#simnasho

Simnasho, Oregon

Name: Simnasho Class: GPS: 44.9713493,-121.3504175 Directions: On the Warm Springs Reservation

Description: Please comment below if you know anything about this town

Would we were limitless on Flickr.

How I research places to see on a trip:

  1) Type in en-route places into 500px search and see what looks pretty.

2) When 500px fails, head to Panoramio and see where people have geotagged interesting spots.

3) Google the things that come up and aim to take better pictures than the ones I found while researching.

  Aren't my methods good methods? Guidebooks, who needs guidebooks.

  Anyway, what's the point of a roadtrip if you drive long distances without stopping to photograph anything en route? There didn't seem to be much between Mount Hood and Smith Rock when I drove through the region in September and 500px failed me with ideas, but when I tried Method 2, Panoramio showed me some photos of a pretty cool-looking abandoned church in an area called Simnasho. And after quite a lot of research to pinpoint the right spot on Google Maps and fight with my GPS until I figured out it had completely different names for the roads than Google, I found it.

  Verdict? I love old buildings! So I loved this, even though it's out in the middle of nowhere. However, either other photographers Photoshopped out the "Closed Area" signs in their shots or the signs are new. I wasn't sure whether the signs meant "Don't be a scummy vandal and try to break into this building" or "You shouldn't set foot around here at all," but it's tribal land and I didn't want to get into trouble. It makes me sad because it's not like I'd damage anything by taking photos - limits, sigh.

  But, it was getting hot anyway and the mid-afternoon slightly overcast light wasn't so great (the clouds looked nifty with some multi-Raw processing, though). So that was that. Destination found, photo acquired, subsequent photographers inspired?

  Tech: Single exposure slightly underexposed, processed once brighter with warm temperatures for the church, once again cooler and darker for the sky, merged with Luminance Masks and some detail enhancing in onOne Perfect Effects.