Update: Lost World has closed and Beguile no longer exists as a region name.

I’m the first to admit I’m not the world’s greatest SL photographer, but I love finding places in SL that are both interesting to explore and can make excellent backdrops / subjects for photography; and if they have a hint of a story of their own – so much the better.

One such place that combines opportunities for in-world photography with the hint of a mysterious back story is ! Lost World !, created by Lolmac Shan.

This is a fabulous build covering the region of Beguile that calls out to photographers and machinima makers alike.Here you’ll find the ruins of … what? a great house? An Abbey or religious centre? A castle? A once-thriving port? ..

You arrive in the middle of the ruins, standing at the crossways of two ancient walkways. Before you lies the ruins of a great hall (Lolmac’s store), the roof long gone, the supporting arches starting to collapse themselves. From here, it is up to you as to where you go…

Behind you, a short distance away, the ruins stand sentinel in a losing battle against the encroaching sea; aches stand in isolation, their winged gargoyles facing inland as waves crash against weathered and deformed stone carvings beyond, fallen columns and walls littering the waters, while here and there further fragments of whatever once stood here rise from what has become their own little islands in the fight against the incoming sea.

A little further along the coast stands another building, looking for all the world like a covered dock where ships may have once sought shelter while offloading their cargoes. Here is a hint of a possible religious element to the place: a great winged figure – an angel? – seems to stand guard before the arches of the building, face set sternly towards the ocean…

Further inland, there are other hints of a religious nature, and what appears to be the remnants of a great abbey, complete with what seem to be a flooded cloisters…

But look up and across the quiet, blue water, and the gigantic stone face staring back at you suggests that if this were a place of religion – it might just have been one that embraced violence and strange rites…

It is these contradictions that make ! Lost World ! so alluring; it is if nothing is quite what it seems. Having looked upon the great stone face, with its horned and barbed helm, it is hard not to look on the winged figure on the shoreline and not imagine it to have a more sinister purpose, or at the gargoyles atop the flooded arches without finding them somehow more menacing, as if standing guard to prevent anyone leaving this place…

And there are secrets to find within this place, if you are prepared to look; and not all is in quite the ruinous state as seems to be the case…

But even with these sinister or mysterious edges, there is no denying ! Lost World ! is a mesmerizing place, and considerable thought and creativity has gone into its development, making it a marvellous location for filming and photography. The careful visitor is liable to find a veritable treasure-trove of detail while exploring on foot – although at times an airborne look helps one fully appreciate the build as a whole.It may not be as extensive as some, but the balance it exhibits is sublime.

This is a place I love to come to simply because it is so beautiful and yet thought-provoking. It’s a place I can visit and wander and dream up stories; it’s a place I love to photograph, and it’s a place where I can always find some corner or nook, and simply watch the passing world and quietly observe those who also come to visit…

And despite the undertones of sinister mystery, this is also a place for romance in all its many forms. Here you can sit with a loved one and whisper quietly to one another amidst the tumbled walls and pillars, or you can wander together through the trees and along the banks of the waterways, or dance together as the sun sets behind you…

But don’t simply take my word for it – why not pay a visit yourself?

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