a light to fill the voids

Here's another shot from Mt. Zion. I really loved the light in this shot.

will you remember me?

Leaving a small stone on a grave is an act of symbolically placing a marker for someone. I think of it as a way of showing remembrance for the person. It's a tradition I really love.

living history

The Wormsloe Plantation has an amazing oak alley. One thing I associate with the deep South is giant living oaks. They are so amazing.

overlapping memories

I got an accidental double exposure (or a ghost had some fun with my camera). The second shot is really faint so I'm not really sure what it is. The only thing I can really tell is that the second shot involved trees.

time keeps passing

The meter combined with the weathered wood just makes me think of the passage of time.

homey

I think of the Nolan House, and I think of fireplaces. There was one in nearly every room. I imagine that isn't surprising for a house of it's age, but they were all so interesting. The mantles have long since been removed, but they all still have character.

losing luster

Here's another shot from the bulldozed cemetery. I won't go into another rant about it. It's sad.
:-/

southern living

Another shot of the Nolan House. To me this place is the stereotypical old Southern home.

the calling

The light in Mt. Zion was pretty incredible. It was amazing how how the light and mood would shift just by the door being moved a few inches. I imagine this is why no two shots look the same here. This place makes for an excellent canvas because of this.

wounds

Here's some of the damage at Fort Pulaski. This is definitely a photographers paradise. I had fun exploring the grounds. Pretty much everything is open for the public to see, even the top level of the fort.

sights of the south

This is the side of the Nolan House. I loved this place before I ever saw it in person. Now it's part of my memories, memories of a wonderful road trip, so now I love it even more.

tunnel vision

This was taken at Fort Pulaski. Fort Pulaski is pretty cool, because if you walk around the outside you can see damage from the Civil War.

when one door closes

...another one opens.

This shot has a lot of meaning for me. I doubt I could explain it, so I'll just say...live the life you want while you still have life to live. Life kicks the crap out of me, but instead of giving in I just keep seeking out a path that will work better.

scars

Arkansas was part of the Civil War and being South of the Mason-Dixon we were on a side I don't particularly agree with. Arkansas isn't really saturated with Civil War history. So visiting states that had a lot more fighting it's weird to realize how recent it was.

When I was at the Colonial Park Cemetery I didn't really understand all the tombstones along the back walls. At first I just assumed they were stones that broke over the years. It didn't make much sense to me though. I mean if you take the time to collect broken stones and build holders into the brick wall for them, why not just repair and replace them where they should be? I googled it when I got a chance and found the real reason.

During the Civil War Union troops camped in the cemetery for a while. They broke stones to make room for their tents. I guess after the war either there wasn't records of where the stones should go or it was too large of a task to replace them. The stones were placed along the back wall. They remain as scars from a war with ourselves.

don't fence me in

Locks are tempting...

forgotten

I visit a lot of cemeteries now. They are peaceful. They are our history. They are photogenic. I'm used to weathered cemeteries. It's fairly common to see tombstones that are worn down to markers one forth the original size. It's impossible to fight nature.

This place was different though. These tombstones weren't battling nature; they were battling mankind. The back of the cemetery had recently been leveled. It looked like someone was able to start a construction project right over the broken markers. It's just sad to me. Heartbreaking. Even if the land was that valuable, there wasn't anything they could do to preserve the markers? Seriously?

I mean, the Colonial Park Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia had stones broken during the Civil War. The Union troops decided to set up camp there, and broke stones to make room for tents. After the war, it wasn't clear where the stones belonged so they were lined up along the walls of the cemetery.



It is possible to still respect the dead. I'm just saying. There has to be a better solution than bulldozing a cemetery.

labeling

This house was really interesting. Everything was painted with obvious labels - fireplace, floor, door, window, etc. I'm all for interesting/artistic graffiti but this definitely fell into the delinquency category. Of course, who am I to judge? Also what harm is done to a place that is left to slow be reclaimed by nature?

the stories these walls could tell

This church still has life. It's weird to say that about abandoned buildings. (Okay it isn't completely abandoned. For what I understand they still have service here on occasion.)

I believe Mt. Zion has touched many lives. The note above is probably a good example of this. I read through a notebook full of notes similar to this one.

when in rural georgia

I met up with Evan Leavitt when I was in Georgia. It was pretty awesome, because he was able to show me a lot of places I was familiar with through his photography. I was still doing a self-portrait series during the trip and asked Evan to be in the shot. Some of my favorite self-portraits were ones that included someone else.

Here was one with Zack and Caden at Hawksbill Crag.


Here's one with many of my co-workers.

one step closer

Wow, it's been a while since I've blogged. I have trouble keeping a blog, which is amazing considering how much I love to talk. ;-)

Anyway, since I've been gone I did a massive road trip, took a few trips to the Ozarks, and had a little weekend trip to Dallas. There really is no rest for the wicked.

The shot above was taken in Georgia at the Nolan House. It's a place I've wanted to see since I first saw shots of it. I saw many other wonderful things on the road, but this house was at the top of the list.