Penumbra

The Captivating Penumbra: A Photograph of Jake's Strip Club

The definition of penumbra is 'almost shadow' or 'almost dark' (or light). Penumbra is typically used to describe events in astronomy, such as when an eclipse occurs.

In photography, penumbra provides a unique opportunity to capture texture and atmosphere in an almost occult-like light. A strip club has always struck me as kind of sad and desperate. I have been meaning to take this photo for years, but the highway has been re-routed, making it tricky to get to. This isn't exactly the effect I was looking for (drizzle and water puddles would have been ideal), but I liked the emotion the headlights provided.

Jake's strip club is located in Coates, Minnesota. It had a litigious relationship with the community, and for years the town continually passed laws to close it down. In 2002, the Minnesota Supreme Court finally ruled that the town was within its authority to close Jake's. In an unwise effort to vote the local politicians out of office, Jake's owner had 92 patrons (sometimes called rummies) fill out voter registration cards, using the strip club as their home address.

You don't mess with the feds. It is never a good idea to break federal voting fraud laws, especially in such a foolish manner. Several hundred thousand dollars later, the case was finally settled. The bar never reopened, and it has been vacant ever since. No doubt it will be torn down, and the opportunity to capture Jake's in penumbra light will be gone forever.