interesting small US towns for photographers

<p>I live in the Chicago area, and I love the city, but I occasionally fantasize about moving to a smaller town. The main thing that would hold me back would be the lack of photo opportunities in a smaller area. Chicago and other large cities offer architecture, street photography, zoos, sports, nature and interesting neighborhoods among many other things. I also love local places like Botanic Gardens, with plant and flower collections. Are there any small towns in the US that offer varied and interesting subject matter for photographers? There must be some sleepers out there.</p>

<p>OMG you must be kidding...almost any small town qualifies. Just go out your back door into McHenry county...Woodstock, Greenwood, Ringwood, and numerous more. Lake county still has a few places as well. Head west to Elgin, Carpentersville, East and West Dundee....Just get in your car and drive outside of Cook county!</p>

<p>There used to be a jingle, used by the state tourist people:<br>

"Just outside Chicago, there's a place called Illinois."</p>

<p>I recommend a trip to Gene M's site for further inspiration <a href="http://www.westfordcomp.com/">link</a> -- not only his found films from all over the country, but also his tours of his neighborhood.</p>

<p>I admit that my personal series of "shots from the end of my driveway" is wearing a little thin, though, even for lens comparisons. :(</p>

<p>Agreed--there are a ton of small towns that have value. Take....Shepherdstown, WV. First, it's in a very scenic area, waterfalls, mountains, snow, lots of green, wildlife, abandoned houses, a college. Then the town itself is unique. There is an old bank that has been converted to a restaurant and is painted yellow (yes, you can eat in the vault--there are tables in there). They have a significant arts and theatre festival every summer. And then within an hour is Harpers Ferry, WV. Train station with tunnels going into mountains, Convergence of 3 rivers with mountains. And "old town" restored to the Civil War heritage look. Abandoned buildings. Spectacular in the Fall with the foliage, second only to New England in my book as far as color.<br>

The point is not that Shepherdstown and Harpers Ferry are the best two small towns in the US to shoot in. It's that every state had dozens of small towns with unique character and great photo possibilities. I too love Chicago, have been there many a time and used to teach summers at Northwestern. But to love the City doesn't mean you can't also love....Yosemite...or a suburb....or the country....or the desert...or the mountains...or the Florida or California or Oregon beaches...or the forest and woodlands.</p>

<p>Better to shoot photographs in any small town than to be shot in Chicago. Sorry. I could not resist. Just do it - there is no telling what you may find interesting once you go out there - where ever it may be. Moving is a completely different matter - can you get a decent job there has to be a major consideration. Better to just travel in my opinion.</p>

<p>Woodstock has a pretty neat train museum unfortunately closed during the winter, Lake Geneva, Joliet Prison when all else fails take a drive around Lake Michigan more small towns then you can imagine. The largest town in the UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan for non Yoopers) is around 20,000 people. Lots of waterfalls great fall colors. Don't forget to stop at Tahquamenon falls see the Mackinac Bridge. See the Trolls that live under the Bridge. With the exception of Milwaukee 60 miles out of Chicago in just about any direction you will hit small towns</p>

<p>OP must be kidding.</p>

<p>I consider myself blessed living in a large city when it comes to the variety of photo ops available to me. Within the city, as OP pointed out, there are architecture, streets, zoos, sports, and interesting neighborhoods, etc. A drive of 30 minutes to an hour outside the city, I would have small towns, mountains, ocean, etc. The variety forces me to broaden and hone my skills in shooting nature landscape, street documentary, architectural, etc.</p>

<p>So many images waiting for me, and so little time.</p>

<p>Greenfield Village, in Dearborn outside of Detroit, was created by Henry Ford & includes many interesting items, like Webster's house, the Wright brothers house, Edison's lab from NJ, etc.</p>

<p>You should drive up the west coast of Michigan. Saggatuck, Petoskey, Traverse City, Grand Haven, Ludington, and most of the rest are full of opportunities It's not the same urban stuff you are used to, but very good in it's own right.</p>

<p>And the UP is great, lots of different landscapes.</p>

<p>I'm reminded of one of the most inspirational photographers I met during college (went to school in Marquette, MI). He was in a town called Calumet, and he had hundreds of interesting photographs. All he did was take his camera on the same walk everyday, and just learned to see what was around him. You don't need a change of venue, you just need to learn to see what is where you are.</p>

<p>Oh, and Dennis, I believe I am that troll you speak of!</p>

<p>Oh, I should add, Petoskey just got voted #6 small town by the Smithsonian. So yeah, you should come visit. 7 hours from Chicago if you drive the quick route.</p>

<p>I've lived in rural and urban Illinois. I realize that urbanites can feel out of place, even threatened, if there aren't two or three hundred people within view at a given time. You can find that downstate, too, however. Send for the tourism booklets that tell when all of the festivals and fairs are around the state: lots of people, food, events, gigantic farm equipment, local color. If you want to just venture out on the blue highways, look for unusual incongruities to shoot. Many a small town that was a thriving business center in 1890, when farmers traded no more than a horse-drawn wagon drive away from home, might have few businesses today, yet often the architecture of the bygone age is still there, sometimes boarded up, sometimes repurposed. Get used to the idea of settlements of 30-40,000 being considered major cities, and villages of 500 being called "small towns." Watch for unusual signage: "Free SUV with Purchase of House," "No Living In Parked Vehicles," "Paris 4, Chicago 270." Just the borrowed place names (which might appear on businesses as well a city limits signs) can be astounding--I don't live very far from Havana, Vermont, Teheran, Canton, Wyoming or Liverpool. In relatively flat country there can be the surprise of creek or river valleys, or of a wildly colorful sunset in a very big sky. Anywhere near to the Mississippi or one of its major tributaries, it is usually not flat country. Incidentally, river towns and river people tend to be a bit different from what's even only ten miles inland. A lot of Chicago's early cultural influences came to it by going up the Mississippi and the Illinois Rivers and some of the same things rubbed off in the towns along the way. And some of Chicago's influences came back down: they say Al Capone would come down to hunt ducks along the Illinois River near Havana. Then there are the state and local parks, Lincoln-related and other historical sites, water towers that look like space ships, wooden barns not as yet replaced by steel ones.... I'm just getting started.</p>

<p>Miami Arizona comes to mind. A once prosperous copper mining town with a lot of old buildings and hotels that once were full of life. A lot of stories to be captured with a camera. <br>

Good luck with your search. </p>

<p>Some really great ideas here. I think I'll take a drive to some smaller towns in Illinois & Michigan this spring or summer. It might be a creative break from the big city. This has turned into a great thread for sharing small town photography suggestions. Thanks!</p>

<p>Anywhere in Idaho--even our "big" city, Boise, is small by your standards and almost of our small towns (essentially the entire state) have amazing stories about nature, people, culture and environment to offer.</p>

<p>If you head to the small city area of the world, slow way down relax<br>

Locals can tell people from Chicago because they are always in a rush<br>

Green Bay has a railroad museum ,Packer Hall of fame<br>

Visit the Peshtigo fire museum, same day as the Chicago fire only much worse<br>

Lots of lighthouses still stand around the Lake<br>

talk to the locals ask them for their favorite pizza place etc. don't be surprised to actually talk to the people when you get gas. ask them for the most scenic spots, you never know. google the towns that you plan on seeing check the images<br>

stay out of McD's etc eat at local places<br>

if you go to the UP have a Pasty (pronounced "Past E" not "paste e", 2 completely different things) Friday night go to a fish fry (lake perch if you can find it) lot of taverns have great burgers and are much more than a bar<br>

you could easily drive around Lake Michigan in a weekend but you wouldn't see much <br>

Keep your eyes open anything can make a decent picture with the right composition and lighting from the smallest bug to a panoramic landscape</p>

<p>I had meant to pick up on your interest in botanical gardens, but forgot about it when I got going in my earlier post. I'm not sure you will find anything to compare in scale and scope with Morton Arboretum anywhere in the region, but Milwaukee has an interesting garden in which three gigantic domes each house trees, shrubs, and smaller plants of a different climatic zone respectively...I forget what it is called. Peoria has the small, but respectable Luthe Botanical Gardens, next to its zoo, in Glen Oak Park. There is a large park with "gardens" in the title in Springfield, but I don't know much about it.<br>

<br />Another thing to keep in mind: this is spring, and any park with an interpretive staff will be hosting Spring Wildflower Walks. Years ago I attended one of these at Starved Rock State Park (not very far from Chi-town) that was advertised as *for photographers.* Peoria's Forest Park Nature Center will have several hikes over the course of the spring. Check websites for more info. If you get to Peoria, visit Grandview Drive, also, for its amazing vistas of the Illinois River Valley, looking down from about 400 feet above the river level.</p>

<p>There is also an interesting group of unusually founded small towns scattered around the Midwest: the ones founded originally as philosophical or spiritual communes--places like: New Harmony, Indiana; Bishop Hill, Illinois; the Amana Colony area of Iowa. Incidentally, New Harmony has a labyrinth. Now that's a garden feature we don't find around every corner: http://maxkade.iupui.edu/newharmony/labyrinth.html .</p>

<p>A good photographer makes every place worthy of taking photographs</p>

<p>If you want gardens, go to Federik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park (<a href="http://www.meijergardens.org/">http://www.meijergardens.org/</a>) in Grand Rapids, MI. Maybe not as big as Steve's suggestions, but still very nice.</p>