My understanding is a little different. Copyright term has changed over the years based on different acts of Congress:
--The Copyright Act of 1790 established U.S. copyright with term of 14 years with 14-year renewal.
--The Copyright Act of 1831 extended the term to 28 years with 14-year renewal.
--The Copyright Act of 1909 extended term to 28 years with 28-year renewal.
--The Copyright Act of 1976 made the term of a copyright the life of the author plus 50 years, or 75 years for a work of corporate authorship.
--The 1998 Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act extended these terms to life of the author plus 70 years and for works of corporate authorship to 120 years after creation or 95 years after publication, whichever endpoint is earlier. Copyright protection for works published prior to January 1, 1978, was increased by 20 years to a total of 95 years from their publication date, which effectively means that works made in 1923 or afterwards and that were still protected by copyright in 1998 will not enter the public domain until 2019 or afterward (depending on the date of the product) unless the owner of the copyright releases them into the public domain prior to that.
The latest copyright extension did not revive copyrights that had already expired, though, so it is is possible that something created after 1923 entered the public domain. For example, 22 of the Betty Boop cartoons, Reefer Madness, and Plan 9 From Outer Space all have lapsed copyrights and are in the public domain.
So, plugging in your date of 1924 when the work was created, the applicable act was the 1900 law [28 +28]. 1924 + 28 = 1952. If the copyright wasn't renewed, it would have lapsed in 1952. If it was renewed, you would add another 28 for renewal and you get 1980, but that would be extended by the later acts starting with the 1976 act. Basically, if you wanted to print up your own images you'd have to check to see if the author [photographer] or his successor ever renewed his copyright. I don't know how to do that but I am sure that it would involve the copyright office in Washington.
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