Jul 25 2010

Obituary: Last Roll of Kodachrome Finally Developed

( – promoted by ek hornbeck)

Exposed: The Last Roll Of Kodachrome

In 1984, photojournalist Steve McCurry was in an Afghan refugee camp in Pakistan. He followed the sound of voices to a tent where he found a group of girls. “I noticed this one little girl off to the side that had his incredible set of eyes that seemed almost haunted – or very piercing,” he tells NPR’s Audie Cornish.

McCurry snapped a picture that ended up on the cover of National Geographic’s June 1985 issue. “The Afghan Girl” became one of the magazine’s most widely recognized photographs – and one of the century’s most iconic. To get that shot, McCurry used a type of film that has become iconic in its own right: Kodachrome.

The film, known for its rich saturation and archival durability of its slides, was discontinued last year to the dismay of photographers worldwide. But Kodak gave the last roll ever produced to McCurry. He has just processed that coveted roll at Dwayne’s Photo Service in Parsons, Kan. – the last remaining location that processes the once-popular slide film.

The pictures that are on the last roll of Kodachrome will become the subject of a “National Geographic” documentary.

I have fond memories of my 35mm Yashika and Canon cameras.

And, as would be fitting, a song for the memorial.

arlethamaselli0

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  2. I’ve got dozens of carousels with photos using those films. I still own a 35 year old Minolta SLR with several different lenses. I’ve yet to get similar results from my Canon digital camera. Maybe it’s because there are too many adjustments to choose from or, more likely, I’m just too lazy to figure it out.

    1. to help with setting adjustments on those last 36 pictures.  

      1. to seeing them.

        1. were taken in NYC, McCurry’s home base

          1. I’ve only been once, just for three days, 29 years ago 🙂

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