And, another.

Since few people are submitting photos for critique right now, I'll offer another. This is a recent shot from a Pennsylvania coal country town. The place has definitely seen better days, although there is active mining nearby. I plan on doing some running around up in thee old cola region in the eastern end of the state, to document these small towns up there.

 

As always, I welcome any and all opinions and thoughts.

 

The tricycle in the window is a defining and charming element getting lost. My eye is drawn mostly to the wood grain on the plywood boards, but it seems like there was more of a story here than that, especially in the doorway and window next to the boarded-up place. The street scene itself has little breathing room so I feel “up against the wall” through the photo.

what were you taking a photo of Ricochet - what was it that you saw, felt?

A straight document of a generic town, better days, Holly's, Vertigo?

It's got an unusual stagnant collection of textures and patterns of sidings and construction materials.

what were you taking a photo of Ricochet - what was it that you saw, felt?

A straight document of a generic town, better days, Holly's, Vertigo?

It's got an unusual stagnant collection of textures and patterns of sidings and construction materials.

 

Yes, you could definitely call this a straight document. It's the loneliness and despair in a tiny town that's seen far better days. The bigger story is that most of the businesses on the Main Street are closed down, some are boarded up, The tricycle adds to the general vibe of a town that had a lot of life in its day. The closed sign kind of punctuates today's reality, but the words Please Call Again, leaves room for hope.. The hodgepodge of textures seem to provide a timeline going from boom to bust.

 

This is one of the first images in a project of photographing old coal towns in northeastern PA. With nothing here to indicate that, I get that this might feel somewhat disjointed.

Hi folks. Wanted to bring this back up to say that I posted a thread in Street And Documentary, with a handful of shots from Pennsylvania Coal Country that might serve to add context to this photo- which is included in my thread.

The tricycle in the window is a defining and charming element getting lost. My eye is drawn mostly to the wood grain on the plywood boards, but it seems like there was more of a story here than that, especially in the doorway and window next to the boarded-up place. The street scene itself has little breathing room so I feel “up against the wall” through the photo.

 

"This is one of the first images in a project of photographing old coal towns in northeastern PA. With nothing here to indicate that, I get that this might feel somewhat disjointed."

 

Yeah, I did not see the subject of the photo as a stand alone. The context of a series would bolster the narrative.

 

 

Take a look at my post in Street & Documentary, if y'all feel like it, to see more shots from this series. Included is a link to my Pennsylvania Coal Country Zenfolio gallery