Kodachrome

[MMfoto]

PKM-25:

Wow. Thank-you so much for sharing that. You have me half way ready to march.

I followed the link and founds some wonderful images, and a bit of hope.

Cheers!

 

[tjaded]

Today being election day, I vote for PKM-25 as Kodachrome Ambassador. The way I will place my vote is to go buy a roll of Kodachrome Pro 64.

I will state for the record, if for any crazy reason Kodak put out 120 Kodachrome again I would shoot a minimum of 1 roll a week for the rest of my life. (Can't you just hear the accountants at Kodak running for the adding machine?!?! Yeah. Me too.)

 

[MMfoto]

...BTW, I've only tried a couple of times, but I've never had much luck pushing "Select" Kodachrome 200....

You know, I fely a little uneasy after making this statement. That's because it was stupid. I dug up those slides today. For one they're not that bad-a little dark and red. In fact, they're really good, considering I was shooting in poor, low, availble light with a 200 speed tranny rated at 500; with a tungsten light source no less.

My apologies KL.

 

[PKM-25]

You know, I fely a little uneasy after making this statement. That's because it was stupid. I dug up those slides today. For one they're not that bad-a little dark and red. In fact, they're really good, considering I was shooting in poor, low, availble light with a 200 speed tranny rated at 500; with a tungsten light source no less.

My apologies KL.

Not that you did this, but, the worst thing you can do to a film you are unfamiliar with is test it.

The best thing you can do is shoot it long enough to get to know it, becomes friends with it. Treat it as if it were the only in film in the world and really connect with it.

Film is like a woman. You can either dabble with a bunch of them and not really become spiritually connected, or, you can find one who really does it for you and commit to her, then reap the rewards of having a friend you can depend on for life.

 

[tjaded]

Not that you did this, but, the worst thing you can do to a film you are unfamiliar with is test it.

The best thing you can do is shoot it long enough to get to know it, becomes friends with it. Treat it as if it were the only in film in the world and really connect with it.

Film is like a woman. You can either dabble with a bunch of them and not really become spiritually connected, or, you can find one who really does it for you and commit to her, then reap the rewards of having a friend you can depend on for life.

Until it gets discontinued....

 

[PKM-25]

Until it gets discontinued....

Exactly! Everything has a finite life, dance with it while it's still alive.

 

[tjaded]

I'm trying to use Kodachrome as much as I can...I can only shoot so much in stereo though! Maybe I should try to dig up a smallish 35 rangefinder with really good glass so I can shoot more of it. I just can't justify shooting 35mm with the not so great 35mm cameras I have. I never really built up a decent 35 system...maybe an old Leica will find its way to me or something. Economics of it aside, it seems such a shame that such a good film only comes in little size!

 

[Photo Engineer]

Gee, and it used to come in sheets at least up to 8x10 in size.

I have an empty 5x7 box that Kodachrome was packed in, and I have seen boxes of Kotavachrome, a companion sheet product.

PE

 

[PKM-25]

I'm trying to use Kodachrome as much as I can...I can only shoot so much in stereo though! Maybe I should try to dig up a smallish 35 rangefinder with really good glass so I can shoot more of it. I just can't justify shooting 35mm with the not so great 35mm cameras I have. I never really built up a decent 35 system...maybe an old Leica will find its way to me or something. Economics of it aside, it seems such a shame that such a good film only comes in little size!

Medium and large format cameras can only go so many places and work only so fast.

I went Leica for Kodachrome a few months ago, well worth it. For about $1,400 to $2,000 you can have a fine rig for the film. An M6 and a 35mm 2.0 Summicron. Get the aspheric version of the summicron if you can. The Leica aspheric lenses are most likely the sharpest for 35mm in the history of photography.

 

[tjaded]

Gee, and it used to come in sheets at least up to 8x10 in size.

I have an empty 5x7 box that Kodachrome was packed in, and I have seen boxes of Kotavachrome, a companion sheet product.

PE

I have a box (still sealed!!) of 4x5 Kodachrome dated 1942. Sealed, and yet esentially useless. But a guy can dream from time to time...

 

[tjaded]

Medium and large format cameras can only go so many places and work only so fast.

I went Leica for Kodachrome a few months ago, well worth it. For about $1,400 to $2,000 you can have a fine rig for the film. An M6 and a 35mm 2.0 Summicron. Get the aspheric version of the summicron if you can. The Leica aspheric lenses are most likely the sharpest for 35mm in the history of photography.

Large format can be a bit of a pain in the field, but my hasselblad is like an extension of me now. It's so comfortable for me to use, but 35mm has always been a pain for me. I've got a big nose and glasses...not the friendliest for 35mm...I need to look down or look a ground glass!

 

[MMfoto]

You know, I have about a half dozen of my grandfathers 4X5 Kodachromes, and man let me tell you! !!

 

[tjaded]

You know, I have about a half dozen of my grandfathers 4X5 Kodachromes, and man let me tell you! !!

I've never seen one in person. I hope to someday...

 

[copake_ham]

I have a box (still sealed!!) of 4x5 Kodachrome dated 1942. Sealed, and yet esentially useless. But a guy can dream from time to time...

Why wouldn't you try it out? It's not going to get any fresher!

If I were you and shooting that format I'd ask Dwayne's if they can process it. If they can - I'd try it.

What do you have to lose?

Oh, I understand the "collector's value" of an unopened box of 65 year old Kodachrome - but why not see if there is any market for it on eBay (sellers can always "pull" an item)? If not - give it a "shot"!

 

[Dave Parker]

Why would anyone collect, unused 65 year old film?, thts like taking it out of the box for a picture on ebay! There is only one use for film and that is to make pictures, letting it go to waste is a real shame, although after 65 years, and being color, it may not even be good enough for garden fertilizer now!

Dave

 

[PKM-25]

I would pay a high price for that box of 4x5, I would never shoot it though. The project I am doing invlolves a lot of the historical retrospective as well my final images.

I happen to be collecting things like that for a future still life to be shot on Kodachrome 25 in my Xpan, it will be something I need to get sooner or later.

By the way, that 4x5 is most likely K12, not K14 so souping it for color is going to be next to impossible.

 

[Dave Parker]

I would pay a high price for that box of 4x5, I would never shoot it though. The project I am doing invlolves a lot of the historical retrospective as well my final images.

I happen to be collecting things like that for a future still life to be shot on Kodachrome 25 in my Xpan, it will be something I need to get sooner or later.

By the way, that 4x5 is most likely K12, not K14 so souping it for color is going to be next to impossible.

PKM,

I am well aware of what it is, why it is and how it became, I have been doing this for about 30 years now, but to collect film itself is like buying a Ferrari and parking it in the garage, collect the box, that is great, but just like a Ferrari, I would never let it sit in the garage, car were built to drive, cameras were built to shoot and film was built to capture...

Dave

 

[copake_ham]

PKM,

I am well aware of what it is, why it is and how it became, I have been doing this for about 30 years now, but to collect film itself is like buying a Ferrari and parking it in the garage, collect the box, that is great, but just like a Ferrari, I would never let it sit in the garage, car were built to drive, cameras were built to shoot and film was built to capture...

Dave

Dave,

You and I are of the same school - it's why we are poor. Every Christmas I opened my boxes with the Lionel train cars and put them in my train set.

I should have been smart enough to realize that they should have been put away unopened so 45 years later I could sell them on eBay!

Some of us just never learn!

 

[Earl Dunbar]

George: OT ... after I left home, my baseball cards remained with my parents. During a phone conversation sometime later they asked what I wanted them to do with them. This was early 70s. I had a TON of 1959 cards ... Mantle, Maris, Berra, most of the Dodgers, yadda, yadda, yadda.

You know the rest of the story... Yeah, that's why we're poor.

 

[copake_ham]

George: OT ... after I left home, my baseball cards remained with my parents. During a phone conversation sometime later they asked what I wanted them to do with them. This was early 70s. I had a TON of 1959 cards ... Mantle, Maris, Berra, most of the Dodgers, yadda, yadda, yadda.

You know the rest of the story... Yeah, that's why we're poor.

Oh Earl, you don't want to know!

Those Lionel trains? My mother gave them away to a friend's kid when I went to college. I think he's retired on Maui right now.

And, BB cards? My "incident" was from the mid '60's. My Dad finally "blew his top" when he heard how I kept spending all my allowance on BB cards. So one day he took my shoe boxes full of them and piled them into the charcoal BBQ grill.

Yep, he fired them up and there went my fortune!

Like you, the Berras, the Mantles, the Sniders, the Koufaxes, Drysdales, Whitey Fords etc. etc. turned into ashes!

I've forgiven him (kind of) but your tale brought back the memory! Ugh!!

 

[Earl Dunbar]

Sigh ... Nellie Fox, Moose Skowron, Hank Bauer, Stan Musial ... the list goes on.

You and I need to hoist a few together ... good wine and good cheese, too.

 

[Dave Parker]

Well guys, I actually almost made it big, I had every single Topps set from 1959 to 1971, including all the rookie cards, special editions, etc...

I knew, just knew they would be worth SOMETHING one day!

Well, I had to go away for a trip, about 6 months after I married my ex-wife(note EX!) and came back to find, she had traded them to someone to do a tune up on her car, lets see $60 dollar tune up, rookie cards, $60 tune, full sets, $60 tune up, Special editions!

Did I mention, She is my EX-WIFE!!!

Arrrrggggghhhh

Dave

 

[MMfoto]

...The project I am doing invlolves a lot of the historical retrospective as well my final images....

So do we get a peak ??

 

[tjaded]

When I bought the box, I planned on shooting it. Dwayne's said no dice on doing 4x5. Now it's just part of my collection of old film boxes and such...this one just happens to be full!

 

[Bromo33333]

Dave,

You and I are of the same school - it's why we are poor. Every Christmas I opened my boxes with the Lionel train cars and put them in my train set.

I should have been smart enough to realize that they should have been put away unopened so 45 years later I could sell them on eBay!

Some of us just never learn!

Heh. The same mentality has people shrink wrapping special edition Leicas in their box so as not to "reduce their value" - I think you guys are "richer" for opening and playing with them.

Though family members always destroy those things - I think that is what creates the high prices on eBay - though it is traumatic for sure. My grandmother (lived with us when I was growing up) wrote "please put these away" on my wargames in black permanent marker because I had continuously left them on my other bed (I has 2 twin beds) rather than put them in my closet. ARGH!