Film cameras were stone aged technologies compared to digital photography today. One has to wait to finish all 36 shots and take them to lab and wait 3 days to be printed out. It was always kind of blind investment. Not to mention damage of negative by accidental light exposure.
There were days when you shoot your photos and you submit to print your photos. And all films were collected from Katmandu and flown to Bangkok and developed and printed and flown back. Boy that business was booming. This was time where Kodak, Fuji film expand their market in Katmandu.
Holding 35 mm camera in hand was considered as lucky fellow. Mastering on it was kind of heroism act. Only those who had lots of money and want to live by the profession desperately was lucky for that.
Not to mention all the print out were monochrome and each photographer were suppose to have dark room and learn developing process. Artistic photography had no value at all. They were considered as outcaste and were destined to garbage.
Rarely any photographer in Kathmandu had ever dared to venture in that sector. it was like once upon a time, a son of portrait painter in Royal palace later turned to a photographer, had ventured landscape photography to surrounding hills of Katmandu and upto Bhainse. But Rana ministers and family portraits were main business. Hunting camps of Rana ministers were another great adventure to shoot. But contemporary Nepalese photographer rarely dared. which is still true case today.
No wonder we find foreign photographer holding sovereignty on Nepalese landscape photography from 1900 to till date.
