Barn - Greene County, Virginia 

Subject or Photograph

This photograph was made in May, 2009 and has been in my rejects ever since. Image sharpness is something I don't worry about too much, but this picture is unacceptably un-sharp even by my admittedly somewhat low standards. Whether it was caused by missed focus, camera shake, or both I cannot ascertain. In addition, the composition is marred by the distracting diagonal line of tree-tops against the sky on the hill  behind the barn. Even worse, this was the best of a half dozen shots I took of the barn. I was not having a good day.

And yet, every time I come across this photograph, something draws me in, makes me linger. Perhaps it is the forlorn look of the barn surrounded by un-planted fields, or maybe it's the old cars scattered in the weeds. The subject speaks to me from this photograph. The subject, not the photograph, is important.

We strive to make the best photographs possible and often fail. But sometimes the subject manages to speak through an artistically and technically flawed photograph. And sometimes, a picture that is wonderfully composed and technically perfect fails to speak at all.

Pentax K10D (digital converted to black and white in Photoshop) 

Farm buildings - Madison County, Virginia 

"I spent some part of every year at the farm until I was twelve or thirteen years old. The life which I led there with my cousins was full of charm, and so is the memory of it yet. I can call back the solemn twilight and mystery of the deep woods, the earthy smells, the faint odors of the wild flowers, the sheen of rain-washed foliage, the rattling clatter of drops when the wind shook the trees, the far-off hammering of woodpeckers and the muffled drumming of wood pheasants in the remoteness of the forest, the snapshot glimpses of disturbed wild creatures scurrying through the grass--I can call it all back and make it as real as it ever was, and as blessed."

Mark Twain - Uncle John's Farm

Pentax MX - Fuji Neopan Acros 100

Outbuilding - Greene County, Virginia 

Over the years outbuildings have been an important fixture of rural homesteads and farms. There were smokehouses for preparing and storing meat, granaries to hold grain and feed, dairies for milk, ice houses, dovecotes, chicken coops,  laundries and of course privies. Today, many of these small buildings have fallen into disuse as rural life has adjusted to the modern world.

Barns, complex and expensive were likely to have been built to a proven and successful pattern. Small outbuildings however, were often hastily constructed from whatever materials were at hand. The "grass-roots" vernacular architecture of outbuildings is as individual as the farmers who built them.

In this area of central Virginia, white outbuildings are not as common as one might think. Most surviving outbuildings are a natural weathered gray, or painted a dark color. At one time whitewash was a practical and inexpensive way of protecting and beautifying rural structures. Does anyone still use whitewash?

"Saturday morning was come, and all the summer world was bright and fresh, and brimming with life. There was a song in every heart; and if the heart was young, the music issued at the lips. There was cheer in every face and a spring in every step.

"Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He surveyed the fence and all gladness left him and a deep melancholy settled down upon his spirit. Thirty yards of board fence nine feet high. Life to him seemed hollow, and existence but a burden. Sighing, he dipped his brush and passed it along the topmost plank, repeated the operation; did it again; compared the insignificant whitewashed streak with the far-reaching continent of unwhitewashed fence, and sat down on a tree box discouraged."

Mark Twain - Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Pentax MX - Fuji Neopan Acros 100

Country store - Madison County, Virginia 

 One thing leads to another . . .

A couple of weeks ago I set out to photograph the Oak Grove Baptist Church in Madison County, Virginia. I had seen pictures of the church, and although the building itself is unremarkable, there is an interesting history associated with the church dating back to the Civil War.

The map suggested that the church would be well lit in afternoon sun, and it would have been except that the church did not face the road as I expected. Instead, the side of the church was illuminated by the sun and the front was in deep shadow. It would be a morning shot for another day.

Driving on down the road, I was surprised to come upon the Mt. Zion Baptist Church, which I had never seen before. By now, the sun was getting low in the sky, but I stopped and took some photos. Quite by chance, Mt Zion became church number 31 in my series of 31 white wooden churches (see A Month of Sundays).

After photographing Mt. Zion, I consulted my map for a "short cut" that would be interesting and head me in the direction of home. On a road I had never before travelled, I came upon this old country store, illuminated by the last rays of the sun. I had about 5 minutes to photograph before the light was gone.

Things don’t always work out according to plan, but sometimes one thing leads to another, and we are rewarded with the unexpected.

Pentax MX - Fuji Neopan Acros 100

General Store - Uno, Virginia 

Uno, Virginia is made up of a road sign, that simply says "UNO" and this abandoned store. There is also the Main Uno Baptist Church, but it is nearly a mile further along the road. Local story has it that Uno got its name during the bootlegging era when moonshine whiskey was available here. When asked where he was going, a thirsty man would reply, "you know . . ."

Uno is located in Madison County.

Update: A friend from Madison County writes that this used to be the Horace C. Weaver general store.

Mamiya RB67 with Fuji Neopan Acros 100.

Ocracoke, North Carolina

The last of September - Greene County, Virginia

Having completed the Sunday morning series of 31 white wooden churches, I will not be posting on Sunday for a while. Starting  Monday, instead of posting in the evenings, I will post at around 8:00 (Eastern Daylight Time) each morning Monday through Friday.

I have been photographing old buildings again. Next week I will be posting pictures of a couple of old country stores and several other buildings that I found interesting, all in black and white. Hope you will stop by and visit.