YASHICA just dropped a new 400 ISO black and white film to entice more film photographers to pledge their support before the Kickstarter campaign ends in eight days.
With the YASHICA Absolute – [Premiere] campaign now in its last days, the Hong Kong-based company has announced a new black and white film joining its roster. But the bigger question is, why the hell are they even doing this? WHY? Well, to rake in more money, of course.
Everyone knows that the MF-1 camera is lackluster and nothing but a glorified disposable camera. So, to sell that, YASHICA has dangled some films to go along with it, essentially telling potential backers, “Hey, you may not want to grab yet another crappy camera from us, but how about some real films for your favorite 35mm cameras?”
It looks like the plan worked, as “The forgotten journey of a timeless art” managed to snag a total pledge of $16,884 — well above its goal of $12,740. But wait, there’s more! With only nine days left, the company announced one more trick up its sleeve yesterday: the YASHICA Black & White film, a 400 ISO monochrome emulsion with moderate grain and high contrast that yields 24 exposures.
“We receive[sic] some requests for a Black and White 35mm film. We are proud to announce the NEW YASHICA BLACK & WHITE 35mm Film is available now. Our team has tested the film and please found the photo samples as following,” the company wrote on their latest update. This addition has been incorporated into new pledges for the campaign. Pretty convenient, don’t you think?
With a few more days left in the campaign, YASHICA’s new film isn’t there to make the film photography community more exciting by offering yet another monochrome option. There’s already a lot of it out there — including the rebranded ones, which is most likely what this is, yet again. What should be done instead is to put more significant efforts toward marketing and selling these existing films. We have a greater need to help keep the production of those going!
Images from the Kickstarter campaign by YASHICA
