Dave Daniel Photography

I’m constantly on the lookout for interesting locations for future photo shoots, and happened to come across one in East Central Illinois in the small town of Villa Grove. Villa Grove is on Illinois SR-130 about 5 miles north of US-36. The location is near the train yards and appears to be an old commercial oil/gas supply terminal. Also at the site is a large semi-circular warehouse that might have been a roundhouse, along with a number of smaller support buildings. Across the tracks is a terminal building and a complement of small main streetish buildings. The whole town is rich with potential photo targets.

What appealed to me about the site were the amazing textures and, of course, the fact that it’s falling apart. While the initial draw was as a backdrop for a model photo shoot, or as a framing for something like a motorcycle or automobile shot, I found a number of possibilities for the site as the star. I shot off about a dozen images to remember what was available for a later session when I had more time and better light. Some stark winter shots intrigue me. Check the images below for a sampling of the possibilities.