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Welcome to Analog America!

Thanks for checking in. Film photography is my passion and requires a great deal of work and dedication. The ever shrinking supply of film, chemicals, and darkroom time makes one want to give up and turn digital. For me, digital photography just isn’t much fun. Working in a darkroom for 6 hours to get that one perfect print is just exactly where I want to be.

There are some encouraging signs, though. There are still several healthy manufacturers of film, including Kodak, Ilford, Foma, and several others, dedicated to the craft. Film Ferrania, in Italy, is working towards resurrecting their color film lines, many people are looking forward to a film revival. There are still thousands of film photographers, including many young people learning the craft. I expect to continue on for decades.

Analog America is a project I’ve been working on now for several years. There are many places in the US that have been forgotten by commerce. the Interstate system, and plain indifference. It has been my goal these last few years to document these places in the best way I know how…on film. As I add to this blog, you will see I try to concentrate on details, rather than the landscape. There are millions of pictures on the internet of the Grand Canyon, but there aren’t nearly as many of the flora and fauna of that tiny little state park tucked 100 miles from the nearest interstate. Want a skyline of NYC? You won’t find it here. Instead, you’ll see the broken down post-war housing in a small town in Alabama.

Comments, stories, anything really, are always welcome here. Feel free to post comments or email me at any time. Know of a great little place to visit and photograph somewhere? Throw me a line.

Oatman, Arizona July 2023

July really isn’t the best time of year to visit Oatman Arizona. It was 110 degrees, the trees were sweating. It’s one of my favorite places to visit while out Vegas way.

For what is essentially a ghost town, there are a surprising number of people that live and work here. The tourist trade is thriving, even in the heat, long miles away from civilization. Once a gold mining town, it was named after Olive “Annie” Oatman, who has a story all her own.

Wild donkeys roam the streets, a relic of the old mining days. They are a little people-wary, but friendly enough if you have a little snack for them. It is illegal to harass them in any way. On old Route 66 on the way to Oatman, many of them gather in the road, they aren’t easily moved. Patience is necessary.

Oatman has a jail, now a little museum of Mining Town Justice. Of course justice was pretty much whatever the Sheriff said it was.

Mining built Oatman, it also destroyed it when the veins ran out. There is a little “mine” you can go in, it’s not very large, but it gives you an idea.

Being a tourist town, it has all the glitter and kitch you would expect. There are several shops, though, that have some very interesting things. Mostly art works by locals. There is also a small (and crowded) candy shop. My favorite place, though, is Dottie’s Bar. Talk about a hole in the wall, with ice cold beer (two choices) and cash only. I didn’t get a picture of Dottie’s this trip. I did have a beer.

Pretty much everything you need or want.

Who doesn’t need one of these? Mining is dirty business.

That’s all for now. Part 2 will be coming along soon, shot on better film. These were all shot on long expired Fuji Sensia 100. I hope you enjoyed this brief glimpse of one of my favorite places.

Valley of Fire

One of my favorite places in the Las Vegas area. It’s hard to describe, and pictures don’t do it justice. One of the most surreal landscapes I’ve ever visited.

**Sandstone laid 150 million years ago and carved by time**

There is much to do and see in the Valley of Fire. Hiking, picnics, quiet contemplation. Snakes, lizards, desert tortoises, and many different birds can be seen, if you know where to look. Pop up storms surprise, washing out roads and drenching the desert landscape. One came out of no where this day.

One can imagine the Anasazi teens scrabbling on the rocks here, drawing ancient graffiti. You’ll see many stick figures with spears, animal figures, and religious symbols carved into the rocks all over this park.

I always see at least one lizard when I visit here. I love these little beasties, so I give them plenty of space. I had a 50mm lens on my camera for this little guy, so couldn’t get too close. Please, don’t disturb the animals here, life is tough enough for them, what with desert hawks constantly swooping on them.

There is a lot more plant life in the Valley than you can see driving by or flying over. Spring time is especially nice, when the desert flowers bloom.

When the storm clouds roll in, you can feel it and smell it. The desert landscape goes silent, it knows the damage these storms cause. Human footprints are erased quickly here.

My daughter loves to explore here, she is an amateur herpetologist. She can spot them under a rock from 50 feet away.

Thank you for visiting the Valley of Fire with me. All shots taken with Konica Autoreflex TC, 50/1.7 Hexanon on Fuji Velvia 100.

Nipton, CA

Continuing the Fallout New Vegas trail, next stop, Nipton, California. In the game, Caesar’s Legion controls the town. Lottery losers hang from crucifixes, smoldering tires surround them. You can buy lottery tickets in Nipton, but if you lose, you really lose.

**A giant octopus, in the desert? Or an alien…**

Nipton is just as quirky in real life as it is in the game. I’m sure that’s why they chose it. There are plans for a large cannabis grow facility here, though it seems that it’s not moving very quickly. A number of artists have contributed to the town, it’s well worth the hop off Interstate 15. I’d settle here in a heartbeat, as long as they have good internet.

**Kinda reminds you of Korea, circa 1979…**

**I’m watching you, Wazowski. Always watching.**

I hope you enjoyed Nipton as much as I did. All photographs were taken with Konica Autoreflex TC, Hexanon 50/1.7, on Fuji Sensia 100.

Shoshone, CA and Dublin Gulch

Whenever I travel, I always do side trips. This past November, I decided to hit the south end of Death Valley and into the Mohave. Shoshone CA, population 31, is the southern gateway to Death Valley, with the last gas station before Furnace Creek. Within walking distance of the station is a little place called Dublin Gulch. Sometime between 1870 and 1910, silver and tin miners set up shop here.

These miners were obviously a resourceful bunch. They didn’t build little shacks like in some other places in the area, they built homes in the rocks.

Some of these little homes were just one room. Others were a little fancier, with multiple rooms, one even multi level. Some, like this one, also had stone work walls.

They built these homes with whatever materials they could find or afford. This one managed to scrape up a little red paint.

Stove pipes for those cold winter months. Unfortunately, they didn’t have central air…

There is very little vegetation in this area. There is also very little rain, but there is actually a river that runs nearby, the Amargosa. The tiny river is very important to the ecology of the area and in many places it is underground.

The miners ate a lot of canned goods and left their remains all around this little gulch. The area is private property, so if you visit, please be kind and leave it the way you found it. The property owners are very nice to let visitors explore this area.

Unfortunately, a lot of visitors have left graffiti and trash around the area, so the owners locked up all of the homes so you can no longer go inside most of them.

Some views of the surrounding area. Surprisingly, I didn’t catch any signs of wildlife on this visit. Normally I would see at least a lizard or two. Ant mounds were about it.

All B&W photos were shot on Film Ferrania P30 Alpha, a new film out from the resurrection of the old Ferrania Film works in Italy. This film was famous for it’s use in the Italian film industry, many famous films from the 1920’s through 60’s were shot on P30. Developed in HC110 dil B. Color shots are Fuji Sensia 100. The film was expired and I only got a handful of shots that were marginally presentable.

Goodsprings NV, Part 2

The Ghost Town Cafe sits next door to the Pioneer Saloon. Ice cold Sarsaparilla on tap, and pretty darn good eggs. You’ll almost always see a local in here.

More pictures of the Goodsprings Cemetery. All pictures shot on Kodak Plus X at ISO 125. Konica Autoreflex TC, Hexanon 50/1.7. November 2019.

Farewell to my favorite Vegas watering hole…for now.

Goodsprings, NV

One of my favorite places to visit whenever I come to Vegas. The Pioneer Saloon was built in 1913 mainly from a Sears and Roebuck kit. Bullet holes are in a wall from a poker game gone bad. Featured in the famous video game Fallout: New Vegas, as the “Prospector” Saloon, it still gets fair traffic from gamers. It was also where actor Clark Gable waited on word from his wife’s plane crash nearby.

Whiskey is the real claim to fame for the Pioneer. Thousands come yearly to wet their whistle.

Hundreds of whiskey barrels are stored outside under cover, and patrons can buy a barrel for themselves and come partake anytime they want.

Pioneer antiques are scattered all around the Pioneer Saloon and the General Store next door. I like to think of this as a work station from the Fallout game where you can reload ammo.

What’s an Old West town without a cemetery? The Goodsprings Cemetery is pretty barren, but it’s a pretty interesting walkabout. I didn’t see any scorpids or Powder Gangers, but I did catch a glimpse of a guy wearing a checkered coat running away…

The nearby school house, also built in 1913. Giant Mantis swarm the area, so be a little wary…

The town is mostly ruins now, but a few people still live here. I coudn’t find Doc Mitchell’s house.

The town of Goodsprings used to grow much of the food for nearby Las Vegas, but when Vegas got too big, Goodsprings basically shut down. The one hotel burned down and all that’s left is a dusty old saloon and general store. If you come to Vegas, it is a must see. Stop in, have a Sunset Sasparilla, and enjoy the history of the place. Just keep an eye out for Caesar’s Legion…they play rough.

All photos taken with Konica Autoreflex TC, Fuji Sensia 100. Copyright November, 2019. .

Photographic meanderings…

My name is Mike Howard, and these are my photographic meanderings.

I never go anywhere without a camera, whether it’s one of my many film cameras or my phone. When I travel for purposes of photography, my preference is film. I’ve been using film in one form or another for over 40 years, since I was about 12 with my first crappy 110 camera from K-Mart. I’ve also always had a darkroom, owning a camera without a darkroom is like owning a leash without a puppy.