2024 Image of the Year

I'm running a little late this year. No idea why. Normally by Christmas I'm down to a dozen or so finalists. As I start to write this on New Year's Day, I'm looking at 110 images that made the top of the list across the year. That's out of almost 1837 images edited for me, and not for a race or the community. If I believe Lightroom, there are 17851 images over all, but there are a bunch of virtual copies. Lightroom counts an image with a virtual copy as two images. There's probably an easy way of finding out how many virtual copies there are, and doing some math to find the actual number of images, but I don't know it.

It doesn't matter. Onwards. I don't think anyone really cares how many are colour or black and white, or were converted from one to the other. Or how many are film vs digital. Or how many are long exposures vs a normal exposure. (Just in case someone actually does care, I happen to know that exposure ranges from a very, very fast 1/3200 of a second, to just over two minutes.) Or how many are documentary for some reason, or are aspirations to art. Just at this very moment I'm looking at image file number 8137 from early April, of my white Sorel snow boots. I don't have the slightest idea why I would have taken the photo of them, let alone edited it, and have no memory of doing it. The ones before and after are no help in deciphering the mystery.

I went back and reread the 2023 Image of the Year post. I started the year wanting to think about images and books, and I did several books. People tend to gush a bit as they look at them, so I think that part has worked out well. I'll be doing more. (In a later thought I just had an idea for a book, and if I hustle, I get a Blurb discount.)  In past years I provided links to previous Image of the Year posts, but not this year. Call me lazy, if you must, but they're easy enough to find. Look in the blog roll over there on the right and open the dates, looking for January. The Image of the Year post will reveal itself.

The new thing in 2024 was to start printing my work in a dark room. Old school, enlarger, chemicals, and all. This is an entirely different experience, and leads to looking at photos in an entirely different way. Images look different in print than on a computer screen. Some are significantly better. Some turn out to be disappointments for one reason or another. Dust, hairs, or an image that isn't as good as I thought it was. Or maybe I haven't figured out how to make the print look good. It's more complicated than it first appears.

In fact, that kind of complicated my process for selecting image of the year. While reviewing the 3 star images wondering if any should be bumped up to 4 stars, I was also thinking if any of the film images should be printed. I'm not terribly good at doing two things at once, and no better at thinking about two things at once. Let's just say there was some backing and forthing.

Several of my finalists (I'm down to 20 at the moment) have been printed, and I'm thinking about printing several more. I need to keep in mind if I'm thinking of the print, or the digital version. One of the photos I printed looks amazing on paper (it's framed and on our mantlepiece) but the digital version isn't quite as nice. That's been true of several photos. 

Print images, either in a book or from a darkroom are likely to be the focus of my photography in the coming year. I've already been asking myself if I would print that scene if I press the shutter button. That leads to fewer photos being taken. Which might lead to fewer blogs, or fewer photos in the blogs. One of my readers asked a question about my photos and he is right. Watch for that change in photos edited from now going forward. Those who live in Calgary and want to see what I'm up to need only make a coffee date and ask me to bring along books or prints.

So what's the best from 2024, you ask? Out of the short list, there are all sorts of reasons to pick one or another. The one where I was all set up for a waterfall long exposure and I got mooned by a woman oblivious to my standing there. The most colourful with the fastest shutter speed doing interesting things to the texture of water, or the texture of water with a long exposure. A beautiful model who suggested such a fun photo session. The most amazing clear reflections in several years, or maybe the foggy reflection. Mist rising from the ocean to the tasteful seagull chorus. The awesome textures of black and white film. The one that smacked me upside the head with the sense of place and allusions to greater things. How can a close up photo of a polar bear not be wonderful. I could tell a story about any of theses.

Decisions, decisions. I think I'll go enjoy this glass of wine and carry out my fuzzy blanket substrate obligations to the demanding mammal.

2nd Runner Up

The photo most unlike anything I've ever done. One of the most technically difficult photos I've ever done, one where I had to think through exactly how the camera sees things, and how to use the settings to get what I wanted, and get the timing exactly right. Good thing there were lots of opportunities.

1st Runner Up

Who doesn't love polar bears? I have a bunch of nice photos of them, but I keep coming back to this one. I'm not likely to ever see another polar bear in the wild again.

Image of the Year

I know some of you are asking yourself if I've lost my grip. But no, I don't think so. The instant I saw this scene a whole bunch of things flashed through my mind, since we had just walked up a boardwalk where many of the slats were painted with memorials to people that had passed away.

If I'm working on photos of the idea of something, rather than just of something, then this one is the best I did all year.

December Image of the Month

These were all taken before December, but my rule for film is that when they're developed and digitized is what counts. Which is why one of the images that made it to the podium is from the Elk Lakes road trip back in October.

And yes, these are all film. More and more of my images where I'm trying to create art, are taken on film. Whatever art means. I've been reading a couple of Bruce Barnbaum books just lately, and that might be affecting how I think about photography.

2nd Runner Up

1st Runner Up

Lunch with Michelle.

It isn't always about a clear, sharp, technically perfect image. I printed this last night, and the print looks better.

Image of the Month

Who doesn't love that smile? 

The polar bear of anticipation

There he appeared, off in the distance. Strolling towards us at a polar bear pace, pausing every now and then to sniff the breeze. It's really quite majestic. Most of the people in the tundra buggy were out on the balcony, cameras clicking like mad. Towards the end, as the bear emerged from the bush onto what passes for a road, the woman beside me was muttering, "come to mama pretty bear, come to mama." That bear decided to stroll behind the buggy that was behind us, to our disappointment.

More of a scrappy Michelle

Here's more of the photos from the Michelle scrapyard session in early October. There are two different cameras and several different films. The images from this ramble are spread across several blogs over several months because of when I developed the film. I suppose if I were a considerate blogger, I'd have waited till they were all ready to be shared in one big blog, so you wouldn't have to think about the narrative, or work to see the flow. Then again, maybe there will be a book.

I remember going through that scrapyard with a buddy looking for some particular metal for something or other. The details are lost in time. I was not surprised to see the no trespassing signs. I'm pretty sure that with nice light, it would be a great setting for a photo session.

This is one of the lessons that some photographers find hard to learn. Putting something pretty in a picture doesn't necessarily make a good photo. Several of the photos of Michelle are not what most people would call glamorous. The photos from the visit to the scrapyard, for example. There's a vibe to it that I love. I've done some prints of those, and there's one I want to tweak some more.

I'm so fortunate to be friends with Michelle. Either of us can propose a photo idea, play with it a bit, and then make it happen. A good photograph should make the viewer feel something, or engage their attention so that they do more than glance at it. The B&W are more about texture and mood than anything else.

I was having coffee with one buddy who has appeared exactly once in all the photos published on my blogs. I'd love to do a photo session with her, but she doesn't like having her photo taken. I wouldn't do a made up glamour image for her, because that's not particularly her. I've got something else in mind, and I think it would be stunning, but I'm not holding my breath waiting for her to agree.

1.

2. This is what she was so interested in.

3. There are any number of science fiction movies where something emerges from a scrap heap. I waited, but alas.

4. During the ramble after the scrap yard. The location is obvious.

5. A not so obvious location, but along the Bow river. I've got a printing idea in mind for this one.

6. From the same scrapyard tour.

7. I know perfectly well this camera and lens flares when pointed at the sun or a really bright light, but I haven't figured out exactly when or where it will appear. I thought I had the camera in the shade of a telephone pole, and there wouldn't be a flare.

8. We really liked this faded red phone booth. The film captures that red, and her red hair perfectly. I admit to thinking about the Superman changing in a phone booth thing, starting with the jeans and raw sunlight look, and then emerging from the booth in an elegant gown, with some light modifiers to soften the light.

9.

10.

Of the Day

Driftwood (NZ)

Film Kodak Gold 200

From an autumn walk not far from home.

Linda and Newfoundland

Polar bears

Why ever didn't I publish this, and maybe I did

Which reminds me I haven't done anything like this for a while. Maybe in the new year...

90 days, or so ago. October 5.

During a visit to Canmore to meet up with my friend Susi and her husband Mike. I somehow hadn't known there was a river walk through the middle of town.

The dithering is underway

Yesterday was a good dither. It actually produced a result, in that I now know which images made the podium for December. I decided that while I might go out and seek images today, they would be unlikely to hit the podium. It's kind of grey outside, with light snow and crappy light.

And of course, one must consider this time of year is perfect for being a slug. After all, there's all the heavy duty digesting to do.

But image of the year remains elusive. There are more than 100 images that have been rated with 4 or 5 stars throughout the year. I like to review them and see if they still hold up. Lots of times I've reconsidered, and wondered what I was thinking. Trying to be fair, there are nearly 2000 images with 3 stars, meaning I've edited them, and they are not a race or a community association event. I like to review them to see if there are any overlooked gems.

It also gives me a chance to review the memories involved in making the images. For most of them I can remember where and when they were done, and who was with me, if anyone. That brings up the other parts of the event. The major events, of course, were the trips to Newfoundland and to Churchill with Linda, but there were lots of great rambles with Sean, and fun photo sessions with the best model ever, Michelle. Let's just say a large fraction of the photos have Michelle in them.

Some of you are acutely aware of how amazing it is that we can see images on a computer screen in astonishing detail, but many people take it totally for granted now. From getting to the place where the photo was made, capturing the image in the first place, the process to get the image to a state we can see it on screen, and then share it with anyone who cares to click on a link, the whole process is astonishing. 

There are people alive now who remember when digital computers were not a thing. I was ending high school about the time personal digital computers became available. The earliest incarnation of the iPhone was still a dream. To say they have progressed in leaps and bounds is the understatement of all time. 

And yet, it could all go away in a digital catastrophe or a forgotten password or outdated operating system. Even with multiple backups, it's possible for all the images on my hard drive to become unavailable. It wasn't so long ago I discovered an old zip drive buried at the bottom of a box of stuff. I've no idea what actual format that data is stored in, and I no longer have a computer that can physically connect to it, let alone read the data. I seriously doubt there was anything important on it. 

Or, think about what happens if I become unavailable for some reason. A few days ago a thief fleeing police crashed into several cars. A little girl was killed, and several are in the hospital with life threatening injuries. With all the self-entitled idiots out on the road, I'm acutely aware it could happen to me. Travelling in a car is one of the most dangerous things a Canadian can do. What then happens to my images?

All those backups in the cloud? On the cloud? Cloud-based? Whatever. I don't really believe in them. All cloud means is someone else's computer. Someone you don't know. Someone who says their computer is some number of 9's reliable. Someone who can be bought by some evil billionaire who wants to plunder the data. A computer that is connected to your computer via a system that is incomprehensible to most users.

Can you describe in detail what happens behind the scenes when you click on a link, and a fraction of a second later an image or page of text appears? I can think of two of my readers who could probably give it a good college try, and not be laughed at by those who really know. I spent much of my so-called career on the fringes of the IT industry, and I wouldn't want to have to try to provide such an explanation.

As I get older I am more and more liking the concept of "old-school". Film cameras rather than digital. Cars without an infotainment screen, although I'll admit to liking some of the other advances that came along, such as airbags, fuel injection, radial tires, and anti-lock brake systems. Books rather than movies. Prints rather than digital images, though I do take advantage of the digital world.

Books. If I look at the shelf over my desk, I can see several books of my images. Two of them are out on loan to someone who wants to pore over them and appreciate the images. Two of them are waiting for a lunch in a few weeks to go to a good home. A few copies are out in the world, available to anyone who cares to pick them up and turn pages. Which is something that nearly anyone can do. They don't even need to read English. As long as they're kept dry, those books will last decades, hopefully providing enjoyment to someone long after I'm gone. (As a hint, mom, the books are yours to do with as you please, but I'd be delighted to find you put them in the library of the place you live, once you don't need them any more.) We have books in our basement more than 100 years old, still perfectly readable, if somewhat fragile.

I've talked about film images. During the great film digitization project a couple years ago I found film negatives of Linda's family, taken before either of us were born. They got a new life in the digital world, and I could put them in the enlarger to get prints. I have a binder in the basement with over 100 sleeves of negatives. Those could live in that binder, in a box in the basement for decades, without any further care. If that box should somehow be put into an archival storage facility, the negative images would probably still be visible and available to whatever technologies exist several hundred years from now.

So where was a going with all this? Oh yes, thinking about image of the year. Still thinking. Still enjoying the memories. 

I sort of thought about trying to capture all the 3 star images into one giant image shrunk down to fit in the blog, but even doing the 100 or so 4 star images is beyond me.

This is one of the images that nearly made the podium for December.

This is the oddest image in the last little while. I no longer remember why I did this. Yes mom, that dish set from nearly 40 years ago is still in daily use.

Of the Day

Driftwood (NZ)

Film

Elk Lakes. I saw this view. I got the camera out, loaded the film, and was fine tuning the composition and settings when the fisherman walked into the lake. He looked like he wasn't going anywhere soon, so I waited for the ripples to settle down a bit, hoping he wouldn't move.

 

Linda

Newfoundland

Polar bears

Why ever didn't I publish this, and maybe I did

In fact, I'm almost certain I did. But nobody will complain about seeing a photo of Curtis. This was Christmas 2016.

90 days, or so ago

Being the photo at the top of my 'not blogged in 90 days' smart folder. This one happens to be October 3. Balloons in Calgary used to be a common thing. I'm not sure why it's really rare now, but I expect insurance is the main reason. This one landed in the school yard just off the green space across the road from us.