January – Mendocino, California – Shot on LomoChrome Purple XR 100-400, which is designed to give unpredictable color which leans toward, well, purple. This was one of my last photos before the pandemic and it was made with a new (for me) Nikon F from 1967 with a Nikor-H 28mm lens from 1962. The Nikon is unmetered, the recommended ISO for the film is anywhere from 100 to 400, so it was the perfect opportunity to totally guess on exposure. It is also a reimagined image, as my initial presentation was more panoramic.

February – Boonville, California – This was also shot before the pandemic, with the Nikon, on Kodak Tri-X. The Nikon F is basically the model for every SLR and DSLR that came after it, arguably the most significant camera of the 20th Century. I borrowed one in high school and hadn’t put my hands on one since. It feels – and sounds – exactly as I remember.

March – Stockholm, Sweden – This is a reach-back to my first European trip in 2010. I walked right past the bench, but fortunately turned around after ten or so steps. I had a 16×20 print before I saw the cigarette butt. It’s gone now – the wonders of digital.

April – McCloud, California – This is one of my few successful attempts at view camera movement – front rise to keep the film plane, lens plane, and subject plane parallel (avoiding the pyramid effect from pointing the camera up). If black & white was made for lines, then this church was the perfect subject. Sinar F1, Caltar II-N 150mm lens, T-Max 100.

May – Jamestown, California – I took this the morning after a Bonnie Raitt concert. She was amazing, as always. You can tell by the muted shadows that direct sunshine had not yet reached the subject (I did, however, rework this to provide a little more contrast). GW670III, Ektar 100.

June – Glenn Ellen, California – These stairs are part of the ruins of Jack London’s house, which burned down before he could occupy it. It’s now called Jack London State Historical Park. I’ve always presented this as a square image, with the left side cropped out, but maybe the rectangle is more balanced. I half expect the ghost of London to emerge from behind the rocks. GW670III, T-Max 100.

July – Humbolt Bay National Wildlife Refuge – I spent the day just south of Eureka, California, photographing the refuge, the bay, and old buildings like this while Suz was doing one of her quilt retreats. Canon EOS 3, Sigma 400mm APO Tele-Macro lens, Kodak Portra 400.

August – Redding, California – Here’s another Bonnie Raitt photo, taken the afternoon before her concert at the Redding Civic Auditorium (where we learned, to our delight, that the alphabet starts with “X”). I had previously presented this in color, but converted it to black & white for this calendar. I like them both. Fuji GSW690III (the wide-angle 6x9cm version of the GW670III), Ektar 100.

September – Kelseyville, California – These British phone booths outside an antique store are now probably each in someone’s garden. The scene was such a nice combination of shape, color, and incongruity that I couldn’t resist. It’s also my only successful large-format color photo. Sinar F1, Caltar II-N 150mm lens, Ektar 100.

October – Fort Bragg, California – This goes back a few years, prior to the Pudding Creek Trestle restoration. Another early morning outing, under overcast sky allowing for the soft shadows. GW670III, T-Max 100.

November – Dubrovnik, Croatia – This didn’t make the cut for last year’s European calendar. I reworked it, giving it brighter highlights and cropping a little tighter. Fuji X-Pro2, Fujinon Super EBC 90mm lens.

December – Skagway, Alaska – This is from our first cruise. I had been alternating color and black & white in my one camera and fortunately was on color when I spotted this rusty stove at a salmon bbq. GW670III, Ektar 100.