Spring is rapidly advancing and local farmers are beginning to work the fields for the growing season. This farmer was kicking up a good bit of dust as the sun silhouetted him while he diligently went about the evening chores. Thankfully we got a decent amount of rain this weekend,so the dust situation should be better in the coming week.
If you are brave enough that is? These critters would not be something I would normally stop to photograph, but my friend wanted to snap a shot, so I joined in for a few clicks. It appears the bull better tread lightly or he will get a rather pointed attitude adjustment. I have no clue what breed they are,but they were rather unusual for our area.
I spotted this lovely field of goldenrod on a drive through the country this evening, and knocked at the farmhouse door to get permission to walk to this spot. Thankfully, the owners obliged and I took a series with the billowy clouds accenting the scene. I tried to get a sunset shot as well, but the light was terrible, so we will see if I can salvage anything from that attempt. I might go out at sunrise this morning to try again, but it will be hard to beat this shot with the great skies. Everyone sees shapes in clouds at times, and I thought it almost looked like a cross above the farm, which I thought was kind of neat the way it was positioned in the center of the blue sky. I don’t usually add photos after the fact,but my friend gave me grief about forgetting my infrared camera so I worked on one to simulate that look.
I have had a real appreciation for the Amish culture for many years, and have captured many images over the years of life in the rural countryside in my area. Generally speaking, the Amish are not very accepting of photography and Usually I try to use long lenses to keep from getting in their face and allowing them to go about their day-to-day life without intruding. The reason I share this is because both myself and my friend saw something the other week that stopped us in our tracks. We went to the mud sale to capture a few images of local culture and we were using long lenses to keep low-key, but as we stood there talking, we saw a group of people heading our way and every person was carrying a camera. The Amish seem to accept the fact that they are at a public venue and that cameras will be there and they may have their photo taken by someone in attendance so they basically ignore the occasional snapshot being taken. This group was different, as dad,mom,brother,son,daughter and everyone else in their entourage was toting a camera. We thought nothing of this till we started seeing the younger kids going right up to Amish children and shooting right in their face, and then to top it off they would show them the image on the lcd screen. The truly baffling thing was the kids seemed to enjoy seeing their picture on the screen and would pose even more. We saw a few older Amish teens stop and look at the fiasco, but did not stop the activity, so we were truly puzzled. They would use wide angles and be feet from them and laugh hysterically as each new frame was shot, and I just stood there thinking I wanted to smack the whole crew. I figured if it was not bothering them, then who was I to intervene, plus I realize we have the right to take photos, but this was about as obnoxious as anything I ever witnessed. My friend walked away at one point because his head was ready to explode, and after I asked one kid where they were from, his parents came over and wanted to be buddy buddy with me,but I basically ignored them as I was growing increasingly irritated with them. Anyway, here is another image from the auction,plus one of a portion of their crew shooting like a hollywood celebrity was passing by. Hopefully they wont be back to our state anytime soon,but i am not counting on that happening as I was sure I saw the main guy here last year,minus his family. They will probably come in a tour bus next year with the relatives.
This home was moved approximately 100 yards on thursday by some very cool equipment. The hydraulic setup is somehow controlled by the skid loader or someone underneath the house using a control panel. The wheels drove the house right up the hill, turning as they needed till they reached their final destination. Photo 2 includes the workers who stay under the home the entire time its moving. It was interesting to watch something like this, which you don’t see every day. I watched a huge two-story brick home get moved years ago, and they left the china in the cupboards and not a thing was broken.
Sorry if anyone is now humming the famous Beatles tune in your head, but it was the best title I could think of at the moment. This image is yet another from last Saturday’s trip to the mud sale and I originally caught a glimpse of these four behind some buggies and hoped they would head my way, which thankfully they did. Once again I was a god distance away with a 400mm,which was perfect for not invading their space. The beautiful blue bonnets are so lovely,and the middle girl is wearing the biggest safety-pin I have seen in a while. The three girls are actually the trio that I posted earlier this week, but I had no idea till I worked on the image.
The mud sale this weekend is always attended by countless county residents as well as a very strong showing by the local Amish community. Amish farms near the sale are selected to accommodate the numerous buggies and horses that need a spot to park while they attend the sale, and this farm is adjacent to the sale site along a side road. I shot this image from the side of the road and stood on a small trailer to a get a slightly higher perspective over the scene. This is only a small portion of the buggies at this farm, and the horses are kept in the field and barn throughout the day.
Saturday included the last mud sale that I usually attend each spring season in the area. It was very heavy overcast the entire day, so consequently I shot at iso 1000 the entire day so I could keep shutter speeds high enough. This trio of girls happened to lean on a wagon near me,and were totally engrossed in watching horses that were up for sale.I am fairly sure they are sisters, but can not be absolutely certain.
I photographed this group of young Amish girls and guys at the mud sale last week, and they were quite interested in this cell phone candy holder that was being sold at the sale food stands. It was a plastic case that resembled a cell phone ,but only held candy inside. I saw several groups of Amish kids acting like they were making calls throughout the day, and the item was a big hit with them. These girls wearing their colorful bonnets were immersed in looking at this interesting item. I added the boy using his candy filled cell phone at the last-minute so viewers can see it better.
I thought I would share this image from the past, which is also included in my gallery section here, because now is the time of year when you see fisherman on the banks of the local streams around our area.These Amish boys heading to their favorite fishing hole is one of those images that I look back at and can recall the entire scene as if it were yesterday, even though it goes back to my black and white film days. I had been driving around looking for images when I passed this crew slowly walking down a back road, and I immediately knew it was something I wanted to record for posterity. I drove a ways up the road to a dirt lane, parked and probably said a small prayer as I waited, to let them come by me. One thing I will say about my experience with the Amish is they are keenly aware of their surroundings and these boys were no different.They were looking at my car the whole time they approached and when I finally brought the camera up for a shot, the oldest boy kicked it into second gear as he made things difficult for me to focus and frame the shot, but thankfully I got this image with him in mid stride as he pulled what I assume are his brothers and their gear. I think I was shooting with a Nikon f3 at the time and maybe got three shots off, and this was the winner. I am sure they forgot me as soon as they got up the road,but I remember them like it was yesterday. Back in those days, I would have to drive home, develop the film, hope I nailed the exposure, make contact prints and check for focus before being able to get excited about a shot. Oh the good old days of photography, which by the way I would never want to return to.
This is another image from my early sunday photo adventure. Winds were a bit more than I was hoping for, so unfortunately I had to up my iso to 800, which I never like to do, but it got me in the thirtieth of a second shutter speed range, which obviously was better than using anything slower. I passed this location and turned around for a better look, and because it was around 7am, I figured it was too early to knock at the door, but luckily the owner came out at that moment as she was headed to a local antique center for the morning, so she kindly allowed me access.
This early morning shot was taken on one of our recent foggy mornings. I arrived just in time to take a series of exposures before the ambient light got brighter than the lamp posts.
Today started out with dense fog enveloping the countryside, and unfortunately I did not get a lot of time to seek out foggy scenes in the early morning hours. I did come across this lovely magnolia tree in full bloom at the Hibshman farm in Lancaster county,Pa. The farm includes the original farmhouse,wash-house,stone barn, tobacco shed and barn, and a second farmhouse. The oldest section dates from 1750,and the second section was built around 1801. I knocked at the door to get permission to snap a few shots and a caregiver there was very accommodating. The sun burst out shortly after I arrived, so I was hoping for better light but it was somewhat soft light for these shots. This farm was preserved from development and is listed on the national register of historic places. The magnolia blooms will soon be completely on the ground after blooming early this spring. For budding photographers following me, I want to mention to be critical when composing your shots,and if you take note here, I made sure the chimney on the house did not overlap the branch. little things like that can make or break a shot sometimes.
Photographed this turkey while I was shooting the goats recently. They are a little strange to look at, but they do have a colorful side as well.
A few days ago I mentioned wanting to share an image of some Amish girls that I photographed at the mud sale, and todays post includes three of several from a series including these young ladies. Let me start by explaining how these images came to be and why I chose the title. I had been wandering the auction grounds looking for possible photos when I noticed that there were some Amish teens starting to play volleyball in the field adjoining the auction, so I walked in the general direction to check it out. Upon getting closer, I noticed guys playing volleyball and girls in multi colored dresses nearby watching the boys. As I stood there taking in the culture, I noticed four old tractors at the end of the field that were going to be auctioned later in the day. I thought to myself, it would be so cool if one or two of these Amish teens would venture over to the tractors and check them out.
Well no sooner did I think that, when I notice a small group of Amish girls get up and head in that general direction. I immediately began moving behind a row of parked cars in the direction of the tractors in the hopes of getting one good shot before they noticed me. I stayed below the radar for a few minutes watching to see where they were going and to my delight,it was the tractors. As the group reached the tractors, two by two,they paired up on their own tractor and began goofing around, and having a good time with each other. They acted like they were plowing, driving, racing and even made putt putt sounds at one point. I quickly snapped a shot, and thought to myself, this is one of those moments that I cherish as a photographer and was so grateful to be there in that moment.
I figured I would snap a few shots and they would stop doing what they were doing after they saw me, but to my surprise they seemed to be totally unfazed by my snapping photos, and it almost seemed as if they were savoring the moment in front of the camera in a way, because as each moment ticked by, the image got better and better as they moved together onto one tractor to make small talk and have fun. Granted I was using a 400mm at a distance, but we made eye contact multiple times as we each laughed to ourselves in the moment. Experiences like this are forever etched in my mind, and provide me with memories of a culture and lifestyle that I find very special and worthy of respect. One thing I have seen countless times with the Amish,is the fact that they are more satisfied with simplicity than we are with every gimmicky gadget that occupies our time. After I left the spot, I kept thinking I would have loved to talk with them, listened to their perspective on things and even offer them prints, but I realize we come from two different worlds and even though they tolerated me, that was only because we were in a public venue that day.
The crescendo part of my title is because I literally felt like the time with these girls kept building to a visual peak as I snapped away. The multi colored dresses, the pleasant atmosphere, and a great group of Amish friends, all came together is this brief moment in time, which I was lucky enough to be witness too. It is definitely one moment on my photographic journey that I will not soon forget.These images are totally un-choreographed and ones I could not have planned out any better if I was given the chance.
The barnyard debacle yesterday was shot at the same location that I shot this image. This lady came out from the nearby barn carrying this bucket, and the chickens quickly got to stepping as they anticipated an easy meal. I had said hi to this lady a few minutes before and made some small talk about the goats, so I was a little hesitant to shoot this image, but I could not resist the temptation when I saw the scene beginning to take shape.
Sometimes You see things that you just wish you had on video, but unfortunately I can only share a few stills from some shooting today. The scene unfolds in the pasture with photo number one featuring the mature goat being confronted by the new kid on the block, and even though the youngster bobbed his head a few times to show how brave he was , the old-timer backed him up several times just using the evil eye, as if to say, do you feel lucky punk?. As this scenario unfolded, the chickens went running, as if to cackle, oh boy, there is gonna be a fight, we better get over there to watch the new kid get a good beat down, and then photo three has more spectators clamoring to get a good view of the showdown. The youngster finally thought things through, remembered he had no horns yet, and decided he did not need a good bump on his head from the old-timer, so he moved on to challenge more fitting opponents as shown in number four.
This was a last-minute photo selection for today, as I was busy dividing iris clumps in our garden this evening. This recent shot featuring a rocking chair was calling my name to sit down after two hours of digging in the dirt. The darn warm temperatures have everything starting early, so I am trying to keep ahead of the garden chores, which seem to get harder every year.
Today I realized that even at my age I can actually still learn something new. I picked this image that I shot in the last couple days to post here, and I assumed that since the adult goat had horns, it must be the father. As I was getting ready to write my description for the photo, I thought maybe I will google the possibility of a female goat having horns. Low and behold, they actually can have horns, so this is momma goat leading her three adorable little offspring across the pasture. They had a little episode with the large Llama from yesterdays posting, and for whatever reason that barnyard bully kept antagonizing and chasing the mother goat, so she would give the all hands on deck call to the youngsters, who would follow mom to a spot of protection. It’s interesting how one is white,one black and one a combo.
With warm temperatures making an appearance more frequently, signs of spring are becoming a little more regular throughout the region.This recent shot features a baby goat and a Llama in a local barnyard and I just came up with the title after contemplating what is going through this tiny goats brain. These critters are absolutely hilarious as they get their feet under them and begin to explore their world.I have better shots from this shoot, but wanted to share this one today.
This weekends mud sale was less than ideal due to bright sun, which is terrible when you consider that most subjects are dressed in black and are wearing hats casting hard shadows. Myself and a friend did shoot a few shots,but we are hoping for overcast at an upcoming mud sale. I took this grab shot of several plain girls who suddenly stopped to work on this one young ladies hair and scarf. The recipient of all the attention seemingly enjoyed the help, but I am not sure if they were sisters or friends.
Spring is rapidly approaching, and in Amish country, that means it is mud sale season. For those who have never heard of the mud sale, it is basically an auction held by numerous fire companies in the spring, and is held in the farm fields, which are usually a sloppy mess from spring rains. This weekend I hope to attend one to shoot a few Amish images, as they attend in large numbers and come with the understanding that cameras will be around, and tend to not be particularly irritated by that. I still try to stay low-key, shooting with longer lenses , and tend to snap a shot and move on, as to not over stay my welcome, so to speak. Each weekend or so in the coming weeks, a different fire co holds their own sale across the region, and items range from buggies to bird houses to horses and everything in between.I have included 3 shots from last years mud sale season. The two boys shown were truly stuck in the mud and were giving it their all to get loose during an extremely muddy sale.
Well this is the time of year when the newborn critters make their appearance, and usually warm weather brings out the playful side in them. These baby goats were full of energy from the warm sun, and a good round of head butting was just what they needed to do to burn off some extra energy. It’s always funny watching them size each other up, and then rise up to give a good smack to the nearest competitor. This was one of those rare times when the recipient was ready to fire back.
We had a decent amount of rain over the last two days,so my mind started thinking about all the heavy storms we had in the last year, and this image came back to my memory. What appears to be a lake, is actually a field for this herd of goats, and over near the green grass there was a tiny stream that severely overflowed its banks. As the goats were down to their last few feet of pasture, the owners came out with the tractor and cart. They loaded the young ones in the wire cages, and persuaded the nervous parents to follow them to higher ground. It was comical to watch, but the waters were still rising,so they got out at just the right time.
My image today features intense cloud formations that were blowing through the area, and lasted just long enough to allow me to run and get my infrared camera/filter combination. I actually think the clouds were more intense when I first saw them, but I am quite happy with what I got here. The shot was done using my old Nikon D70, which was excellent for capturing infrared images when used in conjunction with a Hoya r72 infrared filter. The downside is the fact that you can barely see through the filter,so essentially you focus the shot on your tripod and then add the filter on the lens before shooting. Exposures usually run from 1 second to 8 seconds at f16 in most situations,and you must remove the filter every time you do a new image. As things soon turn greener, Infrared effects will get even better.
Today both myself and my good friend Larry did some more shooting in the machine shop, but for some reason my decision-making was a bit out of whack, because it took me nearly an hour to pick something to shoot. Because of that indecision, I stayed at the machine shop till right near sunset, and then as I began heading home, the sky started to look promising. I decided to head to these grain silos in the hopes of a good sky, and it turned out to be an alright shot I guess. I like the varied hues of the old and newer silos and the warm vs cool tones. Once again I climbed on top of my truck roof to shoot this, and todays winds of 40 mph plus made for some tricky shooting up there.
I have always had a great respect for the Amish and their way of life, and even though they are not big fans of being photographed, I continue to capture the images that present themselves. I have seen so many things in the Amish community over the years,and I have countless memories of those experiences. The Amish have problems just like the rest of the world, and they have some very friendly characters and some unfriendly ones as well. I have watched younger kids get the greatest joy out of the simplest things, and know they are usually more content with an old tattered item than the person who has every electronic gadget. I have been invited onto hay wagons to shoot at harvest time, as long as faces are not shown, and have seen empty beer bottles flying out of buggies while a boom box blares inside. Hopefully I can share more stories and images of my experiences in the future. This buggy/ hat rack was captured a while ago on a sunday drive in the country, shortly after the men headed inside the barn to begin worship. I took this with a long lens from the road, but the day I took this, a tourist with a little point and shoot pulled up, got out and was on his way to the barn door when I basically told him to get the heck off the property. He must have figured it was some sort of scene that was staged for tourists. This was really the only buggy that everyone seemed to pick to place his hat, and looking at the shot now, I counted 32 hats scattered about.
As a photographer, I am always on the lookout for beautiful locations, and this spot is one I had bookmarked in my brain for the right moment. Many times, I will just drive around looking for opportunities, and this particular evening I saw the potential building in the way the clouds were positioned in the sky, and the angle the sun would probably hit them. I headed to this locale to look things over and after coming across a no trespassing sign at the edge of the public parking area located across the river from the farm, I decided I would put on my hip waders and venture into the water directly from the lot. I had to traverse slick rocks for about a hundred yards to get to this point in the river. All the while I was thinking about all my past experiences with water, and maybe this was not a great idea after all. As I got to the final spot where the reflection looked good, The water was about 6 inches from the top of my hip waders, and I was getting slightly nervous as a slip would mean big trouble for my gear. I mounted a wide-angle on the camera and had it locked to the tripod before I set out, and had my loaded camera backpack on my back, which has to weigh 40 plus pounds, so any misstep can get dicey real quick. The sunset materialized nicely and the water was really pushing against my tripod legs, so I shot a series as things kept building, till everything faded and I made my slow and deliberate way back to shore. Sometimes going the extra mile yields images that others can’t get or are too lazy to try, and I take pride in giving it my all.
Yesterday we got a light dusting of snow and once again it was nothing to get excited about. For some reason I woke up a little early this morning, and took a peek out the front window, and I saw a nice pastel sky with an near full moon getting lower to the horizon. I hurriedly threw on some clothes, while my mind raced to think of any possible locations to shoot. Nothing came to me, so I just drove around and ended up with these two so-so images. Hopefully some significant snowstorms are still coming this year yet, so I can get some real snow scenes.The windows in the house are illuminated by the rapidly approaching sunrise behind me.
Todays image is another from my series taken at an old mill, and features a room full of old wooden barrels, along with a variety of tools used by the mill in its heyday. The round stone, serving as a table in the foreground weighs 2000 lb and is not going to move anytime soon. The image was shot using deer spotlights that I have placed diffusion on to soften the light output, and each exposure was approximately 30 seconds in an almost totally dark room. The windows were covered with black fabric to block the outside light from having any influence on my light painting, and were uncovered at the end to get the window detail. The lanterns were lit only by my spotlights to give a glowing effect. Because the spotlights are so intense, I use a technique where I pulse the trigger on briefly ,then off and keep moving across the scene till the shutter closes. A half second worth of spotlight is all it takes to light an object at f11 or f16 at iso 200. I also use a fairly inexpensive wireless remote to fire the camera from across the room, so I never touch the camera once I get started.
Donald Reese Photography 