I haven’t posted in some time, close to a month. I don’t know why I haven’t been writing other than work got in the way, the summer malaise, and well, things I’ve just forgotten to do.
But I’m back.
So as Kodak announced this summer they will cease production of Kodachrome, I figured I better shoot a few rolls for posterity and participate in the end of what some considered the best film on the market. I’m posting a few new scans from my last rolls of Kodachrome. I never was a big fan of slide film as it takes nerve and skill to properly expose E6 and surely, it isn’t a forgiving film. You had to know what you were doing, understanding exposure, etc…for if you were slightly off, your film would be completely ruined. I shot four rolls of this K-14 film and many of the frames were underexposed with few being right on the dot.
The way I learned to snap photos is to just push the button worry about the exposure later. I think I’ve mused about the inner taking over when a camera is in my hands, that feeling of something just happening, no control, no thinking just a snap, capture, and forward of the frame. That inner jazz, that subtle creative stuff pushing out through the lens blah blah and other self absorbed dribble. Tri-X or Plus-X into the Nikon F3HP and fire away. Five frames a second! To put a technical film like chrome into my hands, just crumples my creativity as I worry too much about the exposure and the decisive moment vanishes. I learned to shoot on negative film which will forgive a majority of exposure mistakes but lacks what some feel is that look only chrome film gives.
And it does have a feel and look that is by far, a far stretch from what digital can capture. Steve McCurry’s famous shot of the Afghan girl was shot on Kodachrome. The stuff made legends.
Alas, digital once again reared its head in the market place and killed old technology. As the word processor killed the typewriter, new technology lays waist to Koadchrome. As negative film allowed me the courage to take pictures, digital is making everyone and anyone a photographer. You don’t have to be technically savvy with a camera to make amazing shots. So much can be corrected in post production including exposures, etc…its quiet amazing how the market has had tremendous growth. Millions upon millions of images are being uploaded on the web and its not stopping. Its great as new talent, new creative ideas, and new forms of art are being seen every day. Sadly, it has cheapened the market as art buyers, magazines, and creative industries are finding it cheaper to produce photographs thus lowering pay. Once the photo business was run by a few extremely talented people with both tech and creative skills. Now, its run by kids with mad skills in Photoshop.
You don’t need Kodachrome to capture what McCurry did back in the 80s. Funny, the article linked above states “McCurry, now one of the film’s most famous users, will expose one of the last rolls of Kodachrome this summer.”
Well, I’ve exposed my last few rolls of Kodachrome this summer…I beat him to it!
I walked around Waikiki and Ala Moana Beach Park with my Leica and a few thoughts of what I’d like to see on my film. I opened my new entry with Honu, the Pomeranian. I saw him one late afternoon in front of the Hale Koa hotel with his owner. Honu, meaning turtle in Hawaiian, was dressed in dark goggles and a Lakers jersey. He was cute. I asked the owner if he was single and he he merrily laughed stating he was married as a group of supa-kawaii Japanese girls gushed over Honu-chan.
I shot the Kodachrome over a few days just to keep my mind busy and found all sorts of interesting views and things around Waikiki beaches. I found myself too concerned with the film inside the camera and felt I wasn’t really pushing myself to see things differently. I did make some images but don’t know what I would have gotten if I had shot with regular film.
I did feel Kodachrome didn’t necessarily capture that magic older pros raved about. I didn’t find myself floating on the lyrics of Paul Simon as magic danced in front of my 35mm lens. Its just film. Film that is a pain to get developed and scan. Sure maybe I didn’t do the best of jobs in exposure and whatnot but I’ve gotten so used to digital in many ways, I am part of the problem with the demise of slide film. Yet, modern negative film is almost as good if not better. But to discuss this is like arguing the merits of Coke or Pepsi. Yet out of it all, film is not user friendly…well for that matter, no film or digital is user friendly. You have create it.
George Lee said films like Kodachrome (which started production in 1935) were great but look too much time to develop. Turn over, in his opinion, lead to the demise of slow process film. E6 and C41 films were quicker and easier to process. Kodachrome did have a romantic edge to it as the palate was rich and colors vibrant. But as I stated above the film was limited and modern technology created new films and all was replaced by digital. Digital is instant—a computerized polaroid.
I did have to send my four rolls of Kodachrome to the only lab (its seems) in the world which still develops K-14 film. Dwayne’s Photo in Kansas still processes the film. Sadly, they will probably suffer once the last few rolls of Kodachrome roll through their developers.
Sure there is a unique quality to film, especially film like Kodachrome. Nice but its the end.
As far as the new age is concerned, today’s cameras allow anyone to be a Steve McCurry. But McCurry told me once it wasn’t easy being him. Airports all begin to look the same. Life isn’t steady and its hell on relationships. Its nice to sit around Hawaii and wander the beaches with a camera. Romance is one thing, reality is another.
