I’ve written numerous posts and a page about the delights of finding exposed, undeveloped film in the cameras and kit I find at auctions or estate sales…and here’s another one!
Latest discovery:
A roll of Kodak Kodacolor 400 film found in a vintage Konica T3 AutoReflex 35mm single-lens-reflex (SLR) camera, which I bought at an estate sale in Greenwich, Connecticut. Kodacolor film is notorious for aging badly. It is [was] an inexpensive, consumer film product, intended for a short cycle of production > purchase > exposure > developing, so that everyday people could buy it and use it immediately, with satisfactory results. Kodacolor’s emulsion was not robust enough for professional photography, or built to last. Which is why old, forgotten, neglected rolls like this usually deliver poor results.
BUT, however, nevertheless, and in spite of all that — this particular roll of exposed Kodacolor film must have been stored away from light, heat, and humidity — the shots look great! Even better, the previous owner of the camera seems to have been a better-than-average photographer, who loved his/her children, as well as what like their friends or cousins. The photograph I chose for the featured (header) image of this post is my personal favorite from the roll: a creepy doll doing gymnastics below an easel, with a glimpse of the girl’s smile behind it. The rest of the roll is just nice portraits of the children playing outside and posing inside the house.
Here are nine photos from this roll of Kodacolor 400 35mm film found in a Konica T3 camera. They are presented straight from processing* without editing or enhancement, because the film didn’t show much (any?) dye-deterioration or color-shift!
Notice: although this roll of film is likely 20+ years old, which means the children in the photos are in their late twenties or early thirties by now, I am aware that people can be upset to discover images of themselves online without permission. So, if you are one of, or know any of, the people in these photographs, please contact me directly! Once your identity is confirmed, I will be happy to provide you with the scan files, original negatives, and remove any or all of these photos from the site, at your discretion…
Only the featured/header image will be posted to the Cameras+Films Instagram feed.
*This roll of 135 (35mm) film developed & scanned by our friends Nice Film Lab
Hope you enjoyed these “found-film” images!
[C+F] Cameras+Films
What happens when we find undeveloped film? We develop it, of course!
Here at Cameras+Films, there’s always a piqued-curiosity, vaguely-voyeuristic, thrill-of-discovery moment whenever exposed, undeveloped film is found in an old camera. And, as you can imagine, our discovery is followed by impatient anticipation and speculation when the film is sent out to be developed:
- Will someone out there know anyone in the images we post from the roll?
- Will there be one or more interesting views into one or more lives on the roll?
- Will there be something myopic, historic, epic, simplistic, or even artistic?
- Will there be at least one or two good photographs, a whole roll of bad ones, or nothing at all on the film?
In any case, we always end up asking, “why did they leave the film in this camera without developing it? Did something happen to the photographer, so that the film was never developed? Or did they stop using the camera and simply forget about the film inside it? No way to know for sure, but it’s fun to speculate and wonder…
So, to satisfy your curiosity and ours, we are pleased to share images from any film we find in the vintage cameras we buy/use and sell. When available and relevant, we’ll share information about the camera-owner, the person who most likely exposed the film, and any items of interest which came with the camera…
Cameras+Films 