The climate dominated most of what I decided to photograph in 2024. People are always my favorite subjects, and they make the best images. The power of protest was another subject I photographed, often to the point of exhausting the batteries in my cameras. This year, I added 35 mm film photography to my repertoire of cameras. Los Angeles and its inhabitants always inspire me to go out daily and capture their struggles and triumphs.
I took a day trip down to the U.S.-Mexico border fence near the community of Jacumba Hot Springs. Many of the people who cross from this point end up in Los Angeles. A group that had just crossed the border to the U.S. made a campfire to stay warm while waiting for Immigration and Customs Enforcement border officials to pick them up and process them. I noticed a tattoo of an illuminati symbol on one of their hands. The man started his journey in India and planned to end up in Los Angeles. Jan. 5, 2024, Jacumba Hot Springs.
The border fence near Jacumba was a porous place to cross into the U.S. This woman made her solo crossing after being dropped off by “coyote” smugglers. She was from China. Jan. 5, 2024, Jacumba Hot Springs.
The U.S.-Mexico border fence at Jacumba Hot Springs. This area was used by human smugglers as a crossing point into the U.S. The Mexican National Guard started patrols to thwart human smuggling on the Mexican side of the fence. The fence is made of cheap steel, and most of it rusts quickly, giving the fence a dark warm color. Smugglers can easily cut it, and there are remnants of various types of handmade ladders used to cross over it. At one point, the fence ends at a small hill where a gap has formed, and people easily walk through to enter the U.S. Jan. 5, 2024, Jacumba Hot Springs.
Editorial staff members of the Los Angeles Times staged a one-day walkout in front of Los Angeles City Hall over what they called unfair labor practices. About one-quarter of the staff was cut in a mass layoff days later. It was sad to see several of my photojournalist colleagues, near whom I generally photograph such events, fighting for their careers. Several of them were laid off. Billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, who is one of L.A.’s wealthiest residents, owns the paper. Jan. 19, 2024, Los Angeles.
The Space Shuttle Endeavour is moved into its vertical placement at the California Science Center. Construction began to encase the shuttle in its own indoor display. I liked the way it looked outside. It made the city appear as if it were a set from the 1960s Thunderbirds Are Go TV show. Jan. 30, 2024, Los Angeles.
Jesus Barron gave me a tour of his Hacienda Heights home after a mudslide. He was asleep in his bedroom as mud broke through the wall of his home, nearly burying him. Heavy rainfall in Southern California soaked the hills with water, making them slide for weeks afterward. Feb. 7, 2024, Hacienda Heights.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff held an election party for his party’s nomination to run for the Senate. March 5, 2024, Hollywood.
A pro-Palestinian solidarity encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles. The encampment grew daily in size and became fortified. Law enforcement officers eventually raided the site in front of Royce Hall, arresting several protesters. Students faced off against each other from both sides of the issue. This masked student held a Palestinian flag. April 24, 2024, UCLA.
A pro-Palestinian solidarity encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles. The encampment grew daily in size and became fortified. Law enforcement officers eventually raided the site in front of Royce Hall, arresting several protesters. Students faced off against each other from both sides of the issue. This student held an Israeli flag. April 25, 2024, UCLA.
A pro-Palestinian solidarity encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles. The encampment grew daily in size and became fortified. Law enforcement officers eventually raided the site in front of Royce Hall, arresting several protesters. April 25, 2024, UCLA.
A pro-Palestinian solidarity encampment. The encampment grew daily in size and became fortified. This image is from the last evening of the encampment as it was raided by California Highway Patrol officers, police and other law enforcement officers. May 1, 2024, UCLA.
The abandoned $1 billion Oceanwide Plaza Towers project in downtown L.A. became a giant canvas for graffiti artists. Graffiti artists painted their tags on every floor of the three towers, the tallest of which is 49 stories. The balconies on the towers gave the artists easy access to outside windows. The tags were completed in a couple of days and can be seen for miles. Oceanwide Plaza is located across the street from Crypto.com Arena and several premium downtown venues and properties. A slack line was added between the tops of two towers, with daredevils walking across the line for viral TikTok videos. Base parachute jumpers also used the towers to jump from.
The towers also became a new home for birds of prey and migrating birds. During the pandemic, you could hear birds chirping loudly from the abandoned structures. The city of Los Angeles has yet to figure out what to do with the project, and removing the graffiti would be expensive. May 23, 2024, Los Angeles.
Friends and family of General Hospital actor Johnny Wactor — who was shot and killed as he attempted to stop thieves from stealing his car’s catalytic converter — march to L.A. City Hall. The protest called out the Los Angeles Police Department and city officials for what protesters called their slow progress in finding Wactor’s assailants. Police later arrested four people, who were each charged in connection with the shooting. June 12, 2024, Los Angeles.
Eli Russell Linnetz’s art exhibit Monuments at the Jeffrey Deitch Gallery was a harbinger of possibilities for the U.S. He also sculpted a replica of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial Sculptures that served as a working pizza oven. Aug. 5, 2024, Los Angeles.
A plastic U.S. flag discarded in a gutter after Fourth of July celebrations. Aug. 30, 2024, Los Angeles.
A large “VOTE” sign in the Hancock Park district of Los Angeles. Oct. 28, 2024, Los Angeles.
A dramatic and giant pyrocumulus cloud (“fire cloud”) forms over the Bridge fire in the San Gabriel Mountains. Such clouds comprise ash, heat, smoke and water vapor from wildfires and can rise as high as 50,000 feet. The clouds rise and collapse, creating lighting, hail and wind, which can spread a fire over a larger area. I photographed this image from Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area and was sadly impressed by the cloud’s size in comparison to downtown L.A. in the foreground. Sept. 10, 2024, Los Angeles.
Graffiti artists reinvent their craft. An abandoned mansion in the Hollywood Hills became a new canvas for them. As with the Oceanwide Plaza Towers, several artists created the tags in a couple of days. Sept. 21, 2024, Los Angeles.
A press conference for brothers Lyle Menendez and Erik Menendez, who were each convicted of first-degree murder in the brutal shooting deaths of their parents, Mary Louise “Kitty” Menendez and José Menendez, in 1989. Supporters and family members of the brothers spoke in support of releasing the two from prison early, arguing that they had served their time. The brothers are each serving a sentence of life without the possibility of parole. L.A. District Attorney George Gascón, who lost reelection in November and stepped down this month, had recommended that the brothers be given parole based on new evidence. Oct. 16, 2024, Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, Los Angeles.
Members of the public — many of whom are young women or fans — line up early for a court hearing in which the Menendez brothers are to appear virtually. A lottery system determined who could enter the hearing. The public interest was attributable in part to The Menendez Brothers, a recent Netflix documentary about the case, and Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, a fictionalized miniseries also released on Netflix. Nov. 25, 2024, Van Nuys.
A photo of legendary Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Fernando “El Toro” Valenzuela in the middle of a wreath at a remembrance of his life. Valenzuela died Oct. 22 as the Dodgers began the World Series. Oct. 28, 2024, Dodger Stadium.
A billboard featuring Donald Trump’s mug shot and recent quotations in downtown. Nov. 20, 2024, Los Angeles.
All photos by Ted Soqui.
Copyright Capital & Main 2024
