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A front came through yesterday, bringing cooler weather and some spectacular atmospheric conditions to our neck of the woods. As the late afternoon sun dipped below the distant tree line, the tops of the taller pines appeared to be on fire. This happens every once in a while and I never tire of seeing it. But the scene was particularly memorable last evening. I happened to be pruning some maples but I had the relatively ancient Canon Powershot G11 with its groovy little CCD sensor in my pocket. I captured some 10MP raw files at an ISO of 800. The combination of the older CCD, the low resolution and poor dynamic range, produced a file I am especially pleased with.

Revisiting the aesthetic of the CCD imaging sensor

To my eye, there is something rather appealing about the aesthetic produced by older digital imaging sensors -- qualities that have held up well over the years. The lower pixel count, the presence of noise at even the base ISO, the greater overall depth of field, the colors produced by the CCD. With the perspective afforded by the passing of 20 years, it is perhaps now easier to overlook what we once viewed as technical limitations, since if we need greater technical perfection it is certainly available to us with more modern cameras. Another thing I had completely forgotten about is the fact that the sensors in these older point-and-shoot cameras were often in the 4:3 aspect ratio rather than the now more common 3:2 frame.

Digital imaging from the turn of the century

About twice a year I take a day or two to really dig in and verify that my photo archive is in good shape. I spot check some of the individual image files, replace old hard drives, add new capacity, all of that stuff. Redundancy, redundancy, redundancy. 

And, of course, I get sucked into the vortex of reliving old memories. It is just part of the process, but maybe the most enjoyable part, if I'm honest. Inevitably, too, I find a hidden gem or three, and then lose more time futzing around to see if I can extract any more quality from the creaky old files by using modern software. Often enough, I can, which is pretty cool.

What is also interesting is that certain cameras and lenses come to the fore as particularly special. In my case, an early favorite was the Canon Powershot G2 from 2001. On the one hand, it is a bit sobering to think that I've been using digital cameras for over twenty years now! On the other hand, it turns out that the 4 megapixel CCD sensor on the G2 was pretty sweet, and the files hold up really well even today. Who knows, the G2 could be a cult vintage digital camera among the cognoscenti.

The image above was taken at Port St. Joseph in the Florida panhandle. It is an amazing place to visit during the cooler months of the year. During the hot and humid summer months, I'd honestly rather be in an air conditioned environment editing my photographs.