Well, after many many attempts and more attempts, I’ve finally had success in Vancouver! A camera was picked up, pictures taken, and it was returned. As I’ve mentioned before, it seems like Vancouver isn’t a random photo project kinda place – I’ve placed 8 cameras here throughout the years, and I’ve only received Camera #113 back.

Looks these guys had one helluva a day though. Okay, I might be making some big assumptions, but the guy above is wearing his red Andre the Giant shirt from breakfast at the beginning, all the way to the end.

This being the first camera received back from a place I know well, I went on a mission. A friend and I sifted through the pictures and came to the following conclusions:

• They started with breakfast at Caffe Barney on Main Street
• They then drove downtown, via Main + 2nd Avenue
• They then cut up a bunch of meat somewhere. Okay, this one isn’t much of a stretch since it’s right there in the pictures, but we think it happened at their next stop:
• Boneta in Gastown – one of the pics seems to have a bowl of meat on the counter…
• Then they closed up the evening at The Greedy Pig.

All this was possible through the clues in the pics – signs seen on the street, telltale countertops and curtains, and menu boards – and following up with Google Maps, Flickr, and the websites of the restaurants.

It’s amazing what can be figured out just from the pictures.

If anyone else out there has unreturned cameras from Vancouver, return them so I can do some more detecting!

I got an email from the creator of another project that is similar to The Anonymous Photo Project in some respects. It’s called Photonymo.us, and they’ve been at it since March and have gotten 5 cameras back so far, with some interesting results.

They place cameras in the Greater Cincinnati Area – so, it’s much more local – and they also accept submission of disposable cameras from people that haven’t found one. And, they have one caveat:

“Take photos telling something about yourself without showing your name or your face.”

It’s interesting when people come up with similar ideas without knowing about the other. After starting The Anonymous Photo Project, I came across PhotoTag which is another project which precedes mine.

You gotta give this guy credit for telling the truth! I wonder how long it takes this guy to reach his goal. Unfortunately, it looks like most people are ignoring him, and missing his genius sign.

It’s been a busy weekend for the project. Four cameras were released out into the wild! I released two here in Vancouver, and The Girl placed two others in Illinois. And, we must have been on the same wavelength, ’cause every camera has something to do with Riding and/or Racing.

On Friday, I went on my first Critical Mass, and it was a big one, seeing as it was the one at the end of Bike Month. There was a gazillion bikes, so, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to leave a camera. Unfortunately, I was near the end of the crowd, and it was so packed that I couldn’t pass people easily, and whenever I took a detour to try to catch up, I always ended up near the end – behind the guy in the bear suit and the guy with the balloon machine. I eventually placed Camera #101 on the sidewalk. Hopefully one of the riders picked it up!

And, yesterday, on Canada Day, I went with some friends to the Hastings Park Racecourse to watch the ponies. Money-making wise, the day started poorly, but after a couple of good bets near the end, I ended up breaking even. We watched the races from the bleaches so that we could get a good view of our horses all the way around the track. During one of the races, I went down to the benches by the finish line and left Camera #113. Actually, due to my carelessness, I labeled it #110, but that camera had already been placed in Sydney, Australia on New Year’s Eve…. Whoops!

The Girl sent me an email letting me know that she also placed a couple of cameras over the weekend – one at a motor speedway, and the other at a horse racetrack. Two horse racetracks in just a few days!

The first one was Camera #150 on Saturday. She left it on a car in the parking lot at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois. That will definitely ensure that someone will take a good look at the camera. Lets hope it will work!

And, the second, was Camera #151 on the lunch counter at Arlington Park in Arlington Heights, Illinois on Sunday.

Here’s to hoping that some of these make their way back!