Can't wait for the snow to blanket my part of the midwest so we can get out shootin' more barns.

In the meantime, this one will have to do:  a snow scene that appears in my book, "Wisconsin Barns." We captured this barn near Spring Lake, Wisc.

To be truthful, the hay rolls scattered in the white fields caught my attention first; there happened to be a cool barn sitting against a hill full of trees in the background, so it worked out. 

Looking forward to more; and soon!

Traveling to Macomb, Ill., the other day, we came across this scene near LaSalle, a naked tree against the fall sky with a lone farm building against the horizon. A common scene in these flatlands, the scene is a reminder how empty and lonely the country can appear. For more of my work, visit www.mfisherstudios.com. Just click on Ernest J. Schweit photography. Or 'like' us on facebook; search for Ernest J. Schweit photography.

Sometimes an old barn will grab my attention for the way it sits in its surroundings. Such was the case with this beauty we found out near a golf course in Belvidere, Ill.

Sitting among the grasses and brush, this old beauty seemed to be about to be swallowed up by its surroundings, like so many other barns we've seen.

Hang in there!

Western Illinois winter

Desolation is the word that sprung to mind when I saw this old red barn along Route 150  during a recent trip through Western Illinois. The spindly, barren trees, grey skies and snow sprinkled field made this old barn look lonelier than it would have looked surrounded by lush trees, crops in the field and a bright blue sky. Yet many old barns I've come across have a lonely look to them, as if they've seen better days and now they're cast aside.

Hay rolls in winter

Finding new and interesting settings to photograph a barn can be challenging, especially when winter is whipping across the farmland of western Illinois. We discovered these rolls of hay in a field along Illinois Route 150. Conveniently, a farmhouse and a barn were nearby, so we put 'em together and viola! Something a little different. I might take a different perspective if I had it to do over again, but hey, like I said, it was c-c-cold outside and I feel fortunate to have captured this image before my fingers froze!

Happy New Year!

Happy holidays!

A fresh snow had fallen the night before we made this image on a country road in Lake County, Ill. The snow covered trees made for a nice framing device and the light from the clear blue winter sky still makes me feel cold.
Consider this my holiday gift to everyone who stops here; especially those who do so on a regular basis as followers.
Have a great holiday and a happy and healthy new year!

Farmhouse of mystery

The old farmhouse looked scary, almost like a haunted house, when we found it on a recent fall morning. Of course, the muted light from a  rain shower passing through McHenry County didn't hurt the effect. An abandoned house like this --with its prevailing sense of mystery--seems to pose more questions then it answers. But that's fine. It might look ugly to some, but I see a beauty in it that rivals one of those the big houses with a longest drive-way.

If this old farm could only talk

This old, rundown barn sits on an abandoned farm in McHenry County, Ill. Surrounded by dead grasses turned brown by the fall, it might seem ugly to some. Not to me.
The old place has a certain mystique about it, like a thousand stories of former inhabitants waiting, but unable, to be told.
It's a shame farms like this one are falling into a state of disrepair, although there is hope. The restoration movement is saving a few, but the process is long and can be expensive, even though financial aid is available.
We visited the farm on a rainy day, which only added to the lonely feel to the image. Another shot from the same farm is posted below. We'll post others in the future.

Abandoned

My good friend and photog, Jay, shares my passion for barns. Luckily for him--and me, too---he lives in a country-fied area of Northern Illinois where there are lot of them. Unfortunately, many are falling down, like this one, which is actually part of an abandoned farm in McHenry County. Jay took me there on a recent Sunday morning and we had fun fighting the rainy cold fall day to capture a few images.

This is one of my favorites, captured from what I'm guessing was once the dining room of an old farmhouse. 

This is one of the first images I made with the new Nikon D700, a really sweet camera with a full sensor that I hope to master in the not too distant future.

We'll post more images from that shoot in the days ahead.

Hope you like it, too. 

Still standing

I had noticed this barn--delapidated but still upright-- on Route 80 just west of Morris, Ill., about six months before I actually got a chance to photograph it. But when I finally did it was one of those magic moments that happens only once and a while.

When I pulled up to the place, it was late morning and the skies were overcast. But as I hiked up the hill the gray clouds seemed to part, revealing a gorgeous blue Illinois sky. As you can tell, the barn was at the top of the hill and provided a challenging climb with camera and tripod in hand. Over-grown vines cover the conveyor belt, an indication that the barn hasn't seen any use in quite some time. I first posted just the image to the left , but decided that as nice as it is, the shot doesn't do the barn any justice. So I added the horizontal  shot .

The farm goes industrial

Rusted gears meet rural America in Fox River Grove, Ill.

The industrial revolution forever changed farming. Gone were horse-drawn plows to turn over fields and sleds to haul away stone. Mechanization arrived, driven by steam and gasoline. I was thinking of all that as I saw this image at a farm near Fox River Grove, Ill. Down the road from the barn were a grouping of big blue silos and behind them were these massive gears. Together, they made a nice composition that brought together rural America and industry.

Lovin' the rain

A fence, a road and a barn in the distance; a lonely scene that could be anywhere in the midwest. This one was in McDonnough County, not all that far from Macomb, Ill. A light rain filled the air and tweaked the light just enough to make it flat, but interesting. Another example of why you should never, ever put the camera away when the weather turns bad.

Always amazing!

I'm constantly amazed by how images and words about American barns resonate with people. Everywhere we go for presentations and book signings for  "Wisconsin Barns," we get nice crowds of people with lots of their own stories to tell.

The latest example came at the Northbrook Public Library, where we had a nice crowd of barn fans, some of whom stayed long after we were done just talking about their love of the American icon.

Thanks to the staff at Northbrook for having us visit, especially a certain tech person who saved the night with a laptop that would actually show my PowerPoint show!

Next up is Sept. presentation in Kenosha.

If you are interested in the program, drop me an email at ernestjschweit@sbcglobal.net.

Also on the horizon is another session of "Barn Photography: Photographing an American Icon" at Harper College in Palatine later this summer (www.harpercollege.edu/ce), as well as "Flower Photography Inside and  Out" and "Photography Continued," also at Harper this fall.

Silo standing guard

A student of mine, Jay, took our photo class to this wonderful barn in Fox River Grove, Ill., early one morning this spring. From this angle, the barn, with its rotund brick and steel band silo, reminds me of a chunky old man standing watch over his  fields. Ok, so maybe I'm losing it.

The class, Barn Photography, will be offered again this fall at Harper College in Palatine (www.harpercollege.edu/ce).