This is a close-up detail of some old mining equipment at the historic Bodie, California ghost town. (This text did not accompany the original 2006 post — it was added in 2026.) As best as I can recall, this mechanism must have been some sort of winch, with cabling that wound up on the spool in the background.
The original photograph (shared elsewhere) is in color, but I ultimately came to prefer the monochrome rendition of the subject. My history of making photographs of this sort — machines and devices in black and white — is very long. In fact, one of the first attempts at a “serious” photograph that I can remember was when, as a young teen, I spent time photographing at old cable gate latch at my parents home. I’m sure they wondered what the heck I was doing!
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G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.
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