Tag Archives: Glow

Snowy Christmas Eve

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This scene features a lovely farm-house that I have admired for years,and it has always been landscaped and decorated so nicely during the summer months. My Christmas eve included a family get together, and a brief snowstorm earlier in the evening had everything coated in a heavy layer of snow. As we drove home,my mind raced to think of places that I might capture that night and I could only hope someone would be home and allow me to try. All the lights were on here as I drove by at 10pm,so I stopped and knocked and the owners were more than happy to let me do my thing. This scene was actually more attractive than what I captured,but several things complicated the shot. The greatest problem I had was a dusk to dawn light on a barn that cast the most sickly green color temperature over everything,and despite shooting raw and having the ability to adjust color temperature to the file,the green cast throws everything else off as you correct it.Anyway,I added some flash to gain control over the green but it was a persistent issue nonetheless. Another issue was the fact I was shooting after dark,so contrast was terrible,and If I get another chance,I will shoot at the preferred time at dusk,so I get detail in the sky and things are much more balanced.The family dog also came meandering through the snow after I had four frames shot,and thankfully I had the pristine snow captured already. I was glad I went out this night because most of the snow had melted or blown off by morning.

Wreaths on Bridge

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I photographed this local covered bridge on Christmas morning before anyone was out of bed. I had to drive about fifteen miles to get there and saw only one other car on the road the whole way there. Sure I am crazy for getting out of bed that early,but the local covered bridge society decorated the bridge with lighted wreaths and I wanted to get a record of it before they get taken down,and this was the first snow we have had of any significance,although it wasnt nearly enough.

Home for the Holidays

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This is another wonderfully decorated room in the home of the flower shop owner featured in my post of December 17th. This room was full of tasty treats during the get together and the live rose arrangement on the table was what initially caught my eye. I was allowed to come back a day later when the food was removed and captured what I consider to be a very elegant setting. The use of picture frames,mirrors and various design elements form a cohesive layout that appeals to the eye. This is the result of dozens of flash exposures,both inside and outside and I even flashed the hanging lamp from the top,so you could see the design cut in the tin. Such a cozy setting is certainly a home for the holidays.

You’ve Got Mail

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mailThis little scene features the porch at the Lititz historical society. The antique mail cart sits on the porch during the holiday season and society members fill it with wrapped packages and greens. I added multiple flash pops to various area to highlight things and the Moravian star was lit by flash with a snoot on it to avoid shadows on the ceiling.It might look better if it was actually turned on,but its the best I could do at five thirty in the morning. I liked the warm interior and the cool blue of dawn. I have no idea how old this cart is,but it must go way back in time.

 

Ice Dance Serenade

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Yet another scene from the Dickens gingerbread display this year. The ice spins with the skaters on top and to see the myriad of cords and plugs under this display,you would think you are watching Chevy Chase in Christmas Vacation. The town is full of street lights,and various items needing power.This was taken with a 17mm in pretty close to show the tiny skaters better.

The Tigers Eye

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I am not quite sure why I enjoy photographing store windows at Christmas so much,but I do know that I like to challenge myself and see what I can come up with. This store in Lititz,Pa is called the Tigers Eye and always has very classy window decor. The cool evening light contrasting with the warm interior light drew me to shoot this image.

Symphony of Sound and Color

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This past weekend I had the pleasure of being welcomed into this home to photograph this room just prior to a large get together. The owner has an amazing flower shop next to the home and while I was there recently,he invited me in to his home for a brief tour and I immediately fell in love with his sense of style and decorating tastes. I asked if I could photograph what I refer to as the music room some time ,and he said sure and that I could do it on the night of the party if I wanted. Well I photographed this right at the edge of when I needed the light to be low enough outside and when the guests were starting to arrive,but I pulled it off. He then invited my wife and I to stay and eat and enjoy ourselves,and needless to say it was a night to remember.

If you notice the large harp in the room,that was there thanks to me telling the host about this young lady Who had played at our home a few years ago,and she is not only an amazing harpist,but she sings like an angel to boot. I parked myself in the corner chair and let the music resonate around me in this glorious setting. From the Baby Grand piano to the antique stained glass to the gorgeous tree, everything came together in this one moment in time. Hopefully I can post a few more vignettes from the property soon, and to our gracious host,may I extend our heartfelt thank you for such a wonderful night.

Moravian Poinsettia Tree

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Lititz Pennsylvania is but one small town in Lancaster county, but when it comes to faith, traditions, family values,and a sense of community, Lititz stands heads above most communities in the region.Family run stores dot the main street and each one brings a unique touch to the community and every event the town puts on,residents come out to support in grand fashion.

The town is dotted with churches,and among the most scenic is the Lititz Moravian church,which dates back to the mid 1750s and is a place of unique beauty. Every year,the congregation creates a 12 foot high poinsettia tree in the main sanctuary to honor or remember someone special. I happened to be in the church square last sunday photographing at sunrise and one kind lady asked if I wanted to take a peak inside.The handbell choir was practicing early and I had always wanted to photograph the tree,so I accepted the offer.

I went in,quickly set up my tripod and shot a quick series,adding some flash to the tree,the pews, and I also went outside and lit the stained glass with a flash as well. I had wanted to get permission for years but never made the effort,and as I came to find out that morning,the tree was coming down after the sunday service,so it really was the perfect moment to get this image.Each Christmas season the church has several Christmas vigils where attendees get a lighted candle ,sing songs,and these dates are quickly filled. Also note the Moravian star hanging above the pulpit.

Days Gone By

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lititz-old-toysThis little vignette is one from my series on store windows in the quaint town of Lititz,PA. Each year at Christmas the shops in town create unique window displays that I find appealing and this one with the old blocks, the bear, and the santa caught my eye. I lit the scene with a flash at various angles to highlight certain items. The shop is called days gone by,hence my title.

 

 

Here Comes Santa Clause

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This is another room from my mansion Christmas shoot this year. This scene was done by a local doll club and they are always one of my favorites among the participants. The club did everything but supply the real Santa kneeling there and the packages on the left which I supplied. This shot was a little more difficult than I originally had counted on and a few complications made it a tough shot to finish. First I shot a series of exposures lighting different elements with my spotlight,then Santa came in to the scene and my friend Larry helped light him with a flash. Well everything went fine till I got home and realized Santa had leaned on the bed a few times between shots and it had moved,and I had bumped my tripod ever so gently at some point creating alignment issues.

Every piece I layered on top of the base shot had to be put on difference mode in Photoshop to make sure they were aligned correctly and it became more laborious than I had planned on. Despite all that,I am very pleased with the final result and Santa did an outstanding job,despite my making him kneel there for 15 minutes on a wood floor. He has a real beard,a great outfit and I think we created a very magical image. I met Santa during this event and he is part of the festivities each year,but I had to get him out of bed this morning because we shot this at five thirty in the morning as we waited for the light of dawn to illuminate the windows.

Hark The Harrods

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Another highly detailed confectionary creation from the Dickens village gingerbread. The main establishment is titled hark the Harrods and one can look at all the details in amazement at the amount of work the architectural firm puts into this Christmas creation. The paper spirals near the top actually spin creating the effect of smoke rising from the chimneys.

Its Christmas Time

Posted by reesephoto on

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This image of a store display in the small town of Lititz Pa is just one more challenge I set for myself taking photos. I love the various scenes you see around Christmas time in this town and window decorating contests keep shop owners busy at this time of year. The challenge was to capture something half decent,while having to do everything from the sidewalk outside and while the store was closed and dark. Reflections everywhere on the glass from street lamps,traffic and other businesses was my first challenge and trying to light things was my second challenge.

The clocks were lit by flash at various angles through the windows,all the while blocking reflections bouncing toward the camera. A wide-angle used up close allowed me to compose the shot and achieve some balance and allowed me to see several clocks in the store.This was shot at five thirty in the morning so I had time to experiment without bothering anyone.The one thing I wish were different is the dark area in the bottom middle. There were various items piled on the table,which did not look good lit,so I left them in shadow.

A Tasty Dickens Village

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Every year a local architectural firm takes a week out of their busy schedule to create a unique gingerbread village of some sort. The display is always incredible,with each employee vying to claim first place. The edible display is always full of humor,intricate design and detail and covers an area approximately ten feet by eight feet.It has scenes inside the buildings,lights, and they are generous enough to allow the public to come view it on certain nights. My good friend Larry is the official photographer for this project and he is gracious enough to allow me to shoot on the night he does his shooting. This little vignette from one corner features a bakery,complete with hot cross buns in the window,queen victorias secret on the corner,baskets of scones and baguettes out front and a sweet old lady out front offering cookies. It has become a holiday treat I look forward to every year.Another combination of flashlight,spotlight,available light.

Most Wonderful Time of The Year

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The Christmas season is one of my favorite times of year,so I look forward to any opportunity that comes along to photograph Christmas related subjects.Homes adorned in festive decor always draw me in for a closer look and memories of times with family gathered together on a cold winters night leave lasting impressions. Wether it is enjoying grandmas cookies or seeing relatives again,Christmas is hard to beat for me. A simple photo like this one can trigger cherished memories from the past and reliving those glory days in one’s mind can be very special.

The scene above is done using a tripod and multiple exposures utilizing my spotlight. It is one of several rooms decorated in an old mansion,which allows visitors to come and enjoy the decorations which are done by volunteers from various groups and individuals in the community and runs for two weekends in early December.The organizers are gracious enough to give me a key and let me come in to shoot anything that catches my eye.This was shot this past saturday long before the sun rose,so we did not have to contend with light shining in the windows. More scenes will come as I work on them. My friend Larry has a shot on his blog from another room. He is listed on my artists I admire section at Lefeverphoto. He chose an extremely tough room and did a stellar job.

Back to Nature

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This old wagon has been sitting by this tree for as long as I can remember,so I finally decided to stop and ask if I can photograph it before it disintegrates to nothing.The ivy growing on the wheel caught my eye initially, so I broke out my spotlight to try a little light painting. There were a lot of things to hide no matter which way I composed the shot,so it’s the best I could manage.

October Lantern Light

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I posted a summer image from this lovely location a few months ago, and thankfully I decided to drive by and see what it might be looking like now. The old maples were in their prime of fall color transition and the fact that fallen leaves were covering the entrance and sporadically covering the lane as well made for an impressive sight in my opinion.The property is gated at the stone wall and posted as well,but after I spoke with the groundskeeper and gave him a few large prints from my first visit,he was all too glad to welcome me back.I started shooting at the entrance and then moved up the lane for a variety of angles,and at one point the keeper pulled up on his tractor and offered to open the gate,which allowed me to get what is perhaps my favorite view. The lit lanterns on the stone walls finished off this fall scene,which will be just a memory if hurricane sandy hits the east coast as predicted. trees will be blown clean of leaves,which makes my visit even more special only days before the storm.

Rainy Day Stroll

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I was out shooting fall foliage the other day and decided it might be nice to show some folks enjoying the great outdoors. Just as I was contemplating what might make a nice image,it started to rain pretty hard and at that moment I noticed a dad and his three sons getting out of their car, so I gave them my umbrella and they took a little stroll among these colorful maples. The blue umbrella seemed to match the blue attire and made a nice contrast with the autumn colors. Heavy rains the night before had everything saturated and provided rich colors throughout.The rain subsided a short time later,so hopefully dad and the boys got some time to explore the woods while color  still abounds.

Working Late

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This old Dodge has been part of a local fall roadside stand for several years and this year I finally set aside a night to photograph it. The truck bed is full of mums and a wide variety of colorful mums fill the foreground for customers to pick from. Let me explain how the shoot went.I arrived an hour before sunset so I could set up the tripod,fill in any empty holes with flowers if needed and start my laptop to fire the camera. First the laptop took 5 minutes to let me log on,then my camera control software would not recognize that my camera was attached. After no less than 6 restarts,the sun was now below the horizon and I was now ready to drive over my laptop.

Next the sky lit up in an area Not included in my frame,so I recomposed and shot the image. Now I was ready to give up on light painting the scene because of the laptop snafu,but I gave it one last try and unbelievably the thing works. So for the next hour I used my spotlight and a flash to light the truck, flowers,and scene and this was my result. Lighting a black truck is a real challenge but thanks to the generosity of the owners in allowing me to work the shot,I had enough time to pull it off.

 

 

 

 

The Adirondacks

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This peaceful little scene was at our motel in Lake Placid and was worthy of a shot. We stayed at the motel three days and it was only on the last day that I walked out back and saw this view.Sometimes the shot is right under your nose,but you need to look. The cabin runs around 500 bucks for two nights but being able to look out your bedroom window at this scene might be worth every penny.There was only one Adirondack chair out front,so I shot one frame with it on the right side and then moved it to the left for a second shot.I then layered the two images together to end up with the final image,which was possible thanks to the tripod.

Foggy Morning Travels

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A morning dominated by fog and low light created a tough set of circumstances for shooting anything that was moving. I had been searching for something to shoot on this sunday morning and had no luck,so I decided I was just going to compose a shot and hope something would come by to finish off the image. The Amish head to church at each others farms on sunday mornings from about 7am up till just before 9am,when the service seems to start,so after 9am there is no more activity on the roads. I set up on this back road at 815 and decided at exactly 9am I would call it a wrap.For 45 minutes there was not one single car,buggy or anything else on this road,and I was sure it was one of those mornings that nothing was going to pan out. I was watching the laptop clock and 3 minutes before pack up,I heard the sound of horse hooves coming. Buggies never travel this late in the morning,but here came two late ones,which allowed me one chance to get this shot,which thankfully I did. I think there was a little set of eyes peeking out the back as a hand pulls the canvas back a bit.Shot from my truck roof and connected to the laptop.

Morning Chores Begin

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A new day begins on an Amish farm as the sky overhead begins to light up from the rising sun. A light in the barn signals the beginning of the first cow milking session,which must be done more than once a day.The field in the foreground was filled with corn last week,but as fall approaches,the harvesting becomes more frequent across the landscape.