D e t r o i t

[Xander202]

A few from my brief visit to Detroit. Interesting city to say the least. Actually I didn't mind it, quite liked it in a weird sort of way. Wouldn't want to live there though. I don't think this is my best collection..... as pathetic as it sounds I did feel self conscious walking around with my nice camera and English accent!

[ShadowMaster]

Superb thread man! I like how you captured it all. What is the name of those abandoned 'pj's' ? In which name are they located ?

[Okayyou]

Nice work. You captured some great character in both the buildings and people.

[fishrose]

Great photos! I love this one:

Originally Posted by ShadowMaster

Superb thread man! I like how you captured it all. What is the name of those abandoned 'pj's' ? In which name are they located ?

Those are (were) the Brewster-Douglass Housing Project. It's funny you should use that term, because that's the housing project the claymation TV show "The PJ's" was based on.

[Expat]

Excellent collection!

[tallboy66]

Love Eastern Market.
On a Saturday it's a world of it's own.

[hudkina]

Originally Posted by ShadowMaster

I like how you captured it all.

If by "all", you mean ruin porn, then I guess he did...

He clearly made it deep into the Midtown area, yet all he cared to show were the abandoned projects and the few remaining dilapidated mansions in Brush Park? While the Eastern Market shots were interesting for sure, it would have been nice if the photos were a bit more representative of the area.

[LMich]

Originally Posted by hudkina

If by "all", you mean ruin porn, then I guess he did...

He clearly made it deep into the Midtown area, yet all he cared to show were the abandoned projects and the few remaining dilapidated mansions in Brush Park? While the Eastern Market shots were interesting for sure, it would have been nice if the photos were a bit more representative of the area.

I was thinking exactly the same thing; I guess you have to be from here to see it. I really liked the photos, I mean really; but it seems outside the Eastern Market shots, the photographer went looking for the usual/predictable in the two most bombed-out inner-city hoods in the city (Cass Park and Brush Park), which are literally right next to each other and immediately outside downtown. It seems like much like the ESB or Times Square in NYC, Brush Park and Cass Park have kind of become the touristy postcard shots of post-apocalyptic Detroit. The funny thing was that he was in the Cass Park area and literally missed the entire Cass Corridor, which would have offered some very interesting photos and added a bit of context.

I don't mind folks showing this stuff -- it's as much a part of Detroit as say Palmer Woods -- but it's kind of deceiving without offering it within even a bit of context. I hate to be "that guy", but you can imagine having an area you know reduced down to a single them time-and-time again without any kind of context.

[Xander202]

Originally Posted by LMich

I was thinking exactly the same thing; I guess you have to be from here to see it. I really liked the photos, I mean really; but it seems outside the Eastern Market shots, the photographer went looking for the usual/predictable in the two most bombed-out inner-city hoods in the city (Cass Park and Brush Park), which are literally right next to each other and immediately outside downtown. It seems like much like the ESB or Times Square in NYC, Brush Park and Cass Park have kind of become the touristy postcard shots of post-apocalyptic Detroit. The funny thing was that he was in the Cass Park area and literally missed the entire Cass Corridor, which would have offered some very interesting photos and added a bit of context.

I don't mind folks showing this stuff -- it's as much a part of Detroit as say Palmer Woods -- but it's kind of deceiving without offering it within even a bit of context. I hate to be "that guy", but you can imagine having an area you know reduced down to a single them time-and-time again without any kind of context.

I do understand what you are saying, I find it annoying when people come to London and photograph just Big Ben and Buckingham Palace etc...but thats not how it was. I came for an afternoon and a morning, and the only planning I did was that I wanted to go to the market, which I did. The rest I just wandered where the winds took me.

I've never heard of Cass Park and Brush Park, and certainly didn't look for the 'touristy postcard shots of post-apocalyptic Detroit'. I just walked and photographed what I saw. If I went to the "two most bombed-out inner-city hoods" then that was just a coincidence.

I am sorry if i didn't give enough context. I don't try to document cities as such, I approach it as a photographer. I take pictures of what interests me. So rather than viewing this thread as an attempt to portray accurately the city of Detroit, just view it as a collection of my photographs that happen to have been taken in Detroit.

[tallboy66]

Originally Posted by Xander202

I do understand what you are saying, I find it annoying when people come to London and photograph just Big Ben and Buckingham Palace etc...but thats not how it was. I came for an afternoon and a morning, and the only planning I did was that I wanted to go to the market, which I did. The rest I just wandered where the winds took me.

I've never heard of Cass Park and Brush Park, and certainly didn't look for the 'touristy postcard shots of post-apocalyptic Detroit'. I just walked and photographed what I saw. If I went to the "two most bombed-out inner-city hoods" then that was just a coincidence.

I am sorry if i didn't give enough context. I don't try to document cities as such, I approach it as a photographer. I take pictures of what interests me. So rather than viewing this thread as an attempt to portray accurately the city of Detroit, just view it as a collection of my photographs that happen to have been taken in Detroit.

Detroit is well known FOR it's abandoned buildings and an overall empty city so it's up to the people to change that image, the pics don't lie.

The extremes of entire blocks of abandoned buildings and the shoulder bumping people and cars Mack to Gratiot traffic jam IS Detroit.

[Travis007]

Brilliant photography, these photos really tell a tale of the city.

[diskojoe]

not too bad. loved the candid of the lady hiding her phone.

[ue]

Wowee. That was great, Xander. I don't recall seeing any people shots of Detroit before, or at least ones that are close up with an SLR lens. That market/vendor thing on the pedestrian bridge (?) seems like a rather cool idea.

[flar]

^^Eastern Market, one of the most vibrant parts of Detroit

Great shots! You covered a lot of ground.

[iamaberliner]

nice thread, I enjoyed that

[the pope]

the most depressing picture was the fat people and wagon.

[DeBaliviere]

Originally Posted by the pope

the most depressing picture was the fat people and wagon.

Ha, fat women don't seem to realize that the tattoos make them look WORSE.

There are so many great old apartment buildings in Detroit. I can picture in my head how vibrant the neighborhoods were when they were still intact.

[Chef]

Interesting thread.

[jowens]

Love this thread! Great stuff!!

[ColDayMan]

Excellent photos!