Since it has been hot enough in the midwest to curtail my outdoor shooting, I thought another form the archives was in order.  When the temperature is high enough to suck all of the fun out of shooting outside, plan B is in order.

If you hadn't deduced it by now, I have had the urge to photograph abandoned things for the last year or so.  Deserted, neglected, cast aside, eighty-sixed.  You get the idea.  I had to take a break from trying to create (my) perfect redwood forest image.

Twice now this has taken me into the Mojave Desert of southern California.  The place is rich in photographic fodder, for that seems to be the only thing that will grow in that environment.  Humans have fled for the convenience of divided highways, cable television, and air conditioning.  Perhaps that is why I have chosen to visit during the off season?  (February and again in November)

The decision I will have to make over the winter is whether to revisit again and stretch the boundaries of my previous visits, or head somewhere else altogether.

Right now, the muse is telling me to seek out the old Grossinger Resort Hotel in Liberty, NY for some UrbEx photography.  For that, I will most likely need to recruit a partner.  My previous experiences with urbex did not involve photography, so this could be quite an adventure.

Oh yeah, the picture.  I spotted this gem in Daggett, California enroute to the Heart of the Mojave.  What called out to me?  The relatively unfaded, sharp lettering on the signs.  The giant weed growing right next to the pump, or what's left of it.  The wind keeps the pavement scoured clean.  So I fired up the time machine camera and made this picture.

Self Service If you must really know:  Nikon D7000, 85mm D, stopped all the way down to f2.