“When you get lucky, be ready”.
This quote by Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Eddie Adams was the perfect way to describe this image.
We arrived in Vegas as part of a larger cross country road trip and only intended to stay for a night. When we arrived in the early evening, the glowing, iconic Vegas sign greeted us as magic hour descended, and it truly was magic. I knew I had to get a shot of it, but at that point we were tired and had to find a room.
That night and the next day I went through 3 rolls of film and half our travel budget on slot machines and roulette wheels.
I kept thinking about the sign, but it was out of the way and we were knee deep in the strip.
As we were packing up to head out to Boulder for the night, I thought I’d missed my chance. It was too early for that perfect magic hour backdrop, and that’s what had captivated and inspired me.
I could see it approaching in the distance as we were leaving town. The sun was past it’s midday peek but was still pretty high in the sky. Too washed out for a good photo I was thinking. Maybe just a Polaroid for our travel journal.
As we drove past it, I couldn’t believe my luck! I saw the long shadows cast by the sign and knew that was the shot. Finding a place to pull over on this busy stretch of road, was tricky, but I was determined.
I kept 6 frames of Infrared film in my camera just in case. I also had cleaned the lens and had the red filter ready to go.
I ran across the highway dodging cars as I went and stood in the signs glory.
The sun was blasting in my eyes so much they started to water. Lens flare has its place in photography, but not this time. I positioned myself to hide the sun behind the sign and took the shot. The car? A great bonus.
#filmisnotdead #vintagelasvegas #madewithkodak #drivebyfilm #dominomag
American Way, NM 1999.
We never did find that road. Not that we really wanted to.
#filmisnotdead #documentingspace #infraredphotography #drivebyfilm #dominomag
La Concha, 1995.
The iconic modernist marvel, The La Concha Motel in Las Vegas.
Far from its heyday in the 1960s, but still a destination on the strip. It was closed less than 10 years later.
I took several shots of it over a few days, but this moment stood out. The intense backlight, the flare and the fortuitous white Cadillac that pulled into frame as I took the shot.
As it drove by, all of its drunken occupants started yelling ‘take my picture, take my picture!’ It was 8am.
Ahh Las Vegas.
#filmisnotdead #vintagelasvegas #infraredphotography #drivebyfilm #dominofilmphoto
On the outskirts of the town of Mulege in Baja California Sur, lies an abandoned resort where it’s rumoured that the likes of Frank Sinatra and John Wayne stayed during its heyday in the 1960s.
We were lucky to visit before the palapas collapsed and the graffiti took over. The pool was oddly pristine, and as I stood in the quiet of it, I felt the ghosts of happy holidayers swimming by.
#filmphotography #infraredphotography #filmisgood #documentingspace #dominofilmphoto
Today’s Special.
Text, contrast, emptiness, and a little sprinkle of the absurd. And of course, processed meat.
#blackandwhitephotography #infraredphotography #kodakprofessional #signgeeks #dominofilmphoto
Kansas Grocery.
Magic hour is more like magic minute when it presents an entire town full of photographic gifts.
The details are a bit blurred by time, but when we happened upon this dusty, seemingly deserted town in the middle of America, we were looking for food and lodging. This place had neither.
What it did have was inexplicable. A little downtown trapped in another era. It felt torn from the pages of the great American novel, or a really well done film set.
When I jammed on the brakes, I created a little cloud of dust that seemed to hang lifeless in the air.
I didn’t know where to start. This glorious gift of light was fading fast. I started here, at this little grocery that had long since been a grocery.
I moved quickly to the bijou across the street and then to a strange little yard full of odd folk art, guarded by an out of place and a bit sinister chain link fence.
I worked diligently until the last of the light hung on the horizon. It was definitely time to go. The little town began to feel even stranger once it was no longer bathed in beautiful golden light.
When I got the negs developed back home, this was the only shot worth keeping. The light, while beautiful and perfect in person, wasn’t enough for the roll of film in my camera. It happens. But the experience was exposed perfectly.
#filmphotographic #madewithkodak #newtopographics #thisaintartschool #documentingspace
Room 8. New Mexico.
A completely surreal moment when the blazing New Mexican sun reflected off mirrored building, filling this narrow and somewhat dreary passageway full of otherworldly light.
Colours were distorted, and the flatness of the light gave the feeling of two dimensional film set, complete with a brand new, period appropriate garbage can.
I got the feeling if I looked in through he open door, there would be nothing there looking back.
#filmphotographic #madewithkodak #newtopographics #thisaintartschool #documentingspace
Reno, Nevada.
There was a sweet spot in this gem of a city when everything seemed pause. The paint was still fresh, the neon intact and the little motels were still offering complimentary cable TV. It was a time capsule.
When I returned the 2nd time it had begun to decline. Soon to be greeted by the wrecking ball.
#filmphotographic #madewithkodak #newtopographics #thisaintartschool #documentingspace
