Old Stuff in the Woods

 As anyone who looks at my photography can likely tell, I'm personally moved by the natural world - waterfalls, deep, dark evergreen forests, mountain streams, foggy mornings, and the joy of time spent in the ever more rare wilderness.  Most commonly this is where my inspiration arises.  And yet... There is something else.  A strange, unlikely genre that I find irresistable, for reasons that I can't fathom. It can only be described as "Old Stuff in the Woods".  Old, moldering buildings, walls, bits of machinery, rusted bits of cars, wells, pipes, ruined, crumbling factories, all overgrown with trees and brush.  Something, probably relating to two almost opposing interests of mine, archaeology and science fiction, conspires to draw me to capture such scenes.  It's a way to provide a window to the past, a reminder of where we've been, and at the same time a commentary on the future as well. I also confess to an interest in photos of "Urban Decay" (some fine examples here), turning something horribly ugly into fine, if poignant art, and perhaps this is simply an extension of that... 

Here are a few samples from my "Old Stuff in the Woods" collection.

 

Abandoned powerhouse at Sagamore, in the Adirondacks, NY

Girders in a pool in Watkins Glen State Park, NY

Old ironworks in the Adirondacks near the headwaters of the Hudson River, NY

Old ironworks in the Adirondacks, NY

Spring in Fillmore Glen State Park, NY