Approaching the Eastern Shore Photo

Photographer’s Note

I'm standing in the 2 cm water of the Great Salt Lake, looking East toward the Promontory Mountains. Just to the north of these mountains is Promontory Point, the place where the transcontinental railroad was completed with the Golden Spike. The vertical lines you see here are pilings from the old railroad system. This was a point where ships could come and drop off cargo. Nowadays, there's really nothing here to ship to, but 120 years ago, Kelton, now a ghost town, was one of Utah's largest cities. When the railroad moved to the south of these mountains via a vast piling and trestle system that went directly across the lake, Kelton died and became abandoned. Now, this is what is left of what was once one of Utah's busiest places.

singuanti, delnaja, feather, robiuk, xuaxo, pablominto, ChrisJ, rafelito, riclopes, anavazao, imrek, veve, macondo, leo61, SchwebagMike, Didi, cdmonson has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

singuanti (15240) 2006-08-06 23:11

Hi David. This shot is the epitome of what you do better than the rest of us. That's a beautiful testament to progress and change. The isolated feeling is one attribute I like a lot. It might be better with a stronger foreground but it's still hauntingly beautiful.

weiphoto (335) 2006-08-06 23:17

I enjoy your composition of near-far, with the posts being a defining feature. The mountains in the background also have some interest, being quite silky. Wouldn't it be nice to have a before-after picture? Busy before, desolate now.

prezntime (3945) 2006-08-07 0:35

Hello David.
This is a nice stark photograph. It lends itself to the isolation some of these people might have felt when the railroad moved.
Thanks for sharing,
Chris

***out of smileys, will be back.

delnaja (7781) 2006-08-07 3:28

Hi David,
a stunning image... the desert landscape, the choice of b&w. Everything is perfect here. Excellent mood.
Fred

goodwill (4029) 2006-08-07 4:33

David, this is a beauty in B&W.I sugest you yourself make a Workshop by cropping it from the bottom, with focus only on the railroad. The notes are intersting.
Regards,
Rajeev

dkeus31 (26234) 2006-08-07 5:59

Hello David,
A nice BW, the posts gives some rhytme to the picture.
Regards,
Didier

feather (49868) 2006-08-07 11:06

A sad story; we forget how many people's lives will have been adversely affected. it looks like an interesting sky, the horizontal stripes of which seem to be mirrored by the horizontal lines in the salt lake. The vertical lines on the pilings are in stark contrast.
Kath

livermore (269) 2006-08-07 11:36

Très belle image N&B.
Superbe ambiance rendue dans cette composition graphique.
Vincent

torben (3084) 2006-08-07 15:39

This is a nice calm composition, a row of sticks walking across the rule-of-thirds line.
The downsized web-presentation might be a little hard on this image, at least I think that I can see a lot of intereting details in the foreground that would be clearly visible in a larger format. Now thy are just almost there.
Looking at the sky my first reaction is that you probably had to do some photographic trickery to make it so nice and dark. I would probably prefer to have it a bit brighter so the image wound have a bright-dark-bright horizontal striped composition.
But a nice and distinctive work anyhow.

robiuk (10763) 2006-08-07 18:52

David,
you created most erieest BG for your composition!
These misty mountains and (I suppose) 'layered' cloudy sky look somewhat threatening to me!
But then I like its contrast to the middle and front part of the photo that are extremely calm!
All in all, great atmosphere achieved.
Thanks,
Robi

CoolDan (2490) 2006-08-08 16:18

Bonjour David,
J'aime beaucoup votre composition ainsi divisée.
L'utilisation du noir et blanc est aussi très approprié.
Nice job.
Danièle.

valdec (7054) 2006-08-08 17:10 [Comment]

Show Comment

gebala (0) 2006-08-09 17:45

hello David,

this place is amaizing
i should go there one day and take some nice photos:)
I like this perspective
great colours and nice point of view:)
again mistic photo:)

well taken

ps:) my arm is broken :( no photos bit after 4 or 5 weeks:D I can take some:)))

xuaxo (5759) 2006-08-11 15:19

Hi David
A strange view, but well explained by the note. A photo of great impact.
Francisco
» My points are off; see my Intro/Profile for details.

pablominto (40824) 2006-08-14 6:17

Hi David,
A very appealing composition!
Simple but attractive, where I appreciate the feeling of vastness and the hostile environment...
Great textures and fine details!
Greetings,
Pablo -

Kenny10pin (19301) 2006-08-14 11:53

very nice calm picture, I really like the mountains in the background, they are really wonderful

cbrman (18929) 2006-08-21 1:57

Hello,

Belle composition tout en douceur mais le rythme induit par la présence des piquets amène un peu de dynamisme ! Le noir et blanc est bien vu ici.
Parfait.

A+

Dominique

ChrisJ (70317) 2006-08-21 7:58

Hi David

A fantastic overview of this intriguing salt lake, with marvellous lighting & sharpness. Good tonal range & pov with excellent repetition of the black poles. Tfs!

rafelito (3645) 2006-08-22 4:10

Hi David
Simply WONDERFUL, is excellent to convert in B/W .Many regards,Rafael

russte (0) 2006-08-22 5:35

Hi David, I can't quite fathom how I've missed your gallery over the past four months. The later postings are hugely impressive and among the best I've seen on TE.

With my love of black-and-white, I can't help but fall for this photograph. The tones are beautifully handled and the light on the mountains exquisite. A simple composition but so attractive. For the tones alone, this has to be a favourite of mine. Stephen

berek (28933) 2006-08-22 10:03

Hi David,
nice b&W picture. simple and effective composition again from you. I like this mystic view. great work. have a nice day
Berek
my overall evaluation -> :-)))

john_c (24635) 2006-08-22 10:30

Hi David,
The ghostly remnants survive to engage our wonder and to engage the mind as to the intriguing past. I like the graphism here, the stark landscape in the foreground, and the well textured and defined mountains beyond. You are one of the very few landscape photographers who can produce such first rate shots in B&W. Perhaps the somewhat stark landscape lends itself to this, and you inevitably find strong contrast. Well done, David. Another keeper.
John

Fis2 (45959) 2006-08-22 11:25

Witaj David!
Curious place. I like the composition and colours(B&W). Good contrast. Well done.
Regards
Krzysztof

riclopes (33011) 2006-08-22 11:28

Hi David, you continue to deliver amazing images from this increadible place. It seems from another world, or captured after the "end of this world" and your great work with the b/w convertion adds even more dramatism to the scene. I love the graphic presence of the non existing any more, railroad system. A powerful atmosphere that attract me very much. Ricardo

Vato_Law (11682) 2006-08-22 15:02

Hello David,
This photo reminds me something like 'no man's land'. I really like the tones and strange atmosphere of this photo.
Nice work.
Rgds.
Paulo

anavazao (5592) 2006-08-22 16:32

Hello,
very nice close up, sharpness and details are great!
Excellent POV and very nice composition!
Thanks ana:)

Angshu (33795) 2006-08-22 23:34

Hello David
This is a classic compo. In B&W. I don’t think colour could have worked as well here. The misty feeling over the hills, the vertical poles of the erstwhile railroad & of course the acres of white sand..gives an eerie feeling to this bleak landscape.Stunning indeed!
Regards
Angshu

ahmetgedikli (21938) 2006-08-23 2:52

Hi David,
Beautiful landscape. Good POV, nice sharpness and good details. Well done.
Best regards.
Ahmet

klennon79 (0) 2006-08-27 10:55

Hi David.
Your b&w is beautiful. Every tone is represented wonderfully. You have even managed to captured the wispy clouds above. Nice depth and sharpness.
Kirsten

imrek (4) 2006-08-30 9:11

Hi David,
very artistic...nice pov, low sky and a lot of water on the foreground...great work!
regards,
imre

Stepan (27175) 2006-09-01 1:39

What could I say ?? This one of the best atmosphere shot I've seen here for a while ! The framing, the balance, the light management (especially in the background...) and the mood are just impressive.
Brilliant.
Stéphane

rosaline (0) 2006-09-01 3:59

Hi David

A stark and somewhat barren landscape has produced a powerful image. The array of pilings presents a ghostly scene and the abandonment is clear. The B&W medium accentuates this feeling and delivers good, strong impact. Well presented.
Cheers
Aubrey

veve (4149) 2006-09-04 15:06

Hello David!
I really feel the cold atmosphere of this picture!
Remarcable composition!
Regards,
Veronica

macondo (13135) 2006-09-05 5:13

Lovely shot, David. The dark pilings are almost mysterious, like some ancient stone circle, except more even and regular. Wonderful positioning of the horizon and stunning light in the sky. The exposure of the salt in the foreground is perhaps occupying a little too much space for my liking, but the gradation from light to darker is very telling. A tremendously atmospheric photo, and hard to believe it's not been taken in Alaska or some place cold.
Regards,
Andrew

leo61 (43438) 2006-09-07 14:37

Hi David!
Minimalistic but nice and effective composition and well done in B&W.The dark pillars contrast well with the landscape and I like the huge quantity of "empty" foreground.
Regards,Leo

xavshot (62617) 2006-09-16 11:25

Bonsoir David
très jolie compo avec un graphisme excellent et un n&b très bien fait. Les contrastes du n&b sont excellents. Belle photo
Xavier

SchwebagMike (1490) 2006-10-02 16:47

Hi David. That's such a marveleous b&w shot you are sharing with us here. Great composition, the lines formed by the piling really make the difference and thanks to your great note we even learn a a lot about the place! Thank you for sharing your great work! Mike

Didi (36196) 2006-10-10 6:39

Hello
David
Very simple composition but you had a very good idea.
Without Castles or old ruins it's possible to do something genious like you done here.
Cheers.

cdmonson (2755) 2007-05-21 19:31

Fantastic shot David, and just as fantastic note. I had no idea that there existed such a city in this area at one time. Your shot captures both a feeling of desolation and of mystery. Nothing not to like about it. Great job.

Clark

baba_flies (8025) 2007-09-04 3:51

It is a pure pleasure to go through your photo work, David! Some use their lunch pause for walking around town, I decided to stay inside and treat my eyes with some true photo art. I like how you "treated" the sky, making it soft and smooth. It makes an excellent contrast to the rest, and I think the brutal climate comes out very well in your photo. This is great. Barbara.

PS. And thanks so much for the workshop. It really amazes me what comes out if other people work on a photo, and how you see it with your eyes. This is exciting I find.