New York City’s coldest winter in decades thawed into mud, froze again, then gave way to the hottest spring of my lifetime. Given the irreality of both seasons, you will find a mix of urban grunge and analog dreamscapes, mostly in color with a few black-and-white shots.
All photos were taken on the Pentax MX 35mm camera loaded with Kodak UltraMax 400 film.
You may contact me for high-resolution versions of each image. You can also view 100s of more shots from around the world here. […]
Walking around Washington DC for the first time ever, I was simultaneously impressed that this was the purported center of the world, and disappointed that it was the purported center of the world. All museums are free, the city is walkable, there is urban grunge worth exploring and photographing, yet many sites were closed (reflecting pool, much of the White House lawn, etc.) and there was little sense of that imperial permanence America wishes so badly to project.
But perhaps that is the point. I expected more military presence (especially under the Trump administration, which values this aesthetic even as it systematically loses every war), and its lack was almost gaudy. Monuments, crowds imperturbed, and liberal amenities are preferred over open militarism – which becomes stronger by implication. The lesser-known corners (or even just angles) of Washington, DC are endless, which was obvious even though I only spent a short time there.
All photos were taken on a Pentax MX loaded with Kodak Ektacolor Pro 400. In my quest for a better hit rate, I’ve settled on more expensive film to calm my trigger finger. Total cost was $98 to buy film and develop these photos – or, a bit over $3 per shot, after averaging in discarded shots. That is a trade I will take. […]
It’s almost been a year since I picked up a Pentax MX and tried my hand at analog photography. I am now on my second Pentax after the first broke down, which means that, after tallying up the costs of development, maintenance, film, and other purchases, each push of the shutter averages out to ~$1.25. If, like me, your hit rate is low, the true cost (after discarding unwanted shots) can run higher. Such math isn’t great, but having to pay for every photo has turned me into a more mindful photographer, not only in terms of subjects, but also through a richer understanding of the camera itself. The randomness of analog can be exciting—you never know what you will get, and sometimes, you don’t have much of a say in what it is.
In a worst-case scenario, with equipment breakdowns and a poor hit rate, a decent photographer “only” spends $5 per shot. That might sound like a lot, but relative to what? Each $5 brings something new into the universe, a snapshot of a time and place which ceases to exist as soon as the photo is taken. Contrast this with a typical $5 spent on consumption, which usually removes things from the world under the guise of addition.
These photos were taken on a Pentax MX in Pittsburgh, Nebraska, Minneapolis, Virginia, New York City, and Los Angeles during the second half of 2025.
You can view my “Digital Grunge” series here as well as 100s of my best photos over the years.
Although I have been taking photos for some time, there was no real purpose behind it until Joel Parrish and I decided to shoot our first film—”From There To There: Bruce Ario, The Minneapolis Poet”. Today, I am in the habit of carrying a camera on my walks, which has better attuned me to my surroundings and creates an obligation to document them.
These photos are arranged chronologically, beginning in 2009/10, when I was studying abroad in China and Greece. There is almost nothing from this period, despite having taken 100s of photos, as they are not worth looking at. The ones that do appear are poorly preserved and/or damaged. In all, there are a couple dozen photos between 2009 and 2021 that were good (or at least ‘interesting’) enough to display—a hit rate which suggests my lack of interest in photography then. […]
