pamplin, virginia

From a 2014 article on the town:

For the first half of the 20th century, Pamplin City was considered a center of commerce.

It had a thriving Main Street, was home to the largest clay pipe manufacturer in the country and located at the intersection of two major rail lines — bringing in salesmen who would relax on the Park Hotel’s porch after a day of selling their goods as they waited for the next train.

Now, the 10 brick buildings lining the street sit vacant or are used for storage. Trains don’t stop at the old depot across the street and visitors no longer recline on the porch talking and sipping bourbon.

I took these photos last month, during a drive around central Virginia. I have a few on film too, but they’re still waiting to be developed.

"Pamplin Pipe Factory"

"Pamplin Pipe Factory"

Main Street.

Main Street.

Hardware store and grocery.

Hardware store and grocery.

A closer look at the hardware store.

A closer look at the hardware store.

the rotunda, again

I recently picked up an ultra wide-angle lens for my Leica M setup, and went over to the University to try it out, photographing some familiar areas. Other than the modest vignetting, the lens is pretty good—sharp across the frame at the apertures you’d be using.

As for the photos themselves, they’re fine. Like any well-trafficked monument, photographing the Rotunda is hard. There just isn’t that much to “say” about the structure anymore. But I keep trying, and I’ll likely keep trying.

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Camera: Leica M Typ 240 | Lens: Voigtlander Color-Skopar 21mm f/4.0.

downtown charlottesville

I’m always on the Downtown Mall for one reason or another, and since I always have my camera, it’s frequently an opportunity for photography. Here are some black and white shots, all digital, all edited in Lightroom. I’m a big fan of the last three, which have nice shadows and geometry.

Camera: Leica M Typ 240. Assorted Lenses.

large format street portraits, part 1 of a continuing series

In an effort to improve my portrait photography and use as much film as I can, I’ve been setting up my large format camera on Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall and either asking people if they’d like photos, or waiting for people to approach me to talk about the camera and then get a photo taken. The latter happens more often than you’d think. A large format camera is an unusual looking object, and people want to talk about it.

Anyway. These are my first set of shots, taken over the course of last fall. Let me know what you think.

Camera: Intrepid 4x5 | Lens: Nikkor-W 210mm f/5.6 | Film: Kodak Tri-X 320.