KA: Kodachrome "just not practical to try to replicate in today's market."

[George Mann]

Are you assuming Kodachrome has a better chance?

The market is too fickle to accurately guess, but enough people have stated their preference for Kodachrome.

 

[RPC]

The market is too fickle to accurately guess, but enough people have stated their preference for Kodachrome.

Enough? Kodak thinks not enough.

 

[George Mann]

Enough? Kodak thinks not enough.

Where is their official statement to back up your claim?

 

[Photo Engineer]

Isn't it what we all want from a film? I mean accuracy and neutrality have their value for some applications but for a lot of us what is the most rewarding is how good it looks to our own eyes.

Lionel, Our saying was that "Kodachrome could make a garbage dump look beautiful". It was surely colorful, but very inaccurate with greenish blacks.

As for sales, in 1990, E6 films began outstripping Kodachrome in sales. This was both Fuji and Kodak sales. Fuji cancelled their Kodachrome work alike a few years earlier.

PE

 

[Photo Engineer]

Both you and PE are regular comedians!

We are realists.

 

[RPC]

Where is their official statement to back up your claim?

Simple reasoning. If Kodak says it is not practical in today's MARKETPLACE, what does that say to you?

 

[George Mann]

Simple reasoning. If Kodak says it is not practical in today's MARKETPLACE, what does that say to you?

That they don't want to invest in a new process.

 

[George Mann]

Lionel, Our saying was that "Kodachrome could make a garbage dump look beautiful". It was surely colorful, but very inaccurate with greenish blacks.

PE

I never claimed that it was perfect. I merely stated that K14-64 had an eerily realistic rendering that matched the way we saw the world.

 

[George Mann]

We are realists.

Realists obsessed with technicalities perhaps.

 

[Sal Santamaura]

...It's better stuff than K25...

K64 was where it was at (nothing better)!;o)

The ultimate for me was PKM25 processed by the Kodak lab in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. After the Qualux debacle and then only Dwayne's, there was no processing one could count on. When Kodak discontinued PKM25, I reluctantly used PKR64. It wasn't as nice, but sufficed for a while. When all Kodachrome processing became worthless, I abandoned the film. Fujichrome 50 (NOT velveeta) was good in large format, but grossly inadequate in 35mm. I eventually cried "uncle" and used negatives for color. Once one found a decent lab for C-41 processing, at least it was possible to complain and have them remake the prints until they got it close enough to right.

Lionel, Our saying was that "Kodachrome could make a garbage dump look beautiful"...

That's the crux right there. When early Kodachrome 25 Professional was exposed under proper lighting and processed by Kodak Fair Lawn, there was nothing more beautiful. Not being a catalog shooter (for who there was EPN), I couldn't have cared less about accuracy. The same went for scanning -- projection was the way to appreciate PKM25 slides.

Today, there's not an ice cube's chance in hell that Kodachrome of any flavor will be reintroduced, much less consistent processing for it, irrespective of what a handful of alleged consumers claim they're willing to pay. If it were, in 4x5 and 8x10, on Estar base, I'd buy it. So what? Even 35mm Kodachrome isn't going to happen, much less sheet versions. Reality sucks, but it's real. Deal with it.

 

[Lionel1972]

Lionel, Our saying was that "Kodachrome could make a garbage dump look beautiful". It was surely colorful, but very inaccurate with greenish blacks.

As for sales, in 1990, E6 films began outstripping Kodachrome in sales. This was both Fuji and Kodak sales. Fuji cancelled their Kodachrome work alike a few years earlier.

PE

Making a garbage dump look beautiful is exactly what I’m looking for in a film!
As for sales back in the day, I have no doubt E6 killed Kodachrome for the reasons you have stated many times. But just like we pretty much know how dinosaurs got extinct, I’m quite certain it would rise a lot of interest if we could bring back some to life today.

 

[E. von Hoegh]

Kodachrome, the zombie emulsion.

 

[Lionel1972]

We are realists.

So does it make the two of you stereo realists?
Beautiful tools to use with Kodachrome by the way.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I only see objectionable levels of mud when viewing Ektachrome!

Go to the pharmacy and get some eye wash and an eye cup.

 

[removed account4]

I guess you have missed all of the people campaigning for its return!

iHUH ? .. all the people campaigning for its return is like 30 people on a website. you really think someone
will fork over 50-100 for a roll of film ?

That they don't want to invest in a new process.

why would they invest in a new process when they just barely made it out of bankruptcy .. whatever the other emulsions they
have or plan to re-release already have a way to process it. invest in a new process that costs millions of $$ in R/D for 30 people on a website
and maybe a few hundred who might want to spend 50-100$ a pop, shoot it, feel nostalgic, get the slides back, scan them and realize
they could have just fiddled with the cyan slider in gimp and get the same results.

maybe its denver has THC in the local tap water ?
personally i have better things to spend 50-300$ on ... a few trips to norway or ireland through my local airport or a used hasselblad

they retired it it for a reason. no one bought it. well maybe jeeves is shooting it since he's on vacation.
https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Ask-Jeeves-closes-door-on-the-butler-Familiar-2503272.php

 

[Craig]

Making a garbage dump look beautiful is exactly what I’m looking for in a film!

It's called Velvia and it does it better than Kodachrome ever did.

 

[Theo Sulphate]

... all the people campaigning for its return is like 30 people on a website. ...

I'm sure there are at least 32 people. So there.

...AND: for each of those 32 people there are one million Photrio readers who don't post their support. That makes 32,000,000 Kodachrome re-birthers. This should get the Chinese capitalists eager to start production!

 

[Lionel1972]

It's called Velvia and it does it better than Kodachrome ever did.

That is a question of personal taste. I also love Velvia and love any E6 film I can shoot. But nothing can give you what Kodachrome used to deliver. The question is not weather or not Kodachrome technical qualities were good enough nor weather or not the decline of its sales justified its cancellation back then. The point is weather or not reintroducing Kodachrome today or in a near futur is something that would be worth the effort for Kodak given the impact it would make on the market (I beleive it would shake the internet so much that even digital shooters would get curious to try it out even more than the growing number of them that is trying out film photography nowadays).

 

[bvy]

iHUH ? .. all the people campaigning for its return is like 30 people on a website. you really think someone
will fork over 50-100 for a roll of film ?

That's like saying all the people who shoot film are like the couple thousand on this website. I'm not campaigning for its return either (nor against it), but you're just hearing from a small vocal minority.

$50 to $100 for a roll? The low end is only about four or five times a roll of Velvia. So, yeah, I would. But probably just as a matter of sheer morbid curiosity, and probably not more than once.

 

[Sal Santamaura]

It's called Velvia and it does it better than Kodachrome ever did.

It does nothing better, except perhaps make images of crayons.

...Fujichrome 50 (NOT velveeta) was good...

 

[removed account4]

I'm sure there are at least 32 people. So there.

...AND: for each of those 32 people there are one million Photrio readers who don't post their support. That makes 32,000,000 Kodachrome re-birthers. This should get the Chinese capitalists eager to start production!

LOL i think they will have to have a lot of pixie dust and 4 leave clovers to make it work

 

[Helios 1984]

I'm sure there are at least 32 people. So there.

...AND: for each of those 32 people there are one million Photrio readers who don't post their support. That makes 32,000,000 Kodachrome re-birthers. This should get the Chinese capitalists eager to start production!

50 millions at least, and in Canada alone.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Whoever thinks that there are 32,000 people on APUG that will pay $50US to $100US a roll for Kodachrome, is [or are] just sniffing their own self released internal gases.

 

[trendland]

The ultimate for me was PKM25 processed by the Kodak lab in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. After the Qualux debacle and then only Dwayne's, there was no processing one could count on. When Kodak discontinued PKM25, I reluctantly used PKR64. It wasn't as nice, but sufficed for a while. When all Kodachrome processing became worthless, I abandoned the film. Fujichrome 50 (NOT velveeta) was good in large format, but grossly inadequate in 35mm. I eventually cried "uncle" and used negatives for color. Once one found a decent lab for C-41 processing, at least it was possible to complain and have them remake the prints until they got it close enough to right.That's the crux right there. When early Kodachrome 25 Professional was exposed under proper lighting and processed by Kodak Fair Lawn, there was nothing more beautiful. Not being a catalog shooter (for who there was EPN), I couldn't have cared less about accuracy. The same went for scanning -- projection was the way to appreciate PKM25 slides.

Today, there's not an ice cube's chance in hell that Kodachrome of any flavor will be reintroduced, much less consistent processing for it, irrespective of what a handful of alleged consumers claim they're willing to pay. If it were, in 4x5 and 8x10, on Estar base, I'd buy it. So what? Even 35mm Kodachrome isn't going to happen, much less sheet versions. Reality sucks, but it's real. Deal with it.

PKM25 was indeed with outstanding performance.So many years new films were introduced within the past - they became better and better. But in comparison to other simular new films.
Every pre 90th comparison of E6 film ended with the new champion.
But from the last sentence test allways mentioned Kodakchrome25 (as a little better)......I am remembering.
Velvia 50 was the first E6 indeed better than PKM25 but just in a few parameters - in regard of smaler grain Kodak wasn't to top!
(no wonder because of ASA25)
with regards

 

[E. von Hoegh]

I love Kodachrome, I learned color photography on it.
The last generations of Ektachrome (not that "color enhanced" shit) were better films though. The last Agfa E6 films were good, too. I miss Kodachrome, and IF it came back at a sane price would use it. I'm not getting my hopes up though, my time would be better spent working on time travel.