It’s been a bit of time since I had the chance to do a solo photo walk through Toronto. I had a week off from work and decided to make the most of it. I had to come into the city to do a run at Downtown Camera to get film and chemistry for later in the summer, and decided to make the most of it by doing a bit of a walk through some of my favourite parts of the old town. But it wasn’t my usual route, so I decided to do something a little different in getting around. Despite the heat this summer, it wasn’t too bad as I headed in early enough and took my time to ensure I didn’t overheat. Plus, I had water with me and a lighter loadout. In the camera bag, I had my Nikon D750 with the 35mm f/2D lens, the Minolta Maxxum 5 with the 24mm f/2.8 loaded with FilmFerrania P33, which I developed in BelliniFoto Hydrofen, and finally my Rolleiflex 2.8F and a roll of Kodak Tri-X 400, which I developed in HC-110.
I was able to catch an earlyish train into the city, the joys of knowing a quick route from home to Oakville station. Thankfully, with the summer, the crowds on these commuter trains are not too bad, which allows for a quiet ride in. Union was, of course, bustling with activity. From Union, there are only so many routes to the Distillery District. Most of the time, I head right down the centre along Front or head up north to Adelaide. But as I was planning on coming back downtown along Adelaide, I took a route I don’t take often, along the Esplanade. Now, this part of the city isn’t one I see as having much photographic potential, but it’s always good to change your viewpoint every so often. The area is also far more shaded than the other options. I did a straight run right into the distillery. While I mostly shot with my Maxxum 5 and D750 on the walk over, I tucked away the ‘5 and switched over to the Rolleiflex specifically for the Distillery District. I made a point not to focus on the wide shots with the Rolleiflex, but to focus more on details, allowing me to use wider apertures to isolate subjects. I also did some work with the D750 at the same time.
After polishing off the twelve frames on the Rolleiflex, it was back out onto the streets and back with the Maxxum 5. I headed straight north up Trinity, which, although it has a lot of modern construction, has a great little pocket of historic buildings once you get close to King. The two main ones that I’m drawn to here are Enoch Turner Schoolhouse and Little Trinity Church, two major historical points in Old Town. I was only on King for a short time before ducking north again along Parliament and back along Adelaide. My goal was to stick with as many historical buildings as possible. Probably my favourite along here is the First Toronto Post Office (Fourth for York). I then jogged around a bit before ended up back on Queen and on my way to my last stop.
After learning how Downtown Camera now carries BelliniFoto chemistry I knew I had to stop in there, plus I needed some other rolls of film for the Collective2026 event and future reviews. I ended up walking out with a bottle of Bellini Hydrofen, a developer I’ve been wanting to get again but haven’t found an inexpensive way to acquire it here in Canada. And dropped a hint for them to grab some bottles of ST20 at the same time. Plus the Kentmere 200 and 400 I needed for Collective, and the Microphen, also some other rolls of film for the future. Then as I was all done my rolls of film I decided to take the most direct route back to Union Station and was able to grab an earlier train to head home for lunch.
It’s always fun to go into the city, not too often, so it doesn’t get old quickly. Even when going through familiar areas, seeing them through a new camera, lens, or film, or in a different light, can make for fresh images. Also, having a bit of a plan and a bit of freedom can always help. And while I usually go with something wider on the D750, I’m pretty happy with the results I got with restricting myself to the 35mm lens, as I had the 24mm on the Maxxum 5. I’m also happy with the combination of FilmFerrania P33 and Hydrofen. It’s fun to figure out different developing combinations for a new film stock that only has a limited number of official times. You can check out all my photos from the day over on Flickr.