Tag: Troy Paiva

Night photographer Troy Paiva, who has contributed his work to both Weird Texas and Weird Arizona, e-mailed me recently to let me know he's made a major update to his website Lost America.

"I've just launched the largest update to the lostamerica.com website since I first put the work online in 1999," he says. "Literally, hundreds of new images. Even if you follow my daily postings on Flickr and Facebook, there will be well over 100 new images you haven't seen before."

If you aren't familiar with Troy's work, which depicts the forgotten, decaying side of America by the light of the moon, stars and specially adapted strobes, I highly recommend you head over to Lost America now and take a long look around.

Innovative photographer Troy Paiva, whose work I'm proud to say has appeared in both Weird Texas and Weird Arizona, has just announced a fresh redesign of his Web site Lost America: Night Photography of the Abandoned West.

Featuring an updated layout, the site now offers even more of Paiva's captivating images shot among the urban detritus of the American West, some of which have never been displayed before.

To celebrate the grand re-opening, he's also offering a limited-edition folio comprising 10 prints of his amazing and colorful night shots captured at California's Pearsonville Junkyard. Only 25 sets will be made, each signed and assembled in a hand-made slipcase.

Fans of Weird Texas, Weird Arizona and many of the other Weird books are probably already familiar with the work of Troy Paiva, photographer and roadside adventurer. As a contributor to the series, Troy has added a unique flavor to many stories with his incomparable night photography.

Shooting by the light of the moon, Troy visits decrepit aircraft, forgotten ghost towns and fading motels throughout the Southwest and creates stunning images with little more than a tripod, a flash and a stack of colored gels, transforming the old and decaying into scenes both unearthly and beautiful.

His site Lost America has for years been a popular stop for photographers and travelers alike, and in 2003 he released his first book, Lost America: The Abandoned Roadside West, hailed as "a seductive journey into the unique world his camera's lenses capture ... replete with evocative remembrances of the eerie and wondrous moments Paiva has shared with the so-called empty desert spaces." I have two copies, myself. ... Continued