xtacyphoto.com
Welcome to xtacyphoto.com. This site showcases my favorite photographic work, and will grow larger and larger as my skills improve. A favorite subject of mine is decay or unnoticed features of man-made structures, specifically relics of the recent past. In many of these photos, I strive to find beauty in what others see as an eyesore. Of course, other subjects will pop up here from time to time.
Many people may find this sort of photography boring or depressing. Others may wonder why I bother photographing 20th century decay when there's a field of colorful wildflowers or a landscape of scenic mountains nearby. I believe the most important beauty is that which we do not notice in our daily lives. Capturing such images leaves me with a feeling of accomplishment when I realize in one hour, I've seen things that dozens, hundreds, even thousands of people pass by every day and do not see.
You'll find that most of my photos do not show any people. In my opinion, this lack of crowdedness elicits a feeling of tranquility, instead of loneliness. It is similar to the feeling of intensely listening to ambient sounds that are normally ignored.
I hope you enjoy viewing my photos as much as I enjoy taking them.
-The Webmaster
Site News:
1/1/08
HAPPY NEW YEAR!! And holy hell, what an end of the year that was. I found myself a new job and moved to Pittsburgh, and have been VERY busy with the move, getting situated, etc. But now things are starting to become something resembling normal, at long last. And on that note... Iron City gallery is now posted!
9/26/07:
I've been busy, eh? Not traveling so much, but been processing tons of pics from prior trips. Today's offering is the Center for the Criminally Insane. It's a freaking fortress.
9/25/07:
More urbex- this time at the County School for the Developmentally Disabled. This one's been abandoned for over 20 years!
8/6/07:
My biggest urban exploration project to date, and some of my BEST photos ever! Vandalia Asylum for the Insane. The asylum's huge, and so is the gallery. Enjoy!
7/28/07:
Motorcycles galore! Photos from Mountainfest 2007 added!
7/27/07:
A little concert photography for you. Oval Opus and The Clarks perform at the Fayette County Fair.
7/22/07:
More urban exploration, this time on a small scale.
Lookin' Out My Back Door gallery added. A small abandoned house left over from the days before indoor plumbing. Which in West Virginia means the early 1970's, apparently.
7/7/07:
Fireworks, anyone?
Let Men Burn Stars gallery added. Shots from two (lame) Fourth of July fireworks shows!
5/26/07:
YES, I updated!!
-Solid State album added. Some slick nighttime photos of old-school stereo equipment.
-River Trails albums added. Wildlife and nature along trails by the river, and an up close and personal encounter with a nesting swan.
-Anchor-Hocking Glass Factory albums added. YES, I FINALLY DID SOME REAL-LIVE URBAN EXPLORATION!! About damn time, isn't it? The remains of the gigantic Anchor-Hocking Glass industrial park.
4/19/07:
THIS IS WHY WE CAN'T HAVE NICE THINGS. Comment permissions have been REMOVED to everyone except registered users, thanks to some asshole posting 25 pages of spam on my site. Whoever it was used an IP randomizer, so there's no way I can track it. Thanks to this vandal, you'll now have to register to post comments.
I've been incredibly busy these past few months, working my butt off at my current job while also job hunting. New galleries are on the way soon, I promise!
12/10/06:
New photo gallery: The Iron Horse.51 photos of railroad equipment, from beautifully restored to beautifully rusting to pieces!
10/31/06:
Happy Halloween! After several months of processing, Czech Republic photo galleries added! Nearly 150 photos!
10/24/06:
YES, I FINALLY UPDATED! Also "finished" the site, that is, fixed the broken links! Lots of stuff today, so I'll keep it concise:
Weston State in Autumn, Truck Graveyard, Along Came a Spider, and Rusting Among the Weeds added to the Galleries page. Contact page finally added. And that... is all for now.
5/29/06:
It's Memorial Day! Please remember the sacrifice our soldiers have made for our country, even if you don't agree with the current war. One photo added to Uncategorized directory.
5/08/06:
Ozymandias photo gallery added. Rusting equipment of bygone industry.
5/08/06:
Campus In Repose photo gallery added. A set of night photos from West Virginia University's downtown campus, taken during University holiday.
5/08/06:
8 photos added to Uncategorized section.
5/08/06:
Weston State Hospital photo gallery added. 77 photos of the abandoned Weston State Mental Hospital, a Kirkbride design dating back to 1858.
5/07/06:
If you're reading this, then today's update should be obvious.
The creator of this website strongly recommends Mozilla Firefox. This site may display an extra scroll bar or trigger a security warning in Internet Explorer. Frankly I don't give a damn. Protect your computer and enhance your browsing experience. Go with Firefox. If you personally know me, please, please, PLEASE switch to Firefox- I'm sick and tired of fixing you guys' computers due to spyware infections allowed by Microsoft Internet Exploder.