Mercantile Store #1 - Candelaria, NV

Mercantile Store #1

Candelaria, NV

This single wall is all that remains intact of one of the stores in the mining boomtown of Candelaria, Nevada. Silver ore was discovered here in 1864, but serious mining of the deposits did not begin until about 1879. The site is dry and water initially had to be shipped in from miles away. Once a railway spur and a dependable supply of water was made available in 1882, the town began to thrive. Mining continued until the financial panic of 1893, when many of the mines shutdown. The town struggled ever after that, until the World War II era when it truly became a ghost town. Much of the town site was destroyed by a modern era of heavy strip mining.

On this trip to Candelaria in December, 2003, I was trying out the Kodak HIE High-speed Infrared film in daytime. I had not worked with this film much and wanted to see what more it could do. I've included these images here as I feel that the stark and eerie effects of the HIE film helps to convey the desolation of these places, as well as to contrast with the colorful night work when the ruins come to life once more.

Exposure Info:

Subject: Mercantile store ruins
Exposure: 1/125 sec.
F/stop: 8
Camera/Lens: OM1, Phoenix/Samyang 18-28 mm zoom @ ~20mm
Filter: Red #25
Film: Kodak HIE High-speed Infrared
Location: Candelaria, NV
Date: December 5, 2003, ~3 PM PST
Conditions: Cool ~55° F, light breeze, hazy-bright sunlight, partly cloudy - much high cirrus.
Notes: The Red #25 filter was used with the black and white film to increase contrast and to cut haze. Although the HIE film does not list an ISO rating, it is effectively ISO 50 or 60. An effective base exposure in sunlight is 1/125 sec. at f/11, bracketed at f/16 and f/8. A Diffuser filter also works well with this film, adding a suitably dream-like touch to the already eerie images.

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DarkSkyDreams

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by Jerry Day

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