These freshly loaded round bales are heading to the barn for storage. Dad is at the wheel while his two young sons are to the right on the fender learning the ropes. The harvester in the background was not a luck thing because I put myself in the right spot and waited for the two to converge in one shot. Farm kids learn early on about having a good work ethic and I never question the parents personal decisions on safety related activities, but if one of those boys slides off, that steel wheel tractor ain’t stopping in time! We have had several kids here in Lancaster county this year crushed under wagon wheels and they did not survive!
I mentioned previously that after the Amish girl Linda Stoltzfoos was abducted and murdered that I found I was affected by it so much I had no desire to go out shooting. Well I still do not shoot like I used too but I still enjoy documenting Lancaster county Amish life and our agricultural landscape. In case you don’t know the term Rumspringa , my understanding is it is a period in Amish teen years were they kind of are allowed to experience the trappings of the world with little repercussions from the elders. Beer drinking, parties etc are common events during this time. I am not sure you would say this shot represents Rumspringa but it’s not every day I get the finger from a wagon full of Amish teens, much less the one on the right giving me the loser salute! I remember years ago a Police officer told me he got a call from someone complaining about loud partying at a farm next door and the officer told me as he drove down the lane he noticed movement on the barn roof and upon shining his spotlight he witnessed half a dozen Amish girls without a stitch of clothing on. Now that is some serious Rumspringa right there.
This is an Amish farm stand that has pick your own flowers but you can barely see them from the two roads that run behind the barn. I got a small glimpse and made up my mind I would ask permission to walk down here. The Amish can be quite reserved at times so you never know what answer you may get but to my surprise they were more than happy to let me wander. Even though the barn is not going to win any barn competitions, the flowers made it worth the effort! In the end I gave them a large matted and framed print and it was like they hit the lottery when they saw it.
I was out getting photos of barns for a local Historical society tour book being produced when thunderstorms moved in and due to the rain persisting for a while I decided to head home for the evening. Halfway home I was passing this local church and two things caught my attention. The first thing I noticed was the rain had stopped, and even better the lightning seemed to be staying in the same area and was barely moving which was somewhat unusual. Lightning is serious business so even though getting out of my truck for two minutes to set the tripod and camera up is not very long, there is a little voice saying that was close!
After setting up, then I can safely fire the camera remotely from my vehicle. What made this storm special was how it barely moved over at least a 45 minute period. After deciding where to aim my camera, I started with 4 second exposures and was not having great success catching more than a single bolt on a frame so I lengthened it to 15 seconds per shot and the image here was my best. I literally had just hit the remote shutter button and I watched as the three bolts over the church flashed almost simultaneously and then the other two bolts happened farther into the exposure. I had a single blast I caught later that was so intense I could not salvage any detail due to overexposure. Best lightning conditions I ever shot under!
This storm was a month or two ago and it was a doozie. I was in Amish country when an alert came across the radio warning about the storm I was watching approaching on the horizon. The closer it got, the wilder the clouds were and they literally rolled like waves across the sky! I would look for a farm, wait for the clouds, shoot and then tear down the back roads trying to keep ahead to get another shot and repeat. I finally got done in by roads going the wrong direction. The middle photo is after the first wave came through and the last is 5 minutes later just as they were getting home!
This is another shot of the Alden house in downtown Lititz, Pa. The star is one of many the boro used to use on their telephone poles at Christmas. There were retired and offered to the public and this one still proudly shines in all its glory on a side porch while Edison bulbs shimmer overhead.
This is the first image I did of this Victorian masterpiece and if you look closely you can see the shadow of the ornate iron fence revealed on the roadway in front. That shadow is the result of multiple attempts with my flash to backlight the fence and cast that shadow. I finally got the right flash height to reveal the rounded design detail of the fence on the road!
The quaint town of Lititz, Pa is the subject of some of my photos and these Edison bulbs add a warm inviting touch to the downtown sidewalks. Local lighting company Stray lighting is responsible for this welcome addition.
This old pickup was parked at the entrance to the town park and was set up to allow anyone passing by to climb on back for family photos! Thats small town charm right there!
This private porch caught my eye while walking through Lititz. I got permission and got right on it. The only thing I might mention is the reflection of the deer and Christmas ornaments. When I set my camera up I noticed the light reflecting off a few wet spots on the porch so my wheels started turning and I decided a few bottles of spring water might help get the job done and thats how that was done. I did have to wipe up after I was done but I like the result.
This Historic Inn is called The Smithton Inn and is located in Lancaster County, Pa. It is a bed and breakfast that really feels like your home away from home. The owners inquired if I might have time to capture it in it’s Holiday best and I said all I could do was keep it on my radar. Well days kept slipping by and although I wanted snow, that was not in the cards this year so I knew there was a day coming up that was calling for rain all day! I should have taken a picture of my camera setup that was needed to pull this shot off. First it was very cold and raw with constant rain blowing in 20-30 mph winds. I set my tripod fairly low to get the reflection and then had to set another heavy bag against the tripod with an umbrella on top that got velcroed tight to my tripod, and then finally another bag with weights in it hung on the tripod to keep everything from moving! That umbrella bounced around violently but all the images were in register so the weight kept it rock solid.
To look at the shot you would think that no cars were on the road, but there is a stop light just to the right and it was right at rush hour so I would watch the light go green , pray all cars would get through and then shoot as many frames as I could till the next line of cars blocked my view. A couple times I sat through three light cycles till I had a clear view. The other issue is shooting 6 and 10 second exposures that basically eat up the only segment of time with no cars, so one shot and wait. Till I was done I was soaked and my hands were screaming from the cold because it is problematic wearing gloves, operating my tablet and carrying a large flash all at the same time.
Well I kind of ran into a wall posting my Christmas photos on time. All I can say is my old nemesis depression showed up and left me with a combination state of sad, miserable and weary of the world essentially, so anyone dealing with the same thing know you are not alone! This old Victorian was a bright spot for me as the year drew to a close. I do have a shot from the week before that I will share in the next week or so as well.
I left home 12 miles away in the rain which is why I headed here in the first place to get a reflection, but when I arrived I was greeted with the remnants of a light snow that had yet to be shoveled from the sidewalk! I could not find a parking place so I asked the owner if there was any chance I could park in his large driveway? He said no problem, which I needed because the light was dropping fast. I set up and waited for the light to balance out and I began shooting. One technique I have found to help get the results I want is to hit the subject with a bright burst of flash and in turn you get a more detailed reflection in the road that appears. Almost everything reflected in the road to the left of the round corner turret with the green lights is thanks to adding light to the house. Hope everyone has a wonderful 2023! Oh and the sidewalk crew showed up just as I finished so I was grateful for that!
Donald Reese Photography 