If You And Your Friends Are In The Dark, You Are Hidden People.

I have to say, while I love all my friends' bands (here, Hidden People), I really, REALLY wish they'd play venues with grown up lighting design instead of, say, fucking Christmas lights (see below).



I'd much rather shoot ambient without having to ramp up the ASA all the way and open all the way wide. Fun things happen when you have enough light to shoot with without augmenting.

Original Artyfacts

Remnants from Coney Island

The Cyclone, Coney Island 5/27/07

 
Snakes, Coney Island 5/27/07

 
Grandma's Prophecies (Arcade Favor), Coney Island 5/27/07


(Let the record show that grandma only communicates in cyphers and Plain English.)
 
Richard and Ally (Photo Booth), Coney Island 5/27/07


(Ally lives on Flickr here.)

[Deleted at subjects' request, 9/18/08]

[Deleted at subjects' request, 9/18/08]

Unhappiness Is An Invented Thing

Dominique



Dear Dom,

So sorry. You've become one of my favorite people to photograph. I should have warned you that this might happen.

--RG

Wagon Wheel Motel, Oxnard, CA

I recall the Wagon Wheel Motel vividly, but only from passing by on the way to Thousand Oaks or Los Angeles from Santa Barbara. The marquee and property was described thusly in the January 13th 2007 LA Times,

Its Western facade and neon sign depicting a whip-cracking wagon driver were a throwback to 1950s-era California. The property was part of a strip of businesses near Highway 1 that were a favorite stop for families, tourists and an occasional movie star on trips to Santa Barbara.

It was also a pretty good telltale for letting Little Richard know how much further he would have to wait until Disneyland (Little Richard was usually asleep on the return drive).

Now it's shuttered, and my first actual visit to the grounds consisted of breaking and entering and if you want a good scare, I would encourage you to hang out in an empty Motel at least once in your life. There are more images at my Flickr site, which will host all the images on this blog until I decide that I want all the hits instead of the nice people at Flickr. Or until my reputation is secure.

ADDENDUM:

While searching for blurbs about the history of the Wagon Wheel, this appeared as the 5th or 6th Google result. So... let's say that the Wagon Wheel has served its purpose.

Hempstead, TX

I seem to have a fondnesss for mannequins (especially the living kind, cf. NY Fashion Week), and especially the creepy ones (again, cf. NY Fashion Week) -- this lady was in a thrift store in Hempstead, TX. We had mexican food at the joint next door after a long day of shooting Civil War reenactors at nearby Liendo Plantation.