A Return to Royal
Revisiting the Historic Old City of Guelph
I have always liked the historic old city of Guelph, Ontario. It’s a beautiful mix of historic buildings and a unique layout that is only fully realised in Goderich, Ontario. I first started exploring the old city back in 2005, and during the pandemic, I rediscovered why I like the area so much. So for the final roll in the 2025 edition of 12MonthsOnFilm, I took my Pentax MX, Maxxum 7, and D750 into the city for a solo photo walk earlier in the month. For film, I had a roll of Kentmere 200 loaded in the MX, rated at ASA 200 and developed in 510-Pyro; and a roll of HP5+, rated at ASA 320 in the ‘7, developed in Classic MQ. I also took along the D750 with the 24mm f/2.8 lens mounted.
I first discovered Guelph's historic downtown back in 2005, when I was house-sitting for my Opa. It was a far cry from what it is today. Dark, run-down, and a bit scary. Ever since then, I have seen many changes, thanks to the local government and businesses taking pride in their city. Today, there are far more active than abandoned buildings, and plenty of new businesses opening up.
I pretty much spent the whole time wandering around downtown. I combined the trip with a haircut at the Village Cigar & Barber Shop. I parked at the Market Parkade (yes, paid parking, but it puts my car under cover and under surveillance). I got in about an hour before my appointment. I focused first on the Pentax MX, wanting to get that roll done and dusted. The day was perfect, bright skies, cold crisp air, and it was stunning. After the cut, I went with the D750 and Maxxum 7, then headed to Baker Street Station for lunch and home.
The biggest problem with wandering through Guelph is that it's hard to find a real route; everything twists and turns, then doubles back on itself. But splitting the walk into two, I could enjoy working with each camera on its own. It was great to get a Maxxum 7 into my toolkit finally, and I’m happy to report the camera works as it should! It gives me another alternative to my ‘9 and 600si.
And that wraps it up for 2025. I never intended to have another post here at the very end of the year. But I decided to include the 12MonthOnFilm Roll in some post. And since the blog was all jammed up even into January at this point, I knew I had something on either Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve. So I put it here. I hope you had a wonderful holiday season, however you celebrated, and all the best for 2026!
Nice images. When is next year meetup in Toronto? I had a wedding to attend last year. Happy New Year to you and your family. Lou.
A fun read, Alex. Thank you! I enjoy the Canada-centric topics; dad was born in Montreal and grandad in Hamilton. As for 35mm and MF film photography, I've been pretty busy over the past year making photos, but awful with developing the rolls. At present, I think I have over 60 rolls to process (!!!). I'm on the road at the moment, but my two New Year's "resolutions" are to develop said rolls of film and finish construction of a darkroom in my garage. Wishing you a very Happy New Year. Looking forward to what you have to say in 2026.