Other "Abandoned" photos
Hi folks,
I thought you might be interested in seeing some of the other images I considered entering in the contest.
I had originally uploaded this old tow truck as my second entry, but I deleted it and entered the abandoned hogan instead. I really love this photo, but it occurred to me that it wasn't really abandoned. If you look closely, there is air in the tires, and a chock in front of the rear wheel. Also, there is no vegetation growing on it. Someone is taking care of this old workhorse.
I found these old burned out cars on the road to Hana on Maui. However, I'm still not sure if they were abandoned or if someone torched them.
I love this photo of the Filosena Ranch near Lee Vining, California. There was a real live old west gun battle here in 1915, which resulted in the murder of a local sheriff the next day, and a huge shootout between a posse and a band of desperados. I was asked to find and photograph this old homestead by a great granddaughter of the original owners.
I absolutely love this next image. This is a section of the old, abandoned Highway 395 which runs from the Canadian border down to the San Diego area. (It wasn't called 395 in those days). This particular stretch is near the Filosena Ranch pictured above. This is the road that Sheriff James P. Dolan drove down in his old tin lizzie the day he was murdered by bandits. He was there to investigate the shootout that had taken place on the ranch the day before.
I found several of these old landing crafts in a shipyard outside Seward, Alaska. My guess is that they were used for servicing remote villages, or used as car ferries.
Here is a color version of the abandoned hogan. It's beautiful, but I feel the structure stands out from the background better in the B&W image. Also, I think the B&W version evokes the images of the first photographers to reach this area in the 19th century.
Here is a side view of the hogan.
Finally, here are a few more shots of the 395 House and the other house on the property. I shot the winning photo with a telephoto lens to bring the mountains in close and show their proximity to the house. These ultra wide angle shots show just how desolate the surrounding desert is as well.
The other house on the property.
Sadly, the little house isn't there anymore. It finally succumbed to the elements about a year ago.
Thanks for indulging me.
Ross
= new reply since forum marked as read
I really enjoyed reading your descriptions. I think they make the photos come to life. You are so talented. I could look at your photos all day long. Sometimes I just sit and get lost in one of them as I imagine what transpired in the past there or who lived there or who drove that certain vehicle, etc.
I am grateful that you take the time to post them so that we can all enjoy their beauty.
The history is pretty fascinating. I'm sorry to read that the house finally succumbed to the elements. I guess it was inevitable. I am going to do an online search and read more about it. Your photo was breathtaking and well-deserving of the win!
About those clouds...
If you look closely, I lightened the sky a little in the photo that I entered in the contest. Those clouds were just a little too dark in the original picture. I call that the "wrath of God" effect. It's a bit too much. 
Reading your history of what transpired in them really adds depth to the photos.
Feel free to post more photos in this style, where you show us what's going on and how you took the shots. It's so informative.
Thank you!
Thanks for posting them.
This was the ferry from Nigg to Cromarty, just north of Edinburgh. This was easily the smallest ferry we used in the UK. According to the crew, they can load three cars onto the ferry, but I suspect they all have to be very small cars. When we got off in our little Volkswagon estate wagon, there was a camper van ready to load up!
Here is the plaque on the ferry:
