The reception of kodachrome sheet film in American commercial photography

Abstract

This essay examines the reception of Kodachrome sheet film, a color transparency material intended for professional use, in American commercial photography. This film was a large-format version of the original Kodachrome, which was first introduced in 1935 as a 16 mm color movie film for amateur use. Kodachrome was the first fully successful single-base, continuous-tone, full-color film invented and manufactured in America, a major technological advance in color reproduction. The sheet version of Kodachrome, known as Kodachrome Professional, was released in late 1938, then taken off the market in favor of Ektachrome in June 1951. Though not as steeped in popular acclaim or nostalgia as 35 mm Kodachrome slide film-which was available from 1936 until 2009-Kodachrome sheet film played a central role in facilitating and encouraging the use of color photographs in print media and in consumer advertising, helping to pave the way for the ubiquity of color photographs in today’s world.