One year ago...

This is only the second post I've made since starting this blog one year and one day ago. My interest in photography has waned considerably, something that hasn't happened since my return to it about 12 years ago. But this past year I also returned to another long-lost passion of mine, bicycling. You can see the new blog, "The Prodigal Cyclist" and learn what I've been up to. But let me assure you, all is not forgotten here on this forum. I still have many boxes of processed Kodachrome that has not been edited or scanned for this blog. And soon I will be receiving 17 more rolls of processed Kodachrome as Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas tries to get through the mountains of Kodachrome that has been dumped at their doorstep over the past several weeks.

Yes, the chance to record the beauty of this world on Kodachrome has now passed. But the new phase of this legendary film begins, the timeless images that will be shared throughout the coming decades as these mountains of Kodachrome are shared aorund the world.

Long live the King of Color Film!
Long live Kodachrome!

Here we go!

Remember the sound of color? Pictured here is a 1952 roll Kodachrome slide film and an original 45rpm record of Paul Simon's 1973 release, "Kodachrome". My oldest roll of unexposed Kodachrome is dated October 1949.

We are in the final year of Kodachome. In 2009 Kodak ended the 74-year production of this legendary film forever. If you aren't familiar with how significant this is, this was the color film we grew up on. All the National Geographic pictures, all the LIFE magazine pictures were taken on Kodachome, the film that set the original standard for color photography. To this day, there has never been another film that has equalled the archival properties of Kodachrome. I have Kodachome slides that were taken (not by me) over 50 years ago, and they look as if they were taken just yesterday.

There is only one place left in the entire world which is still processing the film, and that will cease on December 31, 2010. After that, Kodachome, the most famous color film in the history of photography, will be gone forever. I presently have 80+ rolls sitting in my freezer, and during the coming year, I will be documenting colorful scenes unique to Wisconsin. Some of them will be presented in this blog. Future plans will include a book, in addition to a traveling, old-fashioned slide show.