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The article looks at photography of ruins in the U.S. Particular focus is given to photographs by artists Walker Evans, Robert Smithson, and Camilo José Vergara. According to the author, these artists' images captured the process of entropy as theorized by philosopher Georg Simmel. It is suggested that their photographs presented a darker and less romantic image of ruins than was seen in 19th-century European pastoral art. Details on the relationship between nature, American industry, and waste in the photographs also are presented.

The article discusses photographs of soldiers taken by photographer Suzanne Opton. Three photographs featured within the issue are discussed, noting Opton's difficulty in obtaining permission to take photographs of U.S. military personnel. The relationship between the ways that portrait and landscape photography convey various feelings, such as damage, trauma, and ruin, is discussed, noting that damage to individuals is not as easy to detect as damage to physical landscapes. The question of whether the images depict resting or damaged soldiers is also raised.