120 Development in Kansas City

Hey y'all,

I'm going home to KC to shoot (and eat a lot of BBQ) over the Thanksgiving weekend. I can haul my film home but I'd rather lower my risk and drive home with negs than undeveloped film.

I'll mostly be shooting C-41 with maybe a couple rolls of E-6.

Are there any labs still developing 120 in KC? Far as that goes, where can I buy 120 in KC?

Thanks,

Clint

Hi Clint,

There are a handful of places you can buy and develop 120, it just depends which area of the city you will be in. Crick Camera at 77th and State Line is a good, reliable shop that stocks plenty of the basic films (Ilford, Kodak, Fuji.) Up north there's Photographix just south of I-29 and Barry Road. Their film stock is a little thin these days, but they still do all the processing. There's also Overland Photo Supply on 92nd(ish) and Metcalf if you're southwest of the city. There are some smaller places peppered around the city, but those are my favs. Give me a shout if you want some more specific info. Enjoy the city! I love it this time of year

Oh, I also wanted to add that you *must* make time to go to the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum to their photo gallery if you haven't been. There's a fantastic Robert and Shana ParkeHarris exhibit on display, plus a whole lot of other good stuff. It's a must-see, no doubt. www.nelson-atkins.com

It truly warms my heart to hear that Crick is still in business. My first camera (a Praktica LTL) has a sticker from Crick's inside. I got it 2nd (3rd, 27th) hand from Ben's in Riverside. Hopefully Ben's is still alive and kicking, since I'll be up in God's Country (north of the river and well, I will be at the Corner Cafe at least once!).

I'll definitely check out the exhibit at the Nelson. I haven't been there since they did the expansion. I'll also get over to the Kemper, as well. Is Leedytown still full of small galleries or did the yuppies and condos drive them all out?

Crick is doing well, although they're heavily digital because I'm sure they pretty much have to be. The staff is still all the same people that have been there forever, so they're a great pool of knowledge. They moved locations a few years back, from the Brookside shop over to 77th and State Line, right next to a Subway so it always smells like sandwiches in there

Unfortunately Ben's went out of business just a month or two ago. I picked up a Canon VT and Summarit. It was incredible the amount of old stuff he had in there. It was sad to see him go. They had been in business in one form or another for 70+ years.

I haven't known it as Leedytown, but if you're referring to the Crossroads area, it has grown exponentially. First Fridays are just nuts with the amount of people who attend. Of course, when it gets that big, the focus tends more towards a social event, but the art community is thriving.

Wow. It really makes me sad to hear about Ben's. Going in there was like doing an archeological dig -- lots of rocks and dust, but the occasional gem to be found. Plus, they were always good about taking the time to sell me the *right* stuff. I wouldn't have learned nearly as much in my first year shooting if he'd sold me an AE-1 as I did when he told me why I should buy the much cheaper Praktica.

Yeah, the Crossroads area used to be known to us old-school guys as Leedyville, after Jim Leedy who had the Leedy-Volkous Gallery down there. He really anchored art in that area. I'm glad its thriving, but I'm still sad to see it having been run over by condoburbians. I used to rent a little cold-water place under the Dolphin Gallery after I got out of college. Hopefully the old neighborhood still has some flavor (not that the flavor of osso bucco from Lydia's is that bad).