About 150 miles Northeast of San Diego, hidden within the vast Sonoran Desert, Slab City might just be the last free place in the great ole' USA.
We stopped by for a few hours while traveling through the Southern part of California. I brought along some Ilford Pan-F 50, shot in my EOS-1 RS paired with the 50mm 1.4 & a Red #25 Filter.
A structure left from the days of Camp Dunlap.Se
Set upon the remaining slabs of former U.S Military base "Camp Dunlap", the small incorporated neighborhood is made up of about 100 year-round residents. At first glance, the community looks like something out of a Post-Apocolyptic film."Slabbers" build their makeshift homes from the skeletons of old RV's, Shed's and just about anything else that can be salvaged into a livable shelter.
Ilofrds Pan-F 50 is a beautiful film. Its slow ISO makes it perfect match for bright-sunny days. The Film has terrific Latitude and holds tons of detail. Pairing this we the Red #25 filter really brought out the deep blue sky in the Sonoran Desert. The black-level on this stock is unmatched.
Slab City - Community Bulletin Board
Despite it's eerily-bare appearance, Slab City is not so far off from any other small town. There is a General Store, small Library, a few trailers that function as Cafe's, a few small "Eateries" and a Christian Church. They also have a large Artist Colony know as East Jesus, with outdoor art installations. Two large buses crammed together line a stage at "The Range", Slab Cities own local Music Venue - which features live performances at Sunset. If it weren't for the 120-degree summer heat, the place would be a paradise for some.
I rarely shoot Landscapes with a 50mm. It doesn't really give you enough width to capture a scene, but in this case I stuck with the lens throughout. This was a desert, so I could really step back and squeeze a lot into the frame. Only once or twice did I swap to a 17-40mm. Having such a slow film paired with the #25 let me open up the Lens and shoot somewhere between a f2-f4 in the midday sun.
The infamous and colorful "Salvation Mountain" is the first thing Visitors will see on their way to Slab City.
The 100,00 sq mile Sonoran Desert is the backdrop of Slab City.
Slab City, A Quality Neighborhood.
C. Rick Cook 2015
After getting back home to Philadelphia, I processed the film in d-76 for 10 minutes with 1:1 dilution at 68 degrees F.
Scanned with two passes on the OpticFilm 8100.