Talking Pictures
Beauty In Unlikely Places

Shutterbug Staff, February, 2004

Technical Information Leica M3, 35mm Summicron (an old one), Voigtländer 35mm viewfinder, Ilford Delta 100, exposed at f/8 at 1/250 sec, yellow filter, selenium toned. © 2002, Jeffrey W. Olson, All Rights Reserved Beauty In Unlikely Places Where does one find beauty? Sometimes it can be found in the most unlikely places. The Hohman Avenue train station resides trackside in Hammond, Indiana. It is abandoned, weathered, and in a state of neglected deterioration, almost surely forgotten by the powers of railroad industry that called for its construction years ago. Yet it stands this day in near perfect light. It stands with sober dignity in sidelight and shadow, which reveals it to be a wonderful study of line, texture, and tone. Constructed with rigid architectural regularity and deliberate design, it is now covered with irregular patterns, the result of nature’s relentless disposition. Interesting fractal patterns can be seen in the lines of cracked concrete; in the worn and random motifs of painted brick, shingle, and gutter; in the crooked themes of broken window glass; even in the branching patterns of opportunistic weeds that landscape the site. There is more if one cares to look. As the proverb says, “Beauty exists in the eyes of the beholder.” —Jeffrey W. Olson Newburgh, IN

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