Waning Summer Days in Siouxland, Plymouth County

As the sun sets these days one can hear the locusts performing for a random audience as the sound ebbs and flows throughout many neighborhoods. September is almost gone and those dog days of summer are dwindling. But still, there are some nice images to be found while driving about and taking the time to look for them. I personally like the fall season. It’s cooler than summer. The days are not so long and shooting sunsets fits in with my bedtime, well, almost.

I just really like the quality of the light that I see. It’s not the harsh light of summer, but softer, more diffuse and reminds one that the season are forever changing.

Jerry Mennenga

Sioux City, Iowa

Grain bins remind visitors they are in farm country in Rural Plymouth County, Iowa, Friday, Sept. 11, 2015. (photo by Jerry L Mennenga©)

Harvest will soon be occurring in these corn fields in Rural Plymouth County, Iowa, Friday, Sept. 11, 2015. (photo by Jerry L Mennenga©)

Siouxland Iowa scenics

Growing up on a farm and living in a rural area of Illinois, the scenery is not much different than what you may find in western Iowa, or southeastern South Dakota or northeastern Nebraska. Farm land, and lots of it. Rolling hills in this area currently resplendent with corn and bean fields, at least those areas not seriously affected by the current drought conditions. And sitting among these acres of farm land are those wooden barn structures that have been used for hundreds of years, but are slowly disappearing in some areas as more economical steel structures replace them. I have always liked photographing the country side, and those old, weathered barns and other buildings that give a sense of nostalgia to what the rural agricultural area was once. But there are fewer of them now. As farms grow in size to compete with multi national companies that own large farms themselves, the barns are falling apart, not cared for, not needed in this faster paced, get it done modern world we now live in. From time to time I will be posting images of scenics throughout the Siouxland area that I come across, for those nostalgic reasons and because I personally find them beautiful to look at, and holding remnants of the past from which this country grew. More work can be found here.

Jerry Mennenga

Sioux City, Iowa