Italy and the Minolta P’s

The Minolta P’s was one of the film cameras I brought to Italy in 2024. Its compact size and simplicity made it an ideal pocketable companion. Although the images often soften around the edges, it’s still an enjoyable camera to shoot even with its fully automatic features.

Our first stop in Italy was Pompeii, the ancient Roman city near modern-day Naples. In 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius erupted, burying Pompeii and the nearby city of Herculaneum under ash and pumice. Remarkably, this disaster struck just after the city had been restored from a massive earthquake. Over the centuries, Vesuvius has erupted multiple times—the most recent during World War II—but none as catastrophic as the one that preserved Pompeii. Even today, archaeologists are still uncovering incredible remnants of the city, offering new insights into daily life nearly 2,000 years ago.

On our second full day in Italy, we set out to explore the Amalfi Coast. The plan had been to take a motor coach from our hotel in Sorrento, but a rockslide the night before forced us to change course—luckily, for the better. Instead, we boarded a ferry and enjoyed stunning views of the coastline from the water, with colorful cliffside towns rising above the sea. We spent several hours wandering the charming streets of Positano and Amalfi before returning to Sorrento. That evening, we relaxed on our hotel balcony overlooking the Bay of Naples, watching ships and yachts drift across the Bay of Naples.

Camera: Minolta P’s (1991)
Film: Kosmo Foto Agent Shadow ISO 400
Process: Kodak HC-110 (1+31) 6 Min @ 20°C
Scanned: Epson V700 Photo