An Amish girl lets her little brother hang onto the basket giving him the impression he is in control.
Learning the Ropes!
Tag Archives: Amish
Stop! We Forgot the Clubs!
It’s not every day you see a golf cart full of Amish tearing up the field, but the only thing I could think of was they forgot the clubs back at the buggy and their tee time was only minutes away. They could also use new golf shoes in my opinion!
Farm field beauty
This was a gorgeous field of flowers that the family that lives here told me was clover? I missed the reason it was here but I thought they mentioned it was simply something planted between regular crops? Whatever the reason I am glad I happened upon it and got to capture it! The complementary blue sky rounds out the shot.
Cruising with Grandma!
This adorable Amish boy complete with his colorful blue shirt and straw hat sits back and takes in the beauty of a slow meandering scooter ride while his Grandma keeps her eyes on the road ahead..
Mother’s Day Flowers
Fog Shrouded Morning
Synchronized Horses
Colorful Garden Accent
An Amish clothes line provides a colorful backdrop to the families flower garden.
That’s Plum Fantastic
Amish family siblings set out along a back road in Lancaster County wearing a lovely shade of purple. I really have no idea why they dress alike or how they decide on the colors but I cannot recall ever seeing a family wearing different colors while out as a family. Maybe it basically is to conform and not be so worldly by expressing to much individuality?
Family Shoe Shopping Trip
A Mother’s Frustration
Hunsecker’s Mill Covered Bridge
This is the Hunsecker’s Mill covered bridge in Lancaster county and it is the longest single span bridge in the county at 180 feet. It has always been painted in some drab shade of gray or brown as long as I can remember and because of that I never really got too excited about it. Most of our local bridges are red, one is white and then this. Here are a few facts, it was built in 1843 at the astronomical cost of $1,988 dollars, and got washed away and destroyed in 1972 by hurricane Agnes. In 1973 it was rebuilt at a cost of $321,302 dollars which is like 166 times more. It is quite common to hear car horns beep as they go through and I have heard it is for good luck or to let oncoming cars know you are in there. The fence was not always here but I like the addition of it as it leads the eye right into the bridge.
A Slight Miscalculation
I was driving looking for photos recently when I came down a hill and saw some Amish buggies heading out from a farm on the road I was ready to turn onto. I had heard that Tuesdays are a traditional wedding day and this was in fact a Tuesday so I thought this will a happy occasion. So I drive by carefully and just as I approach the main entrance, this crew of Amish young men come barreling out the lane onto the road pushing this giant wagon that they use to haul chairs, benches and what not to various farm gatherings. I had to stop for them and then a little voice said there is a photo op right in front of you! Since I was stuck there I put it in park and opened my door to get a good angle and I took several quick bursts as they moved down the road.
So I was almost done when I heard a voice 30 feet behind me say, ”okay lets move it on now”? I usually stand my ground when someone thinks they are going to force me to listen to their orders but this guy was different and asked in a nice friendly tone. I gave him a puzzled look and he informs me there was a funeral here today? I said I thought it was a wedding and he said I thought that might be the case. I said sorry and made a hasty departure. He must have been a driver who hauls Amish around in a van because he said he never saw anything like this before. Anyway I still like the image I captured on this snowy winter day and the men were laughing as they were pushing the cart so that didn’t exactly help in my decision to shoot.
Fresh out of the Oven
I had been looking for snow scenes recently and was traversing the back roads thinking how nice it would be to see a sleigh and to my surprise a few minutes later one came up the road. The bottom photo was my first glimpse of the sleigh and to the left of the tree is a farm lane the sleigh is about to take which leads to a country store. I was fairly confident he was heading there so I slowly made my way up the lane to the store and the middle picture shows the young lad finishing up tying the horse. For some reason at this point I decided to stop shooting and set the camera back in my bag. I glance back over and the kid is now lifting a whole rack with fresh bread from the back of the sleigh. He took the bread into the store before I could even try to get a shot. So I thought to myself he will probably be coming back out the lane shortly and I could try to get a shot again. So I parked on the road and sure enough it was only a few minutes and here he comes but he noticed me up the road and all of a sudden you would have thought he was running the Kentucky Derby as he exited the lane onto the main road! I am almost certain this horse has all four hooves off the ground.
This is among one the first Amish images I have taken since the abduction of Linda Stoltzfoos and this location might be 3 miles from her home. This heartbreaking event left its mark on many, including me and I feel for the family and their loss. I feel like I have been blessed to be able to capture the Amish in a variety of ways and have gotten a small glimpse into the way they live. Hopefully I will regain my passion for capturing our county and them after this event fades a bit.
Enjoying the Simple Life
The boy on the left has a genuine happy smile as he watches the boy on the tricycle coast with his feet up. I think he may be due for a new hat?
A Game of Cat & Mouse
I was coming down a local backroad yesterday and up ahead I noticed an Amish farm stand and there was a buzz of activity focused in one area beside the road. Luckily there was another business straight across the street where I could park unnoticed for a while. There were kids, teens, and adults all filling pots with soil that were then lined up in rows in a growing area. I may be wrong but I think they were the beginnings of fall mums because this same location has had a large crop of mums in this exact spot for several years. With that being said, I watched all the activity around the farm for photo ops and I noticed way back the lane there were some youngsters playing with this tricycle/cart setup. I was quite frustrated because they were about 75 yards away and my longest lens was still not able to reach them so I waited and hoped.
Before long they disappeared behind the barn but a few minutes later they reappeared on a lane that went around the barn in a U-shape. I watched as the came almost to the road and then rode away again and I thought well you missed your chance. I then drove to the opposite end of the lot and there was exactly one spot left and guess where it was located? Â You got it, it was straight across the road from the lane they were playing in! Â I watched as they came toward me and rode away and tried my best to look disinterested and on the third trip, I brought the camera up and got this image as they turned to go back. What was funny was how they were having such a good time as I snapped this image but I think it finally registered that I had a camera and then they became much more elusive. They would dart out and make funny faces and quickly retreat but they were having fun hiding and reappearing. I keep looking at the image trying to figure how three kids fit in that little trailer. It has been a long time since I took any Amish photos but shots like this remind me why I enjoy capturing moments in their lives.
Pigtails,Pumpkins and Perfect fall weather
It certainly is quite evident that my photography has taken a back seat to everything else in my life right now and my posting on here is practically non-existent, but I did capture this pair of Amish sisters helping get their roadside stand ready recently. Something I saw while waiting for this shot to come together reminded me how the Amish sometimes seem to have a different view of danger as it relates to their kids. When I first pulled off the road to decide what I might shoot, the mom, her teenage daughter and these two little ones were all working together trimming pumpkin stems and arranging things. The thing that really caught my eye was the girl with the pig tails was holding a knife with a blade that was almost a foot long? She was not just holding it, but crawling up and over piles of pumpkins with it in her hand and she would slip or trip several times and it was making me nervous just observing, but mom seemed just fine with it?
Heading to Worship
All modes of transport were employed this sunday morning as Amish families head to worship at a home up the road.We had walkers,scooter riders,buggy and pull cart riders all using the same stretch of road in Lancaster county.
Splendid Colors
This morning includes one of those times I will remember for the missed opportunity. I decided to drive around Amish country looking for images and as I came down this road I was struck by this family heading toward me. There are actually 4 young ladies dressed in the most beautiful shade of aqua blue in this shot and mom in a contrasting pastel pink. I was at the end of a farm lane watching them come towards me and it was a one in a million view because all four little ones were walking side by side,but do you think I could raise the camera for a shot? They were all staring directly at me wondering why I was there and I just could not manage to snap a picture of them from the front, but this image of them after they passed is still kind of neat,so all was not lost.
Heritage Days5
Yes that sky is real and was the backdrop for this field full of buggies that were parked by those attending heritage days in Intercourse recently.
Heritage Days4
This Amish father and his five sons caught my eye as they headed home from heritage days. All the boys were dressed identical in blue and the view from the side was amazing but right after I snapped this shot at the stop sign,they turned right and I passed them to go further up the road to try for my dream shot of them. I went about a quarter-mile ahead,found an empty parking lot with bushes to kind of hide my truck a bit and focused in anticipation out my window. After two minutes I realized they went in the lane at the farm right after the stop sign so this image is all I got.
Heritage Days2
This group of Amish teens head down main street in Intercourse as they get ready to enjoy heritage days at the local park. They ended up at Ritas Italian ice for a treat. The one young lady is holding a cell phone which I never thought I would see in my lifetime.
Heritage Days
One local community in Amish country holds what is called heritage days every year in the towns park and I usually drive around the area trying to get images of folks heading to the event. You would never know it by this image but it was getting very late and was very dark when I saw this scene coming together and it forced me to shoot at 2000 iso almost wide open. It is kinda noisy in a large version but still I loved the girls waving to the guys coming up the road as they headed to heritage days.
Amish ABC
Time to get down to the ABCs of Amish life,because these newly cut out wooden letters are all packed up for shipping.
Harvest of Colors
If I had not seen this colorful set of corn wagons myself,I would never believe it was real. It was a veritable rainbow of farm implements heading down the road in rural Lancaster county.
In Memory
Well I decided to make a trip down to Nickel Mines tonight and do a little personal tribute to remember the little girls who were lost. Upon arrival I noticed the five white roses someone had left on the post at the site and after I snapped that image,I went up the road to capture a beautiful sunset that was very nice,especially after nothing but rain for days,and the bottom photo is me releasing five sky lanterns at the site. The lanterns climbed gently into the sky and burned bright for a nice long time,and I was glad I went.
A Day Like No Other
Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Nickel Mines tragedy here in Lancaster county and it is something that still cuts me to the core today as I pass by the site often while out taking photos.This image is one of my favorite cemetery images that I have taken and captures just how many are feeling today. I have come to know the coroner who had to visit this scene of untold tragedy and her journey to find a sense of normalcy has been a long one but thankfully she has gotten help and is coping with what she saw that day. Today say a prayer for those touched by this tragedy from the police and emergency personnel who responded to the family’s who lost five precious little ones.
Lancaster County Corn
This was shot right after a storm had passed and was shot from my truck roof. You might think its strange to do that but you would be amazed what ten extra feet up can yield. At ground level you could not even see any rows.
Corn Rows
Wavy rows of corn sit in the distance in Lancaster county.
The Whole Crew
If I didn’t know better,I would think this father wanted me to take a picture of his boys working in the field. I was a good distance away at the side of the road and as they got closer,dad loaded all the boys on the horses and kept coming forward and he actually has a smile in this shot. Hard to say if the scenario I described was real or imagined but it sure seemed to be the case. Still I really like the unique image I got here.
Donald Reese Photography 