Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
This Hendersonville Times-News storyreports on changes that I’ve mentioned earlier. It’s a decent update on how technology is changing the photo industry:
A long time Hendersonville business closed its doors last week, a victim of the digital age, the owner said.
Photo Quik, located next to J.C. Penney in the Blue Ridge Mall, ended a 25 year run in Hendersonville on Thursday, also closing the doors at its Asheville location on Merrimon Avenue, said Photo Quik owner John Smith.
Digital cameras are changing the landscape of the photography industry, he said.
“Eighty percent of the business now is digital — digital cameras have rechargable batteries, so people do not need to recharge their batteries, people also don’t need any print files to put negatives in and people aren’t needing frames for prints,” Smith said. “People aren’t printing photos anymore because they can just come home from a trip and put their pictures on a hard drive. Digital cameras are just wiping out the whole industry. It’s not just independent guys like me, it’s also hurting other guys. The big guys, like Wal-Mart, keep lowering their prices and it hurts people like me. It’s just come to this and we’re no more.”
Iris Photographics will move into Photo Quik’s old Merrimon Avenue location, Smith said, consolidating its two Asheville locations into one building. The businessman said he will retire from the day to day grind of running his own business, but will still do photo enlargements up through size 40 by 60 for Iris Photographics.
“I will be doing everything 16 by 20 and up for them in addition to specialized work.”
