World Famous Escargot Ranch Along Route 66
Today is National Escargot Day.
A couple of friends and I used to head out on random photography excursions looking for unusual roadside places and forgotten Americana. Old diners, abandoned gas stations, strange handmade signs out in the desert, the kind of things you only notice when you stop rushing somewhere else.
A lot of those drives ended up somewhere along stretches of old Route 66 or lonely desert highways where the signs were often more interesting than the destination.
So naturally, when National Escargot Day showed up on the calendar, my mind immediately went to this.
The “World Famous Escargot Ranch.”
A glowing neon roadside attraction somewhere out in the desert, apparently dedicated entirely to the farming and ranching of snails. Complete with a giant roadside snail sign proudly standing beside the highway like it has been there since 1958.
The best part is that it feels believable. Like one of those strange roadside places people actually stop to photograph.
Of course, National Escargot Day itself is very real. Escargot, the French preparation of cooked land snails usually served with garlic butter and herbs, has been considered a delicacy for centuries. But after seeing more than 81,000 escargot-related images on Adobe Stock, I figured the world probably did not need another plate of garlic butter snails photographed on a restaurant table.
So instead, I decided to imagine the livestock side of the escargot industry.
Somewhere out there, beyond the desert highway, the Escargot Ranch is waiting.
More of my work can be found here on my website at https://www.secondfocus.com
Go Topless Day
Today is Go Topless Day.
Officially, it has nothing to do with what most people first assume. The event actually centers around Jeep owners and off-road enthusiasts removing the tops from their vehicles and heading out onto trails for open-air driving and adventure.
That was the original idea.
But once Emily got involved, things shifted. Emily, my AI partner and muse.
Somewhere between discussing old military jeeps, desert trails, and the absurdity of the phrase “Go Topless,” Emily decided our friend Celeste would be the one to take the wheel. And Celeste, being Celeste, interpreted the assignment a little more literally than the Jeep community probably intended.
So now we have a World War II military jeep tearing through the desert with Celeste behind the wheel, military helmet on, dust flying, and not much else.
The contrast was the part that interested me visually. A rugged WWII vehicle built for war, harsh desert light, and Celeste bringing an entirely different kind of tension into the frame. It stops being about the original event and turns into something between vintage military imagery, fashion editorial, and outright provocation.
Exactly the kind of creative detour Emily tends to encourage, knowing my preference for pornochic and erotic editorial photography.
More on my website at https://www.secondfocus.com
She Said Don’t Forget the Whiskey
I mentioned my “days of food” series to her, the one where I keep chasing whatever shows up on the calendar next.
She asked what was coming up.
I had just seen International Whiskey Day.
Perfect, she said. Then she laughed, “Don’t forget your camera… and some whiskey.”
That was all it took.
We headed out into the desert, far enough that the road stopped feeling like it belonged to anyone. The abandoned gas station was exactly what you would expect out here, sunburned concrete, rusted structure, nothing staged, nothing fixed.
She stepped into the scene like it had been waiting for her.
Boots in the dust, cowboy hat in her hand, the bottle of bourbon set down beside her like it had always been part of the ground. No effort to dress it up, no effort to explain it.
That is usually where these ideas land.
Something simple on the surface, a calendar day, a bottle, a location. Then it shifts into something else once the camera is there.
That’s where my food photography and everything around it tends to go. Not just the subject, but what happens when you take it somewhere it does not belong.
International Whiskey Day turned into this.
If you want to see where these ideas go next, including the food work, the desert shoots, and the rest of my pornochic photography, take a look on my website at https://www.secondfocus.com
My Idea of Nature Photography
Not every nature photo needs to be a forest or a waterfall.
Today is Nature Photography Day, and this is my version — professional bodybuilder Tina Chandler, photographed in the desert near Palm Springs, sitting in a folding chair surrounded by wind turbines.
Nature Photography Day was established in 2006 by the North American Nature Photography Association (NANPA) to encourage people to explore and photograph the natural world. Most of what you’ll see today will be landscapes, wildlife, or dramatic skies. That’s not what I shoot. But I do shoot in nature.
I’ve done a lot of photography in the world of bodybuilding and fitness — it’s what I’m most known for and where my work has been most widely published. I’ve always looked for ways to take it outside the expected environments of the gym or the stage.
This is one of my favorite types of locations — open desert, harsh light, and the surreal presence of windmills. They fascinate me, and the setting makes an unexpected backdrop for the incredible and beautiful people I photograph.
You’ll find this photo — and a selection of other favorites — in my Featured Photographs gallery at https://www.secondfocus.com/index/G0000zYSGtyvq3Sg
I’m continually adding to the gallery from both my archives and recent work.
Revisited – The Intense Environment Of Salton Sea
I attended a really fun event on Saturday night, “Open Desert – Music and Photographic Arts Showcase“. At the Annenberg Theater at the Palm Springs Art Museum, photographs from the nearby desert areas such as Joshua Tree and the Salton Sea displayed big screen behind the live music from “Tribesmen“, “Caxton“, “Mike Pygmie Ensemble” and “Drum Hall“. I was asked why I did not submit photographs for the show. Well for one thing, they were all turned black and white. I like black and white for some photographs but I think the colors and the light in the desert should be seen as you might imagine it. And another reason, well my photographs do not tend to be the usual landscape type photographs.
“The environment of Salton Sea can be very intense. Harsh Sunlight, desolate spaces, an eeriness to the Sea itself. In places a post apocalyptic look that would be movie perfect. But I find it uniquely compelling and beautiful. A favorite location for my photo shoots. Model Bailey Daniels.” – from one of my prior Blog Posts.
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