Area 52: Week 4 (If Game is to Survive, It Must Have a Suitable Home)

Barns...barns and signs...barns, signs, and overgrowth, oh, my....  I never tire of these scenes, which tend to remind me of childhood rides to Edgewood to see my grandparents...or, sometimes it was a ride with my grandparents.  Old, dilapidated farm structures were a common site in southern IL while I was growing up, but, as they get older and the land passes down to younger owners, some genius gets the bright idea to tear these old, seemingly innocuous buildings down, giving barely any thought as to how the window sill became so worn or who put the doors on like that and why.

Even the old fella that gave me permission to be on the land hoped someone would eventually tear this place down.  I guess an empty lot has more curb appeal.

I disagreed.

Of highways, scenic drives, and miscellany....

 

The Big Lesson for me in this photoshoot: trust.  I have been in the habit of taking several shots of the same scene for "safety," just in case I didn't quite get what I wanted.  As a result, I have to whittle down 200 or so shots to around 50 to edit, 20 final edits and the above to post.  I've gotten to the point I know generally how the camera settings I use will treat the final shot, so I can just take a few shots of a scene at different apertures and know I have what I want.  I could easily edit around 80% of what I shot and get excellent results, but a lot of the shots would be almost identical.  Now, I can concentrate on capturing what I see in my mind, then moving more quickly to the next shot.

In other words: I am loosed. 

[All shots processed using a preset designed to mimic AGFA II film.]

BONUS SHOT:  Random abandoned....