KONO! Liebe is a 135 colour negative film, 36 exposures, ISO 200, C-41 process. It comes pre-exposed with bright red hearts.
How the picture looks
The hearts sit on top of an ordinary colour frame — the photograph stays properly exposed and sharp, and the pattern reads as light rather than as something drawn on. KONO! make their films in small batches, so the intensity and placement of the pattern change from frame to frame.
What to shoot on it
A film with one unmistakable subject: a date, a wedding, Valentine’s Day, a portrait of someone close, any roll meant as a gift. Outside that context hearts in the frame will look out of place — this is not a general-purpose film.
How to shoot it
Like any colour ISO 200: daylight, meter at box speed. Since part of the frame is already taken, leave space and do not hang the composition on small details in the corners.
Processing and scanning
Ordinary C-41 at any lab. Ask for no automatic correction when scanning: the software may read the red as a white-balance error.
How it compares
KONO! themselves make a whole series of films with an applied pattern, several of which are already in this catalogue. Liebe differs in that its pattern is figurative rather than abstract — which is exactly what makes it narrow.
