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135 film

photographic film format provided in a cartridge, also known as 35 mm film from the width of the film strip; most common analog (chemical) film used during the era of analog photography by both amateur und professional photographers

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 23, 2026
Entity authorityQ1051557 ↗
Source-derived summary

135 film, more popularly referred to as 35 mm film or 35 mm, is a format of photographic film with a film gauge of 35 millimetres (1.4 inches) loaded into a standardized type of magazine (also referred to as a cassette or cartridge) for use in 135 film cameras.

The term 135 was introduced by Kodak in 1934 as a designation for 35 mm film specifically for still photography, perforated with Kodak Standard perforations. It quickly grew in popularity, surpassing 120 film by the late 1960s to become the most popular photographic film size. Despite competition from formats such as 120, 828, 126, 110, and APS, it remains the most popular film size today.

The size of the 135 film frame with its frame's aspect ratio of 2:3 has been adopted by many high-end digital single-lens reflex and digital mirrorless cameras, commonly referred to as "full frame". Even though the format is much smaller than historical medium format and large format film, being historically referred to as miniature format or small format, it is much larger than image sensors in most compact cameras and smartphone cameras.

The engineering standard for this film is controlled by ISO 1007 titled '135-size film and magazine'.

History

35 mm still cameras

The 135 film size is derived from earlier still cameras using lengths of 35 mm movie film, which had the same size but with different perforations. The 35 mm film standard for motion picture film was established in Thomas Edison's lab by William Kennedy Laurie Dickson. Dickson took 70 mm film stock supplied by George Eastman's Eastman Kodak Company.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “135 film” is photographic film format provided in a cartridge, also known as 35 mm film from the width of the film strip; most common analog (chemical) film used during the era of analog photography by both amateur und professional photographers. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through film, photographic and format, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewBest approached as a cultural-object dossier: authorship and date matter, but circulation and reception often explain the wider significance. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1934, 1007—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1934. For this dossier, film, photographic and format is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “photographic film format provided in a cartridge, also known as 35 mm film from the width of the film strip; most common analog (chemical) film used during the era of analog photography by both amateur und professional photographers” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1051557. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1934 and 1007.

Critical limits

Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “135 film”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow 135 film primary sources, 135 film archive and film research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “135 film”?
  2. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
  3. Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “135 film” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.