http://m.npr.org/story/128728114
Should be neat to see what's on it.
Last Roll of Kodachrome
(29 posts) (17 voices)-
Posted 2 years ago #
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lol wait, i just finished a roll of kodachrome, do I have to send it to that place in kansas?
EDIT: I guess so, and I have to send it in by december 30th to boot. shouldn't be too hard, unless I get really lazy, hah.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I shoulda bought it while they had it... Ah well I still have a million of rolls of velvia lying around so it shouldn't be too bad...
Posted 2 years ago # -
Anonymous
Unregistered
Posts: 51offlinefoofiebeast said:
lol wait, i just finished a roll of kodachrome, do I have to send it to that place in kansas?EDIT: I guess so, and I have to send it in by december 30th to boot. shouldn't be too hard, unless I get really lazy, hah.
I believe I read somewhere that the last day for K-14 processing will actually be December 10th, not the 30th.
EDIT: Yeah, the source that I read that said December 10th was wrong; it is December 30th.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I have several rolls of very aged kodachrome (refridgerated). I suppose I'll have to go out use it up, too. In fact, I still have some Kodak Mailers. Guess Dwayne's won't honor them.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I was cleaning out my old stuff and found 1 package Super 8 Kodachrome II, along with Kodachrome II 4x5.... its still new in the package just 40 years out of date.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Sangster, you've got 40 years of catching up to do -- get busy !!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Isn't Kodachrome a song written and performed by Paul Simon?
Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, Oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don't take my Kodachrome awayIt's been years since I used Kodachrome, back when I owned a Nikon FM!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Hi, Evil. Welcome to the forum.
Posted 2 years ago # -
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In case anyone wanted to see what was on that last roll:
http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2011/02/last-kodachrome-slide-show-201102Posted 2 years ago # -
Planning to attend presentation by Steve McCurry on March 29 in Tampa, Fl.
FYI This spring, National Geographic Channel will air a documentary about McCurry’s sojourn.
Posted 2 years ago # -
There is a bit of "controversy" about McCurry's last Kodachrome roll. Some seem to think that he "wasted" the last roll with so-so images. Apparently it's OK for everyone else to fill up a 16gb card with mediocre photos but a "master pro" like Steve is expected to shoot 38 "perfect" exposures on one roll!? Dang!
I'm looking forward to seeing the NatGeo's Kodachrome documentary. Even though I already know how it ends :^)
Posted 2 years ago # -
NikoDoby said:
There is a bit of "controversy" about McCurry's last Kodachrome roll. Some seem to think that he "wasted" the last roll with so-so images. Apparently it's OK for everyone else to fill up a 16gb card with mediocre photos but a "master pro" like Steve is expected to shoot 38 "perfect" exposures on one roll!? Dang!I'm looking forward to seeing the NatGeo's Kodachrome documentary. Even though I already know how it ends :^)
Yes, I noticed that too- half the roll was based on people from India, done in a way very similar to his Afghan girl photo- not bad photos, just a style we've seen before.
His one frame in his hotel room seems to have been wasted in my opinion. Not necessary.
Posted 2 years ago # -
NSXType-R said:
Yes, I noticed that too- half the roll was based on people from India, done in a way very similar to his Afghan girl photo- not bad photos, just a style we've seen before.His one frame in his hotel room seems to have been wasted in my opinion. Not necessary.
The hotel shot was jarring. But one bad shot out of 38? Hell, I'd kill for that kind of ratio. Not to say the other 37 were all works of art, but I think if you separated out keepers/filler/crap, you'd probably find just about the rates of each that you'd expect from a photographer with that much experience. Nobody shoots nothing but keepers, unless they're fooling themselves (and they'll be the only ones they're fooling).
Posted 2 years ago # -
It was HIS roll, he has shot 800K+ on Kodachrome he can do what he wanted on the last one. The whiners need to STFU since he didn't say he was trying to shoot 36 final masterpieces on slides.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Why would anyone complain about what someone else decides to shoot on their roll on their own time and money? Yes, I agree there is some sentimental value about the last roll of Kodachrome, but I don't see why you'd complain about it. I guess sometimes people confuse me.
Posted 2 years ago # -
They are fantastic images. But I originally..... When I heard this story. I thought he was traveling to a different country for each photo, I'd rather see a diversity in the last roll. I under stand its his roll to shoot freely but I made MY last roll memorable and diverse in things I want to remember. 26 portraits of 26 different people and 1 shot of my mom and dad and I.
I don't know why he had ehh I forget 2 or 3 shots of Robert de niro.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Funduro said:
It was HIS roll, he has shot 800K+ on Kodachrome he can do what he wanted on the last one. The whiners need to STFU since he didn't say he was trying to shoot 36 final masterpieces on slides.I understand it's his roll and he could have thrown out the roll if he wanted to.
I didn't expect 36 perfect photos. I'm just saying I would have shot it differently.
Smarterchild touched upon that too- I would have wanted to shoot a diverse amount of subjects.
jerl said:
Why would anyone complain about what someone else decides to shoot on their roll on their own time and money? Yes, I agree there is some sentimental value about the last roll of Kodachrome, but I don't see why you'd complain about it. I guess sometimes people confuse me.Like I said, I would have wanted to shoot a more diverse amount of subjects.
smarterchild said:
They are fantastic images. But I originally..... When I heard this story. I thought he was traveling to a different country for each photo, I'd rather see a diversity in the last roll. I under stand its his roll to shoot freely but I made MY last roll memorable and diverse in things I want to remember. 26 portraits of 26 different people and 1 shot of my mom and dad and I.I don't know why he had ehh I forget 2 or 3 shots of Robert de niro.
I agree. It seemed like he wanted to replicate Afghan Girl for a good 10 shots. He put another 4 or 5 shots into Robert De Niero as well. As much as I think he's a great actor, I would have used a few of those elsewhere. On a side note, the way he took his photo, De Niero looks much older than I thought he would.
And yes, I shoot a lot of stupid stuff with film too. I just would have treated that last roll differently.
Posted 2 years ago # -
If Ansel Adams would be harshly judged today for doing too much dodging or this & that in the dark room on his last print. Lots of comment are from persons that whine because that's all they allow them to do. In other words certain persons do not compliment because to them it shows weakness. Sorry if I sounded defense on my prior post.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Funduro said:
If Ansel Adams would be harshly judged today for doing too much dodging or this & that in the dark room on his last print. Lots of comment are from persons that whine because that's all they allow them to do. In other words certain persons do not compliment because to them it shows weakness. Sorry if I sounded defense on my prior post.Burning and dodging for Ansel is one thing. It's not the editing I have a problem with, it's different because it's concerning the death of a certain format of a medium. I don't think medium format film is in danger of fading out like Kodachrome has, but I could be wrong.
But in this case it is seriously the last roll of Kodachrome that could be developed the way Kodak meant it to be developed. I wouldn't have spent a frame shooting the television in my hotel room when I could have done the same with a point and shoot. Obviously Steven McCurry can do all he wants with it, but I just found it odd that he would shoot that frame. Perhaps he wanted to get a photo of what he was looking at and thinking about at the moment through the look of Kodachrome. I'd be interested in what he would say about that single frame.
And don't worry about the defensiveness.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Funduro said:
If Ansel Adams would be harshly judged today for doing too much dodging or this & that in the dark room on his last print. Lots of comment are from persons that whine because that's all they allow them to do. In other words certain persons do not compliment because to them it shows weakness. Sorry if I sounded defense on my prior post.Which is, ironically, piling defensiveness on top of defensiveness. But I digress.
How's hoping someone will live up to their best work "weakness?" McCurry is a photographer with an established portfolio, a deservedly great reputation, and a general respect for the craft that's earned him the right to call himself an artist (though I can't speak for whether he'd lay claim to that). People are going to have strong opinions, and in some cases reactions, to that work. All the more so if they feel the pieces in question are, in some way, "off." This isn't just some tourist taking snapshots at Disney; like it or not, some people will be held to a higher standard.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Interesting discussion. It mirrors what I've read in other forums too. I wonder how much of this is digital's fault? Meaning that a digital workflow makes the "perfect" shot seem easy nowadays. You can take a shot over and over until it's just right and no one is going to complain if you've filled up your 16gb CF card with "boring" shots to get the ONE perfect picture.
I wonder how many shots on Chase Jarvis's 16gb card are "perfect"? Or what if McNally showed every shot he took on his card? So what Steve took two shots of Rober DeNiro. How many photos would you guys have taken of DeNiro if you had a chance to shoot him? Only two or three photos on a 16gb card?
The Kodachrome documentary will be very interesting to see how he accomplished each shot in one take.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I'm sorry to say I came late to this discussion, having found this forum via an online search for a current UK price for Kodachrome. I was mortified to find that it had been discontinued. Kodachrome 25 was my preferred medium back in the day before I went fully digital, but I thought I would get my Canon A1 out of mothballs and put a roll through it just for a change. (I'm aware this is a Nikon forum but please don't hate me for owning a Canon - I also have a Nikon DSLR). I was never able to afford to make Kodachrome my exclusive colour medium because, incredible as it may seem, at the time 1x36 exposure roll was around 20 percent of my weekly earnings. I could only run to about 4 rolls per year.
I found the discussion on what some contributors thought of the contents of "The Last Roll" very interesting, although by now many of you may have seen the documentary and therefore be enlightened as to what Steve McCurry's intentions were. I haven't had the luxury of having seen the documentary - I don't even know if it has ever been aired in the UK.
Having seen only the "Last Roll" slide show my personal opinion is that a point may have been missed in that I think maybe Steve McCurry allowed the medium to be the star rather than the subject matter. This may seem something of a strange statement but let me explain. When I first started out on the great photographic journey as a teenager I knew nothing of the subject, save for the fact that I wanted to pursue photography as a hobby. I turned to those older and seemingly wiser in my local casmera club for advice, a great deal of which was very helpful but among that advice were little nuggets like "Kodachrome is great film but needs to be exposed in bright, sunlit conditions at high shutter speeds and with the lens stopped-down for maximum depth of field", and that slow shutter speeds lead to reciprocity failure. Given the aforementioned high cost of Kodachrome I couldn't afford to experiment with it, with the result that I have a (small) catalogue of perfectly exposed, technically excellent slides full of detail, though I wish I could say that my "eye" and compositional skills were up to the same standard.
Imagine, then, my astonishment at the images on that last roll. Not a bright, sunlit scene in sight, but still the superb detail and tonal quality I remember, and as far as the bedroom shot is concerned, I thought it was a tour de force. Agreed the subject matter is perhaps a little pointless, and is certainly not a shot I would have taken all those years ago when I could not afford to be "wasteful", but the subtlety of the lighting on the ceiling is, to my eyes, superb and shows me what opportunities I missed back then, and that makes me sad for Kodachrome's passing.
Posted 1 year ago # -
Welcome to the forum, Graham. We would like you no matter what camera you use. That's a sad story, but thanks for sharing.
Stick around on the forum—it's a great place.
Posted 1 year ago #
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