The Bus Yard



Lens Flare

Earlier this year I had heard talk about a Bus Yard in Williams, California that was a photographic goldmine. The Coach Maintenance Company (http://www.coachmaintenance.com/) is both a restoration facility and a salvage yard in the farm country of the northern Sacramento Valley. I have long been interested in photographing things that have the "patina" of age or having been weathered. While I had never noticed this Bus Yard during my many journeys between Cameron Park and Redding, I had hopes that this place may provide me with images to fill out some of my portfolios.

During late summer, I received an email indicating that Viewpoint (www.viewpointgallery.org) was planning to have a field trip to the bus yard. Initially I was not free that day due to a conflict with an autocross event that I had signed up to run. However, as the 7^th of September neared, the Autocross was cancelled and I was able to join in on the field trip.



 

Over the past two years, I have spent a considerable amount of time building my new Studio and Darkroom, which in turn impacted my skills behind the camera. Seeing an opportunity to re-sharpen my Large Format photography skills - I opted to take one of my large format cameras, as it afforded me the option of being able to adjust the camera with rise/fall, or shift etc… I then debated if I should bring my DSLR (a now ‘ancient’ Canon 20D) or not. Ultimately I opted to leave the Canon DSLR at home, with the thought that I would be able to better focus my work using large format with black and white film, and not be distracted by the possible color opportunities that these old buses promised. I opted to bring my 4x5 kit with 5 lenses (90, 135, 180, 240 and 300mm), all my 4x5 holders and my 6x12cm roll film back. This is a relatively compact kit that served me well when I was in Europe in 2007.

Rusty Buses



The morning of September 7^th arrived, I arose early after a hard week at work, and got in my truck, and headed for Williams… a 90 minute drive.  Once I got there, I saw a gaggle of old buses of different vintages that were rusting and being used for salvage. In the main Driveway was a fully restored bus finished with an off-white paint and dark green paint scheme. It was a beautiful restoration and recalled the charms of a by-gone era. The Bus Yard was quite the treat, and there was a sizable contingent of Viewpoint photographers that were there, although only two of us (that I noticed) where shooting film with a view camera. The day started out warm and just got hotter and hotter until it reached the upper 90’s. I had a blast taking pictures with the 4x5 – and shot up all the film that I had brought with me. These old buses had so many unique features and designs, providing great opportunities to shoot abstracts and details. The colors were mostly muted because the paint on the buses had faded, the windows were often coated in dust (if not broken or missing) and the aluminum trim had dulled through exposure to the elements. I think an overcast or foggy day might have actually brightened the colors a bit in my humble opinion – but alas – this is not going to be the case in September in the great central valley of California.

Since the 7^th, I have developed the film and made contact prints… and I am sure that I have at least a few keepers that I will share with you in a little while. What I can share are some iPhone images. 


Okay…. Yes… I cheated and snuck in a few digital images using my old iPhone 3G. Initially I took these just so that I could show Joy what the place was all about when I got home that night. But later when I was resting in Williams, drinking a nice cold Chocolate Milk Shake, I applied some apps to a few of the images I took, adjusted, undid, used other filters etc… and arrived upon the images I am sharing with you today. I do not recall the apps that I used, I just dabble with iPhoneography, and I just applied things. I either liked it or didn’t like it… I had no preconceived expectations like I do when I work with my film cameras. In short I was able to enjoy both the structure of shooting with a 4x5, applying the zone system for black and white film, and the snap shooting and wild manipulation opportunities that is iPhoneography… all on the same day. 
I hope you enjoy the images… and I promise that I will post images taken with the 4x5 later on…