On our second leg of my Namibia photo tour we stopped at Kolmanskop which is an abandoned, sand covered, ghost town. But it is really a National Park in southern Africa’s Namib desert.
I’ve been here several times but many of my guests were seeing it for the first time. It is an incredible time capsule with a rich history.
Within a span of 40 years the town of Kolmanskop opened, flourished and was left behind to succumb to the elements. Once a diamond mining town that held hopes and dreams for many settlers, now stands as a broken memory enveloped in sand.
Today, visitors can see how the extreme winds forced sand into the small town causing drifts up to 10 feet or more in some areas. There are many remnants of earlier years as tattered wall paper still adorns some of the walls. Bathtubs can be found sporadically throughout the empty buildings and streets.
The sand knows no boundaries as it continues to invade doorways, windowsills and just about every inch within each dwelling. Peeling and chipping paint is everywhere. Broken glass and floorboards are commonplace.
Photographers can find lots of interesting compositions, as just about every square inch holds a story waiting to be told. It’s best to do a morning and afternoon shoot there; as the light changes and so do the photo opportunities. There are a plethora of images to be created in this tiny gem of a place.
Below are two of my creative images from the ghost town. The first one is a long exposure shot of our Namibian guides walking through the doors and meeting in the hospital corridor. The second is a post processing blur that I created in Photoshop by adding some blur to the hallway and rooms just for fun. At the top of the page is one of the most iconic Kolmanskop shots. It’s a doorway within a doorway with a tilted door. Photographing it at just the right time for the light to illuminate the door. I plan to share more but I have so many images to go through at this point!
Two of our Namibian guides in the hospital at Kolmanskop.
