The Grand Tour 03: Kodachrome Slides from Hong Kong, 1950

Hong Kong was the first stop on my dad's ambitious Grand Tour westward en route home to Massachusetts. For a New England boy, this destination may have felt exotic, a hint of the Orient.  He arrived in Hong Kong on October 30, 1950, after a long flight via Manila. 

In 1950, Hong Kong was a crucial strategic outpost for the American and European powers. The brutal and terrible Chinese Civil War was over, and Mao Tse-tung's communist forces had defeated Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang army in 1949. China had become a closed society. Thousands of refugees had fled to Hong Kong before Mao sealed the borders. Hong Kong was still a British Crown Colony in the post-war period when the United Kingdom still maintained some of its overseas empire. 

You will see more than the normal number of photos below because they show a Hong Kong that has changed drastically, a city without skyscrapers and with rice terraces on the hillsides. It was dramatically less urbanized than it is now. Please click any picture to see more detail.  

Victoria Harbour

This is the view from Victoria Peak of Victoria Harbour, one of the world's great natural harbors. It is a spectacular view, accessible by the Peak Tramway. There are two aircraft carriers at anchor, a non-subtle hint to Mao Tse-tung to behave and not try to invade the colony.

The waterfront from Wan Chai or Kowloon was always dynamic. Thousands of refugees lived on these sampans. As of 2014, I did not see these floating communities. I love the elegant motor launch in the photo above. Behind it is one of the traditional ferries.

Kowloon

In 1950, Kowloon was a crowded area of low-rise building and slums, densely occupied by refugees. Crime was rampant.  

       

Hong Kong Island (Central and Wan Chai)

Electra House

Electra House (also called Mercury House) was Cable & Wireless Ltd.'s regional headquarters on Connaught Road Central.

Carnarvon Road

Hennessy Road, Wan Chai district

This ends our quick stopover in the Hong Kong of 1950. My dad only stayed a few days and proceeded on to Bangkok.

I posted some of his B&W photos earlier (click the link). 

He took these Kodachrome slides with a Leica IIIC camera with 5cm ƒ/2 Summitar lens. I think he used a GE PR-1 light meter at the time. I scanned the slides with a Nikon Coolscan 5000ED film scanner running under NikonScan 4.03 software. Many of the colors were off, but I corrected most using the automatic color function in Photoshop Elements 2024 software. 

From the Archives: 1990s Kodachromes from Vicksburg, Mississippi

Vicksburg, Mississippi, had so much interesting photographic material. I am glad I explored when Kodak's famous Kodachrome film was still available and could be processed by laboratories equipped to handle the special chemicals and techniques. I used Kodachrome until near its final end in the early 2000s. It is gone forever and will not be revived, despite the requests from old-timers. Here are some samples from the 1990s.

Fairground Street Bridge from top of an oil tank 

Rear stairs on Grove Street house pre-renovation (20mm ƒ/5.6 Russar lens)

Deconstruction, 807 Main Street

Chevrolet, Grove Street

Vicksburg depot and tracks used by Vicksburg Southern Railroad (VSOR)

View east to Mulberry Street from depot 2nd floor

I looked into the former depot (now housing the Old Depot Museum) and saw some youngsters. They said they rented an apartment on the second floor. They generously let me take some photographs from their balcony.

Lower Grove Street

Discount Barn, Levee Street

Former McKay Motors on Washington Street (150mm ƒ/4 Super-Takumar lens)

Cottages, 505 and 507 Fairground Street (200mm ƒ/4 Leitz Telyt-V lens)

Pearl Street view north (50mm)

This ends a short look back in time. I have hundreds of more Kodachrome slides of Vicksburg. Will I ever have time to scan them? 

South Park Neighborhood, Seattle, Washington (Sea 09)

Seattle's South Park district is a compact neighborhood tucked between the west side of the Duwamish Waterway and the bluffs that rise steeply to Highland Park. The main thoroughfare running north-south is 14th Avenue South. Several Boeing factories are next to the Duwamish, and Boeing Field is across the River. 

South Park (from Google Maps)

The earliest European settlers settled the bottomlands along the Duwamish river in the 1850s. In the late 1800s, South Park was an agricultural community of Italian and Japanese immigrants. Industry developed along the banks of the waterway in the 1920s, with Boeing's first factory just to the north. World War II brought rapid growth of aircraft at Boeing Field and shipyards along the river. In the 1960s, the area began to attract Hispanic immigrants. 

During my short time looking around in October 2025, I could see the strong Hispanic influence in the stores and restaurants. Here are some examples.

Unicorn Ranch, 9021 14th Avenue S

The owner here had some interesting sculpture on the Unicorn theme.

Multiservisios, 9011 14th Avenue S (21mm ƒ/4.5 Zeiss Biogon-C lens)

Multoservisios, 9011 14th Avenue S (50mm ƒ/2 Summicron-DR lens)

Werner's Auto Repair, 9001 14th Avenue S (50mm ƒ/2 Summicron-DR lens)

Werner's Auto Repair (25mm ƒ/4 Snapshot Skopar lens)

Time for lunch, 8709 14th Avenue S (25mm ƒ/4 Snapshot Skopar lens)

Closed shop (25mm ƒ/4 Snapshot Skopar lens)

Pros Tires, 8620 14th Avenue S (25mm ƒ/4 Snapshot Skopar lens)

This ends out too-rapid cruise through South Park. 

I took these photos on Kodak Portra 160 film exposed at EI=100. I used my Leica M2 camera with 21, 25, 35 and 50mm lenses (yes, I take too much equipment with me on an outing). 

The 50mm lens is the ƒ/2 Dual-Range (DR) Summicron from 1968. This is version 2 of the Leitz Summicron series. It was made as either a single range focus body or a more complicated dual-range version. I rarely use the close-up function but take the goggles with me in the camera bag. 

Many photographers love the way that these Version 2 lenses render their subjects, especially portraits. Mine has pristine coating and is totally clean inside. The contrast is a bit softer than modern lenses. 

50mm ƒ/2 Summicron-DR lens with close-up goggles to allow close focussing

This Summicron-DR lens will mount on all of the original film M bodies, the M3, M2, M4, M4-2, M4-P, and M6. I have read that it will not mount on the digital Ms, but do not have details. It will not mount properly on the Zeiss Ikon ZM camera, and the goggles would not line up with the viewfinder windows. 

The 25mm is the surprisingly competent little ƒ/4 "SnapShot" thread-mount lens from Voigtlander (made by Cosina). It is contrasty and, yes, of course it is "sharp."

The Leica IIIC Explores Olympia with Ektar 100 Film (Oly 23)

It was time to exercise my 1950 Leica IIIC camera. An overcast morning in May of 2025 provided perfect soft light for Kodak Ektar 100 film. I have found the Ektar to be a bit garish in bright sun, but in overcast, it brings out the colors. Also, my mid-century 50mm Summitar and Jupiter-8 lenses are lower contrast than modern multicoated optics. In gloomy light, the Ektar tends to look blue through the Summitar, so when I scan it, I pull down the blue curve a small amount. 

Gull Harbor Road

I met the gent who owns this funny little electric car. It is a post-1979 Comuta-Car. Sebring, Florida–based Sebring-Vanguard made the original CitiCar from 1974-1977. Commuter Vehicles from California bought the design and manufactured the Comuta-Car from 1979 to 1982. Eight 6-volt lead-acid batteries supply power for the electric motor. The fellow said his purple car does run.

I think Toyota manufactured this little Chevrolet. It did not look too derelict. 

46th Avenue Northeast

Bigfoot is awaiting

This is a nice traditional wood barn. But beyond it is a modern steel building. I like the textures and patina of wood. I might have photographed the elusive Bigfoot.

Shinckle Road Northeast

The little coffee stand at 3525 Shinckle Road has been unused since at least 2022. It was originally on this lot because the street address on the door is correct. The A-frame house has a lot of roof area. This type of design works well in a locations with heavy snowfall, but that does not apply to Olympia.

Lilly Road

Hmmm, I could clean off the mildew and convert this bus into a camper. 

Slightly rough house, Lilly Road

West Bay Drive

Detroit iron in storage shed near Tugboat Annie's Restaurant

Kiddie car at warehouse

Tech Note

I took these photographs on Kodak Ektar 100 film with my Leica IIIC camera and a 5cm ƒ/2.0 Leitz Summitar lens. This is a 7-element coated lens designed before WWII. This lens is a rare one with no haze or scratches in the coating. The camera and lens have been to four five continents and served the family for 75 years. How many other consumer goods can claim such a service life? I measured light with a Sekonic L318 light meter.

Leica IIIC and 5cm Summitar lens in extended position.
The large front glass is known for having a soft coating, but this one is still pristine.

Issue: When I used this Summitar lens on a Leica IIIG camera, the resolution was distinctly better than when mounted on my old IIIC. Also, the right side of each frame is out of focus. It is difficult to see the problem on the scale of internet display. Something is amiss with the lens mount. Some technician a long time ago may have lost some shims, and the mount is not quite correct. But it could take a lot of labor to get it right, so this IIIC will become a glass case display. I have more than enough 35mm cameras to keep me occupied. And I can use the Summitar lens on the more modern Leica M bodies.