#portjervis

Photos: Gordon Stillman

The old jingle reminded us not to let those Kodak moments pass you by. Today, I was about to pass by Port Jervis and thought the better of it. I antiqued, I had coffee, I gaped at the mountainside foliage and then, I shot my Kodak moment. My essay: “Gus Krauss operated this beautiful photo store in downtown Port Jervis, New York for much of the 20th century. After his death in 1977, he was praised for his pivotal role in chronicling life in this upstate city, and for the collection of postcards and photographic equipment he amassed. The facade is a masterpiece of Art Deco retail beauty, and the @kodak sign (swipe for a look) was once a familiar sight in downtowns across the land. As I took these photos with my digital camera, I could almost smell the faint whiff of fixer wafting from behind the dusty drapes in the windows. It's humbling to think how many memories were preserved because of the work of Mr. Krauss and his successors, Marion and Don Cole. Few folks get prints anymore — they're content to have their priceless memories living on their soon-to-be-upgraded phones or in "the cloud" or right here on @instagram. But that doesn't feel particularly tangible — it feels dangerously ephemeral. There is something very comforting about having prints, in an album, passed down by hand from generation to generation. Krauss Photo Service is a priceless snapshot of this lost time. #retrologist #portjervis (at Port Jervis, New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/CGvrhOrFTUq/?igshid=n3qknfkzzboz

Tonight's equipment! Port Jervis, track 5.

Tonight’s walk around Port Jervis.

I have almost 3 hours before I run my train to Hoboken. Photos from my walk around Port Jervis.

With and without PPE. Dead heading to Port Jervis.

Photos from Port Jervis.

Deadheading to Port Jervis to run a train back to Hoboken.