Say cheese: World Photography Day

Undoubtedly, more photos are taken today than at any point in history given that more people are carrying a camera than ever before… in the form of a cell phone. While photo taking may be at record highs, household spending on photographic equipment and film development continues to wane.

Household spending on photographic services down by almost half from a decade earlier

On average, Canadian households are spending much less on photographic services than they did a decade earlier.

In 2021, household spending on photographic services totalled $79, down from $138 in 2010.

One reason behind the drop in spending on photographic services may be related to fewer Canadians getting married or having families, two big photo events!

There were 98,355 marriages registered in Canada in 2020, the lowest annual number recorded since 1938, when the population was much smaller than it is today. The total fertility rate in Canada in 2022 (1.33 children per woman) was the lowest on record. 

Households spent on average $35 on camcorders, cameras, parts, accessories and related equipment in 2021. By way of comparison, Canadian households spent $1,308 on cell phone and pager services, almost double the amount spent in 2010 ($731).

Sales of still cameras and other photographic equipment and supplies are up from a year earlier

Canadian retailers sold $242.4 million of still cameras and other photographic equipment and supplies in the first quarter of 2024, up 1.1% from the same quarter a year earlier.

Sales of photographic equipment and supplies at retailers are seasonal, with sales at their lowest ebb in the first quarter and peaking during the holiday shopping season in November and December. In the fourth quarter of 2023, retail sales at photographic equipment and supplies reached $288.5 million.

By way of comparison, retail sales of telephones, communication equipment and related products totalled $982 million in the first quarter of 2024, up 9.9% year over year but below the peak of $1.3 billion reached in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Most photographic services businesses are solo affairs

Pros are often called in to take photos for big events such as business functions, weddings or family events. In the realm of statistics, these professional photographers fall under the category “photographic services.”

In December 2023, there were over six times as many photographic services businesses without employees (10,028) as there were with employees (1,457).

The number of photographic services businesses without employees ranged from 3 in Nunavut to 3,947 in Ontario.

Four in five (79.9%) photographic services businesses with employees were small affairs (from one to four employees), while three photographic services businesses had 100 or more employees, with Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia home to one each.

No big camera and photographic supply shops in Canada

We counted 320 camera and photographic supply retailers across Canada in December 2023, with 174 employing one or more employees and 146 without employees.

The overwhelming majority of camera and photographic supply retailers were small, with 73 reporting one to four employees and 60 reporting five to nine employees. Two companies reported 50 to 99 employees. None reported more than 100 employees.

Fewer than 200 photo finishing studios remain in Canada

Nothing better illustrates the gulf between the number of photos taken and the number of photos printed than the number of photo finishing studios across Canada.

In December 2023, there were 120 businesses specializing in photo finishing, with 50 employing one or more people and 70 without employees. Among businesses with employees, just over three in four (76%) had nine or fewer employees, while two, both located in Quebec, reported having from 100 to 199 employees.

One-hour photo shops are even harder to find, with 78 nationwide in December 2023, almost evenly distributed among businesses with (38) and without (40) employees.

There were no one-hour photo shops in New Brunswick or the territories in December 2023, while there were 33 located in Ontario, 19 in Quebec and 17 in British Columbia.

Almost every one-hour photo shop in Canada (36 of 38 shops) had nine or fewer employees.

Frame it!

Only a select few photos taken make it into a frame or are mounted upon a wall.

In December 2023, we counted 539 print and picture frame retailers in every province and territory across Canada except Nunavut.

There were more print and picture frame shops without employees (288 businesses) than with employees (251) and almost three in four framing shops (72.5%) with employees had four employees or fewer.