wolfman Report lumped large format into an "other: category including medium format and other non mass market sizes 3: The Report did not seperate large dormat sizes 4: US Custom figures do not list large format as a seperate category.

There are no reliable published statistics on large format sales for new cameras. Also because some large format cameras are cottege industry sales that are sold directly through either the manufacturer or by a source other than normal camera stores their figures are impossible to track. An example would be Bender.

-- Bob Salomon (bob@hpmarketingcorp.com), November 17, 1999.


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