Monday, May 13, 2013

Primitives at home . .

As I'm sure you're aware, I photograph a LOT of buildings at a time when they aren't exactly beautiful. So when my friend Todd asked if I'd shoot his loft apartment, I was thrilled!

Todd is an interior designer and painter working all over Missouri and Illinois. His personal taste runs toward primitives, the more original and rustic the better. What some see as old, beat up relics, he sees as items with deep, meaningful history. "A pioneer woman probably used this." he often says.

Todd likes the sculptural elements of old ladders, barn vents, HUGE dough bowls, shoe forms, etc. and displays them well.

Enjoy the tour!

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Shot in the dark . .

Rod Serling said, "There is nothing in the dark that isn't there when the light are on." OK, but what if you CAN'T turn the lights on?

I've photographed a lot of interiors that are, at best, dimly lit. Old abandoned buildings rarely have power and usually the first few floors are boarded up. But earlier this week I had to document a building for Rosin Preservation that was pretty well sealed from top to bottom. It was damp, (it was literally raining on ALL seven floors), cold enough to see your breath, and dark enough that I wasn't sure I would get any usable shots. On top of that, it was BIG and empty, so getting shots that actually show the entire space was tough.

Even though a crew of guys had gone through the building and put railings up around all the open elevator shafts and missing stairwells, it still FELT like one of the most unsafe buildings I'd ever photographed.

But, did I like the experience? No. I loved it!

Water . . EVERYWHERE!

The bright slivers of light was all that got through the sealed windows, and it was barely visible to the eye.

What lives in a dark, cold, wet space? Mushrooms, and whatever the hell that creepy red stuff is!

This building had a tower, and here's what was left of the stairs to the roof.

Here's the difference just ONE open window made!

And here's what the first floor looked like, lit by only the glass entryway doors in the distance. FUN!

Hopefully I'll get to go back when this building is finished. The transformation can only be stunning!