Last week I posted my favorite camera of 2023. The Holga started it all for me so this post is for my favorite Holga photographs of 2023. I will never master the Holga because it has a mind of it's own which makes it so darn fun. Like a toddler who tells you who's the boss.
The series that immediately comes to mind is my Chicago trip over the summer to attend their Pride event. The year before I went to New York. Whenever I can I show support for their community so it was a good excuse to go to Chicago. The morning of the event it rained and rained and rained. News flash! Every time I go to Chicago the heavens open up, and it rains.
When the rain began I was in Grant Park so I waited it out under an outdoor umbrella. It was then that I decided not to go to Pride. I know right. The rain left behind an amazing sky so I walked along the river to Adler Planetarium. It was quiet, and it smelled great, and I thought yeah, no; no people today.
My Holga was loaded with Cinestill 800 which is why I have so many lovely light leaks. A couple months prior to my trip I had spent a small fortune on eBay to purchase a limited edition Lomography LCA+ that was brand new in shrink wrap; 20+ years in age. I loaded a roll of Scala 50 to test it out. It worked perfectly. The only black and white non-Holga image in this gallery belongs to the LCA+ which really shows off the dramatic sky. Otherwise, all Holga. Here are my favorite Holga images of 2023. Click to view larger; galleries and slide shows are cropped.
