DIY Photography

Your one stop shop for everything photo-video

  • News
  • Inspiration
  • Reviews
  • Tutorials
  • DIY
  • Gear
Search

Submit A Story

This photographer is documenting the American Midwest’s small towns before they disappear forever

Dec 19, 2017 by John Aldred Add Comment

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

The stories behind our work, especially personal projects about which we’re passionate, can be very powerful. This is often true of documentary photographers. They’re capturing a record of our global history. One day, perhaps sooner than we think, they’ll show future generations about the world we live in today.

That’s the driving force behind photographer Danny Wilcox Frazier’s project. He’s been travelling the American Midwest to document the small towns that are rapidly disappearing. He documents the real life of their residents, and this short film from Adobe follows him on this journey.

A small warning: This video might not be suitable for younger or sensitive audiences.

It’s a fascinating journey showing the ups, downs and real life of the people living in these towns. Danny says he’s been working in and around these towns for 20-30 years, and they’re becoming ghost towns. He wants to document these communities before they disappear forever.

Danny’s own story, as well as those of the people he photographs are deeply personal. His primary focus in this very long-term project is the depopulation of the American heartland. Driven by economic circumstances and continual change, it covers many controversial topics including gun ownership, immigration, politics, the struggles of small businesses and farms, the closing of factories, job automation and the treatment of indigenous people of the areas he visits.

Danny covers these topics and more with his beloved Leica rangefinders to let the viewer draw their own conclusions on the final images. The images are a mix of the beautiful and the ugly in this world, based on years of building up friendships with these communities. It grants him a level of access to their daily lives that few others ever get to see while holding a camera.

Danny is in the process of collecting some of these images together for a new book; Lost Nation. His previous book, Driftless, documents the lives of people from Danny’s home state of Iowa and the changes he and its residents grew up in. Five years in the making, it won the Center for Documentary Studies/Honickman First Book Prize in Photography.

If you want to find out more about Danny and his work, check out his profile on VII Photo, or follow him on Instagram.

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Related posts:

Documenting War: Mathew Brady on the American Battlefield Unseen (and unauthorised) photos from the ghost towns of Fukushima Default ThumbnailHow To Make Your Body Disappear In A Photograph The Misconception of Perception – Documenting the Gap Between What We See and What Is Real

Filed Under: Inspiration Tagged With: america, American Midwest, Danny Wilcox Frazier, inspiration

John Aldred: from diyphotography.net

About John Aldred

John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

« Avoid these 10 mistakes when buying a camera
FAA restricts drone operations over seven nuclear facilities »

Submit A Story

Get our FREE Lighting Book

DIYP lighting book cover

* download requires newsletter signup
DIYPhotography

Recent Comments

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Recent Posts

  • Here’s a bullet time video booth you can build yourself
  • Ricoh has discontinued the HD PENTAX-DA 21mm F3.2AL Limited silver lens
  • This “stellar flower” unravels the twilight’s evolution in 360 degrees
  • Strobes vs Continuous LEDs – Which is right for you?
  • Wave goodbye to Apple’s My Photo Stream next month

Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

Alex Baker: from diyphotography.netAlex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.netDunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

Copyright © DIYPhotography 2006 - 2023 | About | Contact | Advertise | Write for DIYP | Full Disclosure | Privacy Policy