Top 10 Film and Digital Pictures of 2024
2024 was a busy year for me (getting a Ph.D.! Moving!) but I still managed to go out and get some good pictures on my Fujifilm X-S10 and Canon AE-1P, plus some sessions with a friend’s Pentax 645. Here are the top ten from my film and digital shooting in 2024.
Film Pictures
Film #10: Celebration
Canon AE-1P, Cinestill BWXX
I noticed this woman carrying a big bundle of balloons across OSU’s main campus one day and I just had to snap a picture. The balloons were, of course, bright red and silver in color but I still like how the more muted black and white of the film rendered them. It’s got layers.
Film #9: Sun Flowers
Canon AE-1P, Harman Phoenix 200
Harman released an experimental color film this year and I had to try it out. While I was largely happy with the results, it is a fickle film to work with. This one shows off the halation and heavy grain of the film, not to mention the fun color of the greens and yellows. It’s not my favorite film but I did enjoy using it.
Film #8: Chopped
Pentax 645, Kodak Gold 200
I was ever so slightly disappointed with the quality of the scans from my (formerly) local lab when it came to the medium format film I shot on my friend Greg’s Pentax 645. Still, I was able to capture a few pictures I liked quite a bit, including this wash of brown.
Film #7: Snow Storm
Canon AE-1P, Cinestill BWXX
I love shooting snow in black and white, and I love shooting snow with slower shutter speeds to capture the motion of the snow falling. This picture came just as the night began and after about an hour of snowfall right outside my apartment. I knew it was a risk to take this kind of picture on film where I couldn’t check my outcome and adjust on the fly as I could with a digital camera. When I finally saw the developed picture I knew I got it just how I wanted.
Film #6: Horse Head
Pentax 645, Kodak Gold 200
In the same location, an old farm within a public park outside of Columbus, OH, as the previous Pentax pic on this list there was a small collection of beautiful horses. This one definitely thought I might have some food in my pockets, but I was happy to exploit that mistake to get up close and personal. For the second or third time using this camera/lens and trying to take an animal portrait, I’m very happy with the results. Again, Gold hits those browns delightfully.
Film #5: Adjusting Settings
Pentax 645, Ilford HP5
This is a picture of Greg, who got the Pentax from his father who used it for work. We had no idea if it was in working condition so we bought some cheap film and shot a roll. This picture and another one later in this list came from that experimental roll. It was working, obviously, and I really like the way the black and white film cut out some of the noise of the scene (that’s a shallow brook behind him and there was a lot of greenery around) to make for a really nice portrait.
Film #4: Flowers in the Sun
Canon AE-1P, Kodak Portra 400
There is nothing like Portra 400 for nature shots on a bright spring day. I just love the way it renders the greens here, and the backlit flowers feel like they’re glowing on this gorgeous film. I shoot like one roll of it a year during the spring, and damn if it doesn’t snap me out of the drab winter vibes immediately.
Film #3: Old Man on a Bench
Canon AE-1P, Kodak Portra 400
On the same day as the previous picture I saw this old man sitting on a bench at the park. I wanted to capture how the world was beginning to bloom around him and put him within a larger context than I often do. I like taking pictures of people from behind, too, because it somewhat universalizes them. It’s not a single person with a single face, it could be any number of old white men (in this case).
Film #2: There Goes the Sun
Canon AE-1P, Cinestill 400D
Not perfectly focused nor as still as I might have wanted, this picture still intrigues me because of the strange lighting and my friend, Keira, accidentally posing perfectly. This was on the day the total eclipse happened across much of the US including right by my old apartment. We were at a small bar with a lovely outdoor seating area and it was a really fun afternoon.
Film #1: Exploring
Pentax 645, Ilford HP5
This is a picture of the child of my friend Greg. I have many more pictures of them that I love but which show their face too clearly to be comfortable sharing here. Sorry! This one still rocks, I think, with the sun turning the canopy over them into a bright burst of light.
Digital Pictures
Digital #10: Camoflage
I went to a small wetlands research park in the middle of Columbus one day in late summer and happened upon a family of deer. I had a field day with them (and three of them will show up on this top 10 list), including this shot where one of the juveniles was behind a veil of tall grass. I like to experiment with focusing on the “wrong” things and sometimes it works out really well. I think it did in this case.
Digital #9: Some Pig
At the same farm as the horse from the film list there was this big boy who was squealing loudly as my friend and I went into the barn. He was standing on his hind legs with his head sticking up above the edge of the pen. I love the depth of the blacks in this picture contrasted with the bright surroundings and his pink nose. Plus those ears!
Digital #8: Clean and Repair
I’ve enjoyed walking around my former campus and taking pictures of the less academic things happening around. I happened to spot these two working on the roof of a nearby building and had to snap a few shots to see if I could make it into something. I think the various rectangles in the image contrasted with their organic non-straight-line forms and the tree branches sticking out at the bottom work really nicely together.
Digital #7: Casting About
I saw this guy fishing out in the ocean (I guess it’s really a large bay?) on the Connecticut shore in the late fall. The timing was just right for this fun shimmery reflection with the fisher in the middle of it and the rocks forming a small leading line out to him. Hope he caught something good.
Digital 6: Double Vision
I might never return to the Honda Wetland Research Area again now that I’ve moved away from Columbus but I really loved going there and seeing the wildlife like this white egret (crane? whatever) who was fishing in the small pond. The bright white contrasting with the dark foliage is amplified by the doubling of the bird in the reflection.
Digital #5: Papa Can You Ear Me?
The dad of the family of deer I saw in the research park was hidden for the first 3/4ths of my time with them. Eventually he stood and walked away from the small watering hole the family was walking around and I was able to capture this fun picture of him backlit to emphasize the fuzz of his horns and the thinness of his ears.
Digital #4: Historic Chester/Hadlyme Ferry
I went to Gillette Castle in early winter just a few weeks back and the best picture I took was this one. The ferry has been in operation since 1769 (nice) and can carry up to 9 cars! It was nearing sunset and the sky had this kind of cloud cover that usually annoys me because it cuts the light when I’m trying to shoot vivid colors but it really pops in black and white, I think.
Digital #3: Bad Fence
This fence was supposed to keep people out of the private part of the beach but somebody had clearly pried it open so it looked like more of an invitation to explore the cool inlet beyond. I love these colors, the majority of them feel like they could be at home in the summer but the deep background browns betray that the picture was captured in late fall.
Digital #2: Opening Night
This deer wasn’t actually part of the other family I saw in the same park. I saw this one first as I was walking on the path around the small pond. We saw each other and the deer kept walking slowly away from me, though it didn’t leave the path which allowed me the opportunity to capture this picture. I could complain about the deer not facing me or being more separated from the foliage on the side of the path which would create a nicer frame in the dark part in the center. But also, who cares. I had a very nice time taking these pictures and I’m happy with the outcomes.
Digital #1: Take Flight
You may have been able to notice that I like using silhouettes in my pictures. This one is the best such picture I took this year. Some kind of bird took flight at just the right moment from this big old tree at blue hour just after the sun had set. I love the stillness of the tree, all perfectly in focus, with the slight blur of the bird in flight. And the sky having two beautiful colors in the background just makes everything pop.
