Well, yes and no. Any hobby that hopes to attract kids to keep itself going after us old guys are gone has got to have an affordable entry path. As much as anything, that's what is killing off pastimes like model railroading and amateur radio. If it takes $500 or more to just get started, they're going to buy a game console or a computer instead and just forget that "hobby" stuff.

Photography, on the other hoof, has grown much simpler what with digital cameras and computer based "darkroom" procedures. You don't need a darkroom with messy expensive chemicals, supplies and equipment and you don't have to pay large amounts of money for film and processing. That's why sites like Flickr and all those Twitter-connected photo archives are growing so fast.