***Announcing the Winners for the July Photo contest Abandoned***

[CaliforniaPeggy]

Last edited Fri Jul 16, 2021, 02:29 PM - Edit history (1)

First Place goes to Grumpy Old Guy for his amazing photo "Too Many Winters"






Second Place goes to Soph0571 for her wonderful photo "Bombed Out But Blooming"






Third Place goes to Grumpy Old Guy for his fantastic photo "Abandoned Hogan On the Navajo Reservation"






The Host's choice goes to Ocelot II for her amazing photo "I was a Little Teapot..."






Congrats to all our winners, and to all who entered and voted! It was a challenging theme and everyone rose to it. Grumpy Old Guy gets to choose the theme for next month's contest.

[hlthe2b]

1. Congrats! I loved each entry. The winner is evocative of my own home state, so

I had to give that one a special nod.

[Harker]

10. First thought I had... looks like places I've been in Colorado.

Beautiful entries, as always!

[Srkdqltr]

2. All of the pix were wonderful. Great choices.

[Beringia]

3. Congratulations

[Diamond_Dog]

4. All four of these are worthy of first place, IMO.

We have some pretty amazing photographers here at DU. 🙂

Congratulations to all the winners! Each entry is exceptional!

And a shout out to CaliforniaPeggy who has done a wonderful job of hosting!

[CurtEastPoint]

5. Great contest, Peggy and superb winners!

[Solly Mack]

6. Congrats all!!!

[SheltieLover]

7. Congrats to winners, entrants!

Many thanks to Pegygy for hosting!

I love that you gave an award to Oscelot's Teapot!

[blogslug]

8. Wonderful!

Here's to all the great photographers!

[lunatica]

9. Congratulations!

[HAB911]

11. Congrats! Beautiful photos!

[FakeNoose]

12. Congratulations and thanks for sharing your great photos

They were all so nice that it's hard to pick a favorite.

[2naSalit]

13. Yay! Congrats!

I like them all.

[nuxvomica]

14. I love "I was a Little Teapot..."

It's so evocative of moments as a child when I would across things like that while playing in abandoned fields. Somebody loved that teapot once, admired it in a store or welcomed it as a present, and there it sits, broken and forgotten, yet still proudly displaying its little flower basket motif.

Congratulations, Grumpy Old Guy and Soph0571, and Ocelot II!

[planetc]

15. kick for individual contributions to our common life!

[RestoreAmerica2020]

16. All great! Thanks for posting

Paz

[KS Toronado]

17. I'll never make a living as an art critic, I choose #3

[urbanhermit]

18. Congrats Grumpy Old Guy

Thank you Peggy for hosting.

[Soph0571]

19. Congrats Grump!

Chuffed though that I best you into second place on your 2nd photo!

[Grumpy Old Guy]

22. I would have been happy to take 2nd and 3rd behind you Soph!

[Grumpy Old Guy]

20. A few words about the winning photograph.

Last edited Sat Jul 17, 2021, 01:44 AM - Edit history (1)

Congratulations to all the entrants in this great contest, and thank you to all the DUers who supported us and voted. This was a tough competition, because there were so many great images. All of the photos were very moving. I always say that every good picture tells a story. The stories that these photos told were poignant and thought provoking.

I would like to take a moment to say a little bit about the home in the winning photo. Feel free to skip the rest of this post.

Savvy California drivers know that the best way to travel between L.A. and Lake Tahoe is to avoid I-5 at all costs, and instead take California Scenic Highway 395 through the Owens Valley and the Eastern Sierra. It's a beautiful drive with breathtaking scenery all along the way, and more than enough history to fill several books and feature films.

For decades, a welcome landmark along the route was this old home, and another one just a little bit larger, side by side on the same lot. It became semi-famous, and was known as "That 395 House" or "The 395 House." Google it. You'll find dozens of images taken in all seasons, all times of day, even some with the Milky Way behind it.

The houses were occupied until the mid-seventies, when the couple who owned them died tragically in a head-on crash. The family still owns the property, and they sometimes comment in online threads about the homes. They're OK, if somewhat surprised, that the houses have gained such fame, and have been photographed so many times.

Sadly, the little house is no more. It finally lost its battle with the brutal winds, deep snow and blazing hot summer temperatures. It fell about a year or so ago, and is now just a big pile of worn timbers. The back walls which faced the strong winds howling out of the mountains gave out first, and the front walls eventually fell too.

I often sell my photography, but I never considered offering this shot. Legally, I would need the written permission of the family to do so, and out of respect, I never even considered asking them. I have a 16x20 hanging in my living room, and that is good enough.

Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Ross

[dalton99a]

21. Kick