A Kodachrome Love Story...

<p>I type this from my hotel room in New Orleans, what a fabulous place to shoot Kodachrome!</p>

<p>I have been on the road now pretty much non-stop since mid July. I left Colorado with about 800 rolls of the film, have 172 left. I just sent in a batch of 152 rolls tonight, 151 just three weeks ago. In the past three years, I have shot most likely over 1,000 rolls of Kodachrome 25, 64 and 200. I have climbed an ice route on Mt. Rainer, photographed the inauguration of Obama, New Years in Times Square, Burning Man, trout from underwater, tide pools in Acadia National Park, Lobsterman in Maine, billionaires and gypsies, parisians in the rain, lovers embracing under the Fall foliage and now the brilliant life and color that is New Orleans…</p>

<p>But in May, I shot in Yosemite National Park for two weeks, the crowds, the moonlight, the sunlight and the starlight. So one busy day, while at Tunnel View, I was greeted by two nice young women who were taking photos as well and were interested in my Xpan. We talked about the "Moon-bow" that was to occur in the wee hours of the morning. So after the light went flat, we all grabbed a beer at the Awhanee Hotel in the Valley. We really hit it off, just fun loving, easy going girls. But one in particular struck me as having a wonderful glow of energy about her. So later that night, we met with other friends of theirs and drank hot coco and shot the Moonbow. Sarah was giggling when she could finally see it on the back of her camera. The weekend progressed and we ran into each other again while in traffic waiting for Glacier Point road to open. We hung out again and exchanged info. They told me I should come up in August as they camp for a week in the tent cabins in Tuolumne and I could park my camper there. I got busy with life, kind of forgot about the date.</p>

<p>So while in Glacier shooting, I get a text from Sarah asking if I was still going to make it…I mean, that was over a month ago, she remembered me that well. So I decided to stay out of the heat, keep hiking and go to Tuolumne to meet up with them. In short, in a weeks time, Sarah and I fell head over heels in love, her mother and best friends watched in amazement as sparks flew and we were at first very much in denial. Sarah and I would keep seeing each other and eventually got married in Vermont this past October. We eloped with a solid plan for having a ceremony next year on the same date in Yosemite.</p>

<p>We are incredibly happy together, we met because of the project and we even photographed our own wedding on Kodachrome film. I had those 20 rolls sent to Sarah's home in Sacramento. We miss each other tremendously and see each other once a month until I get home early next month.</p>

<p>So a project that has brought me much joy has brought my wife and I together, I just can't see how it gets any better than that. I now have 15 wonderful days to shoot the rest of my film, a lifetime of memories unfold.</p>

<p>Below is a photo shot on Kodachrome that Sarah used her point and shoot and a piece of paper as a light table on her computer screen to take, please pardon the weird color and pattern of the paper behind the photo:</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

<p>Damn She is worthy of a better camera Photographer and maybe some B&W. :) </p>

<p> Teasing... Kodachrome used to be used in less capable cameras and still was great. Think of many of those early shots from the Rocket launches in Florida.. Many on Kodak Ponies with Kodachrome that Mom and Dad... Mostly Dad used...</p>

<p> Kodachrome is going to be gone soon and all I can say is I helped kill it as I had a local e6 lab and used e6 as I could get it same day. When I lost my local E6 lab because it seems only me and 70 others were using it weekley it shut down ....</p>

<p> People killed Kodachrome yet I never read or heard of one story where a person was killed by Kodachrome. :)</p>

<p>I used a Nikon F100 and the new 50mm 1.4G lens on it for most of the photos of the wedding. Sarah is at home using an OM-1N with a 50 1.8 and a little hand held meter, I gave her more 8 rolls of 25 to shoot, should be fun to see what she comes up with. </p>

<p>I wish you and her the best and hope to see more.</p>

<p>Congratulations on finding the love of your life Daniel. That's a lovely shot. A Nikon though? That's so pedestrian for you.</p>

<p>Congratulations! An amazing story of life, love and Kodachrome. From the photo it appears you are a very lucky guy. Best wishes.</p>

<p>That's a wonderful story, Daniel. Wishing you and Sarah the best.</p>

<p>Great story - thanks for sharing. I haven't shot Kodachrome for years, so I can't say with any honesty that I will miss it, but I know the attachment that some have (I feel that way about my favorite films). However it's nice to recognize at least once in a while that life is about much more than photographic media, and will go on regardless of the means we use to capture it. Best wishes!</p>

<p>What everyone else said, Congratulations! That's a great story, and with a beginning like that, you should have many happy years together. Lose Kodachrome, gain a wife! Not a bad tradeoff. :) All the best.</p>

<p>Best wishes, Daniel. Great story.<br>

Now hurry up and post it over on the Kodachrome Project!</p>

<p>Thanks for all the great response folks, I know it has been awhile since I have been on here. Sarah and I will see each other for Christmas, I will get to meet her dad. I will fly out of Wichita Kansas and return there to finish up the project eventually at Dwayne's Photo. As far as posting new stuff from the project, I am going to wait until I secure a book publisher and even then, it will be very limited, no people stuff either as I promised those who I photographed since July that I would not do that.<br>

<br /> So in order to see the majority of what will be the final edit, you will have to either buy the book or attend a gallery showing of Ilfochrome prints that will be printed over the course of 2011. The best way to see them might be to attend a book signing in which the larger ones will have a slide show of the real images, TBD.<br>

<br /> I am going to hold off on posting this to my site since I have a different post in mind and my ex-girlfriend might look there...it's too soon for that yet. As far as what gear I am using, I use the Leicas a fair bit, but not as much as when I first got them, they are just too slow for many things, a pain to use with flash and not as "Disposable" in rough neighborhoods.<br>

Definitely check out the blog for updates and iPhone pics:<br>

http://kodachromeproject.com/blog/<br>

So I now leave NOLA for other places and other spaces....</p><div></div>

<p>The coloring of the 12:53 post looks like Autochrome. </p>

<p>Daniel,</p>

<p>That's a nice story. I've been looking at my old Kodachromes and, projected, there is still nothing like it. It's the realistic colors and the wonderful punchy contrast that does it. I just wish it scanned better.</p>

<p>I hope we get to see your shots of your enviable trip.</p>

<p>ah, so im not the only one who has a used a computer screen as a light table...</p>

<p>Congrats Dan.</p>

<p>Now that's a story and a half! Seriously, well done and congratulations to the both of you.</p>

<p>BTW I have never seen 800 rolls of film in one place. Do you have a snapshot?</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p>I use the Leicas a fair bit, but not as much as when I first got them, they are just too slow for many things, a pain to use with flash and not as "Disposable" in rough neighborhoods.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Good point, there. The great thing about film SLRs is that you can get great cameras and lenses for peanuts. From Pentax to Olympus to Canon to Nikon etc, they're all great. The tools are disposable - it's the results that count.</p>

<p>Finally, while reading your summary of the whole adventure, I was once again reminded of a truth I first read in John Sculley's <em>Odyssey: From Pepsi to Apple</em>: the journey is the reward.</p>

<p>Dan!</p>

<p>Congratulations!</p>

<p>I suspected something major must have been happening to you.</p>

<p>I'm in no rush to do that interview...let me know when you actually have some free time again. ;-)</p>

<p>It often seems that spiritual decisions we make, like your initial one to go forth with this project, can take unexpected turns. Similar things have happened to me, where I have felt very strongly that I must do something that is difficult or challenging, and then life takes an unexpected, positive turn out of nowhere. Nothing quite like your story so far though.</p>

<p>Best wishes as you finish up your last rolls. I am finishing mine now, too.</p>

<p>By the way...please drop me a line if you're interested in the following and if you do have a spare moment before the project is over...I have a few rolls of Kodachrome 40, KPA that I've been using, and I would like for you to have one of them to shoot...if you are interested. It's a teeny bit foggy in the deep shadows, but it still has that special Kodachrome 40 look to it, so if you are interested and there is a way to mail it to you at one of your stopping points in the next couple of weeks, I can do that...just let me know.</p>

<p>Dan, that's a heartwarming story indeed. Your project has been more rewarding than you ever expected. Best wishes to you and Sarah and may you have many warm memories. <br>

I'm off to finish my one last roll, K200, this weekend in an FE2 for old times' sake. Dwayne's just shipped me another 6 rolls today, shot in my Leica M6. It's been fun, right down to the wire. </p>

<p>OMG, is Sarah the better half. Congratulations!<br>

My last 2 rolls of K64 will be FedEx'd to Dwayne's on the 28th. Nothing spectacular though, just family snaps, the subjects that Kodachrome helped document for 70+ years.<br>

Good bye old friend, it was a great run!</p>

<p>Shot the last roll of KR 64 last night and will send it off today. I still have two more rolls in boxes that I think I'll just keep for nostalgia's sake.<br>

Trivia Question - why did KR slide frames always have those odd curved edges? They do interfere when trying to scan :( But they sure were distinctive ...<br>

GB</p>

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<p>A Nikon though? That's so pedestrian for you.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Pedestrian, perhaps, but iconic. Do you not remember the song?<br>

...every day a sunny day...</p>

<p>Great story, in addition to the project. Looking forward to the tour, don't forget Texas!</p>

<p>I picked some of the same areas for my last year of Kodachrome--Acadia is sublime "after the season", isn't it. Couldn't take the whole year off, though.</p>

<p>Congrats Daniel! A wonderful story.</p>

<p>Way to go Daniel ! I've enjoyed the Kodachrome Project and look forward to a copy of the book.</p>