Author Archives: reesephoto

Patience Tested

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I shot this Aurora this past week mainly because a friend was without his car so I offered to take him to this lake. We were there about a half hour with nothing to speak of and seconds before I was going back to my vehicle to relax while he persisted, he suddenly blurts out “look to your left” and sure enough this color started to explode across the sky and reflect in the lake.

After the Storm

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This is my hometown after a heavy storm passed through. I headed out hoping for a rainbow which did happen although somewhat mediocre, but as I drove through town I noticed the light hitting the church and buildings on this street. The doggone wires are quite obnoxious but the lighting is cool.

A Final Gesture?

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The gentleman who owned this local farm had allowed me to photograph on his property a couple times over the years. He had some custom stonework he created which resembled Castle Spires, a wishing well and other nice accents around the property. He passed away this year and within the last month I happened to drive by and see this wonderful sunflower field on his property! While I cannot say for sure this was a farewell gesture to the community, it would not surprise me in the slightest if this was the case.

Teamwork

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Another shot from Rough and Tumble and what you are looking at is two Steam Tractors working as a team to keep the metal shackle in the middle from touching the ground. They both move the same direction and then the opposite and this is no easy feat with the way these machines move at different rates. If you take note the rope holding the shackle is also tied around the waste of each driver. A contingent of Amish and Mennonite kids have front row seats for the action. One note worth mentioning is the fact these guys love to blast their steam whistles which are unbelievably loud, and Let me tell you when you are looking the opposite way standing ten feet from one of these, and they pull the cord, it almost makes you jump out of your shoes!

Rough and Tumble

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Rough and Tumble is an organization comprised of folks who have a passion for old steam powered machines, tractors, etc. Once a year they hold what is known as the Thresherman’s reunion which is open to the public and you can see some really cool old equipment there. There are two small steam locomotives that carry passengers around the property and there are competitions to enjoy as well. This is a shot I did of a small section of tractors on display by a barn. This was a pain to do because I did not bring my normal remote setup with me, so I had to fire the flash in the middle of one second exposures and could only guess if I was aiming correctly without the aid of my tablet feedback. I pulled it off but it reminded me how modern tools assist the photographer to reach his creative vision. Just as I was framing the shot there was a group of ten Amish girls who walked right down the middle which I captured but they were blurry due to having everything set for longer exposures. You would never guess there are bleachers just to the left with several hundred people watching steam engines pulling a sled.

Fire Breather!

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steam tractor

This is a shot I took at the Rough and Tumble Thresherman’s reunion held last week here in Lancaster county. This is an annual gathering of Steam equipment of all kinds. This particular photo is from what they refer to as the sparks demonstration. To accomplish this effect, they put wood chips into the furnace which then shoot out the chimney as hot glowing embers.

The Twilight Zone!

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Have you ever been going somewhere in your car and you see a vehicle headed the other direction that for some reason catches your attention, then an hour later or so you pass the exact same vehicle going the opposite way and you realize it’s the same spot you first crossed paths? Well this has happened to me on more than one occasion and each time I think what are the chances that this would occur and I ponder if our paths are somehow intertwined? That’s a bizarre intro into today’s photo but its similar yet different. I recently had to run and get some things about ten miles from home and on the way I passed this buggy going the other way on a back road and it caught my eye but I had no time to turn around. As I kept driving, this buggy I had passed kept popping up in my mind as I replayed over and over the opportunity I missed. So I got to the store, got my things and decided to take another route back home just to look for anything interesting I might come across. As I am coming through the town of Lititz I see the exact same buggy and we cross paths at literally the best possible spot for me to capture a nice image. It is the entrance to the Lititz Springs park and traffic is very steady along this route, but in a moment of everything coming together, the buggy turned into the park right in front of the pretty train station, and Traffic was forced to stop for a flashing pedestrian crosswalk, so I had maybe 30 seconds to frame and capture this image before the crosswalk was clear and I was forced to proceed. Sometimes I experience these seemingly impossible circumstances that present themselves in the most amazing way. There is almost no other spot along this part of town I could have captured them where it would be nothing but cars, signs, businesses in the background etc etc, but I was blessed to have this opportunity presented to me. Oh and by the way There are exactly twelve children I could count in the buggy along with their father at the reigns. They were headed for a picnic in the shady park.