Motel Monday - Late Night Edition

On this late night edition of Motel Monday I bring you a brand new shot taken yesterday of the Town and Country Motel in Livingston. Like most of these independent motels, the Town and Country can no longer be seen from the freeway. I've driven past it on Highway 99 at least a hundred times, and I've never seen it.

I love the grid pattern and the ladder climbing up the side of the MOTEL letters. I can only imaging how amazing the view must be from the top. One last random factoid... the Town and Country is located on Stefani Avenue. Throw an e on the end and it's perfect.

Sweet dreams...

- Stefanie

Road Trip Warrior - Highway 99

These past few months I feel like I've taken road tripping from a hobby to an art form. Like anything you do repeatedly, you begin to figure out just what you need, and what can be left behind. Photography road trips are no different.

This weekend is a short trip with only one day for shooting. Bright and early Sunday I'll be traveling old Highway 99 from Stockton back home to San Diego, shooting as much as possible in one day.

I love Google Maps...

This stretch of road is filled with amazing signs and my map has the little blue markers to prove it. If I manage to photograph everything between Stockton and Visalia I'll be happy. Of course I should know by now that I am overly ambitious.

I'll leave you with a teaser from a previous trip down this same route. It'd be wrong to send you into the weekend with just a map. J's Coffee will be making an appearance in my Retro Roadside Photo shop very soon. 

Java J's

Here's to the weekend...

- Stefanie 

Welcome to Motel Monday!

Vacancy

If you've taken a peek at my Retro Roadside Photo shop lately I'm sure you'll have noticed that I have a habit of shooting vintage motel signs. It's taken a while, but I've gathered a rather large collection of photographs. It hit me this weekend that I should share them all, one by one, on Motel Mondays. Thus the idea was born...

It seems only fitting that I should start this series with the sign that started it all. A little more than three years ago I shot the Supai Motel sign on Route 66 in Seligman Arizona and fell in love. Better yet, as a photographer I found a subject matter that called my name. My weekend road trip destinations have become places with great neon and my maps are dotted with liquor stores, motels, abandoned lots, bowling alleys and diners. I seek out the places most people miss and relish in the hidden gems that I never expected to find. It's my own version of a treasure hunt, and the Supai Motel sign is the first jewel I laid eyes on.

Happy Monday! Here's to an excellent week.

- Stefanie