As promised, here is another image taken at the Watt Mansion featuring hydrangea in bloom.Recent severe hot weather has taken its toll on these lovely plants and we are in need of a good soaking rain again. A few flash pops helped light the shaded blooms.
Sorry for the error on calling these hyacinth in my original post. Thankfully a friend pointed out my brain freeze.
Sorry if I am boring anyone with another harvesting image, but I happened upon this scene yesterday and just could not resist getting out the camera. the lovely barn in the background and the wispy clouds were a perfect combination to complete the composition.
I was out looking for scenes of local farm activity and came across this crew doing custom harvesting. The farm owner graciously allowed me to wander around shooting various angles of these mechanized marvels that help make short work of what seems like daunting tasks at times. The crews are hired independently to come in and do the work, which saves the farmer having to buy extremely expensive equipment and is a win-win situation for everyone. The first shot was taken from the roof of my truck and was taken while the harvester off loaded his collecting bin into the waiting tractor,and the second shot is from ground level. Thanks to Groffdale custom harvesting for taking a few minutes to let me get the shots. While watching them work the fields, I saw numerous rabbits bolt, and amazingly enough a fox as well. I need to check my files,but I think he was out of the frame when He made a dash for it.
I did actually get the fox leaving the wheat field. He is a tiny speck on the photo,but here he is.
Another shot of local crews harvesting a crop. The men operating the equipment were hired by the farmer to come in and get the job done,which they do in a very efficient manner.
As promised, here is another view from the Watt mansion property.All one needs is a soft pillow and cushion, a favorite book, a bit of imagination, and your all set to get lost in your own enchanted fairy tale world. I added some flash to accent the ivy covered tree and bench.
My photo for today features a home that has been lovingly restored by current owners Steve and Kathy, and they have done an outstanding job both inside and out. The exterior features a gorgeous wrap around porch that has been painted in subtle shades of green and burgundy, and is a great place to sit and enjoy fresh lemonade while relaxing on one of several rocking chairs. The stunning hydrangea in shades of blue and lavender provide a visual feast for the eyes and were the reason I stopped to photograph this spot. I light painted much of the scene to help show the details,and despite picking the worst breezy night to try this, I managed to get most of the plants still. According to online resources, hydrangea color is affected primarily by the presence or absence of aluminum compounds in the flowers. Adjusting soil ph will yield blue to pink possibilities.
A little while back I posted an image of a home called the Watt mansion, which was built by The founder of Watt and Shand back in the late 1800s. This home is still for sale, and the current asking price is one million two hundred thousand, down from the original four million starting price. What you see here is not the home,but the carriage house in the back of the property. I contacted the realtor for permission to shoot, and he gladly obliged. I light painted this with a Sunpak 622 flash controlled by radio poppers and my friend yelling some feedback to me on my flash output as he sat in a lawn chair watching the laptop images appear from the camera. This home is a steal at its current price and is a gorgeous property, and I will be sharing numerous shots from here over the next weeks.
The story behind the title is kind of funny, so here it is. The evening I shot this image, my friend and I were packing up our gear across the street in the late evening light and I noticed a man walking up the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street. He seemed to be lugging some items and I jokingly said he was probably looking for a place to sleep. I headed home for the night and went to bed around 11pm, and tossed and turned most of the night as I thought about all the beauty the property had, so at 430am I headed back in to do more light painting. I set up tripod, laptop etc and began to shine my spotlight on the back of this carriage house, and out of the dark archway comes the gentleman from the night before. He was very polite, asked if I was the owner, and told me he wanted a job as a security guard on the property. I told him I did not care if he was sleeping there, and told him he should go back to bed so the security lights would stay off, to which he obliged. To see a homeless man sleeping in such an amazing place left me wondering how he got where he is in life, and what he thought about his sleeping quarters. In all reality ,it was a rather good choice of places to find safety and solitude for the night. I think the upstairs of the carriage house is over 2000 square feet alone and the real estate taxes each year are supposedly $36,000 on the property. What a dream location, and as you can see from the thumbnail image showing the starting shot, adding some flash can really bring the shot to life.
Snapped this cemetery monument on a recent stormy evening. Used two pops of the flash to add some interest on the stone.
I photographed this crew this week harvesting what I think is wheat, but I could be way off. They have to work in close proximity to one another and their driving was spot on. This was taken with an 80-400 zoom and I could actually see them in the cab talking on two-way radios,most likely about the guy taking their photo. At one point,there were three tractors lined up to catch the crop, but they never went across the field with more than the two shown here.
I went out in search of lightning photos the other night, and even though the skies looked pretty threatening, no lightning ever materialized. As I headed home I passed this piece of farm equipment sitting at a local business and decided to light paint it with a flash. I named the photo ”run for the hills” because between the sky ,and the front end of this contraption, I thought it looked pretty menacing. Its called a forage harvester,and I think it does corn but it may have other uses for all I know.
This lovely home is known as the Gonder Mansion, and is included on a local ghost tour in the area. It is a Victorian era Queen Anne style mansion built in 1905 by big wheel Benjamin Gonder, and was the home for him and his wife mary. It’s said to be haunted by the spirit of a woman who committed suicide – Annie, Benjamin’s loco sister who lived on the grounds but was shunned by the rest of the family because of her mental condition. It’s reported that the sounds of music and crazed laughter can be heard throughout the home, and her misty form has been reported haunting its corridors. She moved into the mansion in death after being forbidden to step inside the home during life. I did a small bit of light painting to highlight the gate,wall,and bushes at dusk to add my own touch to the beautiful home. The wrap around porch looks like a great place to sip cold lemonade on a summer day. I shot this from my truck roof using my laptop in the hopes of offering a better perspective.
This image was taken at the feed mill that I had photographed and featured on my blog a few days ago. I met Brad the owner, and he graciously allowed both myself and fellow photographer Larry the chance to look around inside. After the mill shut down for the day, we broke out our gear and we each selected an area to light paint. Admittedly it has been a while since I gave this technique a try, so I struggled a bit as I worked to light the room with my spotlight. The mill is a real labyrinth of metal and wood, and left me wondering how such a place is designed. The inside also included numerous cats roaming about, which surprised me with all the machines at work, but after I had witnessed a cat catch a mouse three feet in front of me, it all became clear very quickly. The area I chose included the old scale with the two feed bags on it, along with another scale facing the opposite direction with the number 122 on it. The blue light is coming from window light that was shining in at dusk. We usually work in the dark, but time constraints had us shooting earlier.
This is the same mill I posted a few days ago,but this time I lit the scene with my spotlight at dusk. I was out shooting in the area and decided at the last-minute to give the location a test try with the light. My light was low on battery power, so I did not get as much use out of it as I had hoped, but it was a good chance to practice a bit.
With Easter rapidly approaching, I noticed my mother in law had placed a glass egg with several painted eggs inside it on display in the dining room. I asked about them and it turns out they were hand painted by members of her family from past generations. The eggs are called Pysanky eggs and are meticulously painted using a wax resist method. To me it looks like something I would never have the patience to do, but I am very impressed with the ones done by the family. I have no idea if these samples would be considered good,great,average or whatever, but I enjoyed photographing them using my flashlight, which you will notice I decided to let the light streaks from it show in the final image here.
Pardon my brevity with today’s post, but I was hammered with two migraines in one day today, which is very rare for me, so as I type this, I pretty much feel like this machine is sitting on my head. Sometimes when the weather changes, These things can hit me for whatever reason. So hopefully I did not post this shot before, and my apologies if I did.
This is another image from the machine shop series, and I do not have the foggiest idea what it does.It was very cramped quarters to shoot this,so I was forced into cropping the shot like this.Used several flashlights to light paint it.
This image hopefully showcases what I consider to be a very beautiful Bruder Fair Organ from the late 1800s. The owner was gracious enough to let me photograph the piece, which has the most lovely colors on its carved surfaces. The founder of the Waldkirch organ industry was Ignaz Bruder, 1780-1845, and he was the master teacher for several german organ builders, and four of his sons founded the business Gebruder Bruder. Two of those sons, Wilhelm and Arnold, founded their own organ factory under the name of Wilhelm Bruder Sohne. I assume this piece was done by them because that name is painted across the middle, above the figure. I did not hear the organ play,but I bet it really resonates for blocks when it does play. I am by no means an authority on these organs, but doing a little research on the net, it was hard to find two organs that looked the same, so quite possibly each piece was one of a kind. The craftsmanship is simply mind-boggling. I light painted the whole room to give it a dreamy look. Can you imagine anyone having the ability or desire to create such a masterpiece today? It not only is beautiful to look at, but the music it produces most certainly delighted countless crowds way back when as well.
I usually go with one image a day, but I thought Since these two shots are of the same subject, yet look totally different, it might be interesting to see color vs black and white, First, let me say the color shot actually makes no sense to the trained eye of a machinist, but to a layman like myself, it looked perfect. The set of bits on the right were sitting a short distance from this machine, so I decided they must be used on that machine and I proceeded to place them there. I was pretty far into the shot when the owner walked by, and told me they have no relation to each other, but I was already committed at that point. The black and white was the first image I shot using old oil cans, but for some reason it did not work in color, so I abandoned the cans for the bits. Either way, I like both shots almost equally,but I really like the textures in the black and white.
Today I visited a local florist that is planning to open an antique shop in the near future, and he graciously allowed me to look through his collection for possible photo subjects. I saw the old scale first and then selected several items to add some balance and color to the shot. I have no idea where some of my ideas come from, but I decided fruit would look neat on the scale, so I zipped over to a nearby produce stand and picked up a selection of limes,lemons and apples. For budding photographers taking notes, I light painted this shot using my small flashlight, and because the room had numerous windows, I used a 3 stop neutral density filter on the lens, which allowed me to shoot exposures around 8 seconds each. The window directly behind the shot was covered by black fabric till the very end, and then the exposure for the window portion was simply painted in on lighten mode in layers in Photoshop. Thanks to Kerry for giving me free reign in the shop.
Many of you may have deduced by now that I have been thoroughly enjoying my visits to the old machine shop, and each trip is an opportunity to practice my light painting techniques in the hopes of getting better. This past trip had me trying to come up with some earth shattering image, which wasted an hour of time till I finally decided to shoot this detail shot of end mills and tool holders that were on a shelf. I added the cool oil can and rustic old cutting oil can to spice up the shot. I settled on the tighter shot because I wanted my shots to have some diversity to them. The background is just a wood panel that was part of the shelf unit, and I lit it with a flashlight.
I spent the morning sunday shooting with my friend larry who is light painting master, and we each did our best to do something unique at our local historical society. I chose an old sewing machine, and friends Margi and Dan loaned me several antique sewing items to help bring the shot to life. I used small pen flashlights and my big spotlight to accent the pieces, and the shot took me nearly an hour and a half to do. The best I could figure was this sewing machine is one made by the man who got the first patent for a lock stitch design in 1846, and his name was Elias Howe. Mr Howe had to defend his patent in court from 1849-1854, because he found that Isaac Singer, and Walter Hunt had been selling a facsimile of his machine and lockstitch design. He eventually won the case and won considerable royalties from singer. I can imagine the many hands that worked diligently on this machine in the late 1800s and early 1900s, creating garments and necessities for the family. My grandmother was a great quilter and I remember her working countless hours on her old sewing machine doing patches,and a few times over the years she would relay the stories of how a needle had gone straight through her finger and nail while sewing.
This is another machine shop undertaking, and once again the layers of color and texture drew me to photograph it. The best I could make out was that it is a turret lathe, but don’t hold me to that. I checked in the folder I save my files in and I had shot eleven separate files to light this as shown. Many times I will shoot triple that amount so I don’t miss any piece of the puzzle. As I have mentioned before, a sturdy tripod, a basic laptop and a few flashlights are all you need.
Another old classic from the machine shop light painting series I am working on. Lots of peeling paint and grime from years of use provided an interesting subject to photograph.
Todays image is one of several from my shoot at the machine shop yesterday. This place has so much history and character in every nook and cranny, that I become overwhelmed at times trying to decide which subject to shoot. I chose what I believe to be a drill press for a shot at dusk because it was positioned right at the windows where the sunset colored the evening sky outside. The patina of oil,dirt,metal shavings and everything else provided the perfect canvas to light paint. Lee who owns the shop graciously allowed myself and a friend several hours of uninterrupted shooting, which was really appreciated. I picked the title because we started shooting around 4pm and finished at 9pm, and a worker from the day shift was still running a mill in the back room to catch up on several jobs for clients as we were heading home to bed. You couldn’t ask for a more accommodating crew than the guys who help us shoot there.
This is the second image from the machine shop that I visited last week. It was fairly light inside the shop,so exposures could not be any longer than 8 seconds, which complicates the whole light painting process, unless of course you are using flash, which I find slightly harder to control in these situations. The reason I prefer flashlights is because I can do a quick test run at certain angles to see what looks the best before tripping the shutter. The various tools used in this shop are quite impressive, and personally I have never seen drill bits on such a heavy-duty scale. The rustic old cart full of tools was just perfect for light painting,and the lathe provided a nice backdrop for the cart.
One more variation featuring the old Remington typewriter. A good friend volunteers at a local computer recycling center, so I asked him to borrow a few old keyboards to use as a backdrop for the typewriter. I had the idea to contrast the old technology with the current. Obviously things were made a little better in those days. I basically skimmed the flashlight across the keyboards to accent the keys.
My photo for today features an old GMC pickup that I spotted yesterday sitting in an old abandoned car wash. Supposedly this vehicle has been parked here for years waiting for someone to restore it to its former glory.I was told the owner wants $5000 for it, so anyone reading this can contact me if you want to buy it. You can see the dust accumulated on the windshield, which is ironic considering it is parked in a car wash. I used a flashlight and some flash to light the truck body and walls of the bay area.This was shot in the dark, except for the fluorescent light, which I had no control over.
I am always on the lookout for things that appeal to me as possible photo subjects and I recently made contact with a gentleman that owns a local machine shop. I had stopped by one day for another purpose and while I was standing in the office, I noticed some old machine shop equipment in the back. Everything had a rich patina of dust, grease, and everything in between from years of jobs being performed. These machines go back many decades, are built like a tank, and seem almost indestructible, to me anyway. Everywhere you look, there seems to be endless photo possibilities for those willing to look. You can just feel the history within the shop as your eye moves from machine to machine, and being allowed to photograph there is something I am very grateful for.
The owner not only allowed me and my friend to photograph there, but he also trusted me enough to let me shoot unattended the very first night I was there. This is something that I am very grateful for and do not take for granted. Being all alone in the shop gave me the opportunity to really look for shots that I thought might work with my light painting techniques. For those who read this and enjoy photography, I want to say that I always try to make prints and let the owners use my images as they need in exchange for their generosity. Having the chance to create new images is very important to me, and I am not sure why, but I seem to have a real drive to be creative, even if I am the only person to ever see the work. So in closing, I suggest to always ask if you see something unique that you want to shoot, because you might be pleasantly surprised, and always return the favor in appreciation for someone allowing you into their domain.
I do not know anything about this particular machine, other than it being a heavy-duty grinder. Keep a look out for more great machines from this shop in the future. Again, a special thanks to Lee and his helpful employee who assisted as well.
Today I wanted to share a photograph I did recently showcasing a beautiful Wurlitzer 125 Military Band Organ that dates back to the early 1900s. This amazing musical instrument is from an era when automobiles,airplanes and electric lighting were all new. Given the opportunity to photograph such a marvelous old piece, I cant help but think of the generations of people who must have had a smile on their face as they listened to this mechanical wonder. This organ would have played in a variety of locations, such as skating rinks and carousels and can supposedly really fill the air with a tune.
As an artist, I have always found music to be very inspiring, and the ability that many musicians and singers have to take you to places that let your spirit soar has always fascinated me. This old instrument undoubtedly captivated the imagination of those who heard it play as they skated or simply enjoyed special times with family and friends. Most certainly, anyone from an older generation would have fond memories come flooding back from their youth if they were to hear this classic come to life.
I must extend a very special thank you to the owner of this piece, for allowing me access to capture something so beautiful, and also the opportunity to express my creativity through my photography. Things like this are not seen every day, and it affords ones imagination an opportunity to dream of things of wonder and beauty from times past.The original catalog states it is a 44 key instrument designed for small to medium size rinks. It lists instrumentation as outside visible-13 Brass trumpets, 13 Brass Piccolos, 13 Wooden Flageolets, 2 Drums,and a Cymbal. Inside it has 5 Wooden Trombones, 5 Open Basses, 13 Open Pipes, 6 Stopped Pipes, 11 Pipes in Accompaniment. Bottom- 5 Stopped Basses, 7 Stopped Pipes, 10 Pipes in Accompaniment, 1 Stop for Trumpets, 1 Stop for Trombones, 1 Stop for Piccolos, 1 Stop for Flageolets, Bass Drum and Cymbal.After reading about all the instruments, it’s probably good I did not ask to hear it play in a closed setting. Shipping weight was noted as 800 pounds.There are also two harmonicas lying on the table to echo the whole music theme, and the one is called a Hohnerphone that utilized a small horn like amplifier. Another very cool old instrument on a smaller scale of course.
For many seeing this image may invoke visions of merry go rounds, circus midways or other childhood memories that few other automatic instruments can match. I hope anyone seeing this image enjoys it as much as I did photographing it.
Every day I struggle over what photo I will post and what I might say that will be interesting enough that someone will actually read it. I recently purchased this old typewriter, a Remington model seven from 1897 for 3 dollars at an auction. I picked it up with the sole purpose of photographing it, and decided the old speed graphic camera from 1947 would look okay in the shot as well. The old dresser is sitting in our basement and I threw the flower arrangement in there to soften things a bit. I lit the items once again with flashlights and am fairly happy with my attempt. I am always impressed with the quality and design that things from the past seem to have, and while I would not want to work with this camera or typewriter, they are really cool to look at. The idea behind my composition was one of what tools a reporter from the past might have used.I did this shot sunday morning and it took maybe two hours start to finish. The following are a few quotes about writing, which I am terrible at, but I enjoy trying anyway.
You write to communicate to the hearts and minds of others what’s burning inside you. And we edit to let the fire show through the smoke. ~Arthur Polotnik
Words – so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them. ~Nathaniel Hawthorne
How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live. ~Henry David Thoreau, Journal, 19 August 1851
This last quote is so true and hopefully those who are kind enough to follow me here, will see that I try to live an active life, and realize that my photographs are an extension of who I am. Thanks to everyone who hits the like button on my site, but to be honest, I am not sure exactly how some of these site features work, or how many of you found me to begin with? I don’t even show up on any of the photo pages, which frustrates me, but not sure how to change that.
Donald Reese Photography 