Tag Archives: lititz

Lititz Fire & Ice Festival

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Last night a light snow moved into the area and since the small town of Lititz,Pa was holding its annual fire and ice festival this weekend I decided to brave the elements and get a few shots. I woke at 5 am today,went back to bed and laid there pondering the choice of staying nice and cozy in bed or going out into 2 degree weather with thirty mile an hour winds that made it feel a wonderful minus 18 degrees. Well I finally mustered the enthusiasm to get bundled up and head out and this shot of old man winter blowing his air was very apropos for the day. I lit this with flash and intentionally did a shot to cast the shadow onto the snow for added interest. Ice is very tricky to light and getting the right angle takes a little work to reveal the carving details.

I shot for about twenty minutes till my two batteries were drained, and then I sat in my truck with the heater warming them up to bring them back to life for a few more shots. I bounce back and forth between really enjoying mother natures intense weather and asking myself what possesses me to go out in weather like this? Inevitably I must take a glove off to change camera settings and today that was a really numbing experience after about a minute of the glove off. The upside was there was only three other brave souls that I encountered taking photos of these things and they all had cell phones. The guys who carve these do a great job using a variety of tools from chain saws to grinders to blow torches and the event is always packed with visitors from near and far.

Beautiful Shapes

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This home is another gem from the town of Lititz,Pa. It shows what real architectural style can look like and what is lacking in todays cookie cutter home construction.The wrap around porch is amazing, the dome is super sweet as is the peak on the left. Seeing the reflection in the wet road made me stop to get this shot on Christmas eve as I headed home from a family get together.

All is Calm

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All was calm on this rainy night in Lititz ,PA as I looked for subjects reflecting in the glistening wet road. These old homes along the main street looked inviting with their christmas trees and lovely door decor. This town is such a neat place to walk at night and soak in the ambiance of a close-knit community.

A Night in Paris

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This image of the Bulls Head Tavern in Lititz ,Pa reminds me of paintings I have seen of Paris that show street scenes bathed in luscious light reflecting the warmth within on the rain-soaked streets. Painterly is the word that comes to mind and the contrast was pretty extreme so it’s a minor miracle I got something decent. Would have been better when the daylight was fading but thankfully it was still pouring and the reflections were great,even though I had to stay under my umbrella to shoot it. The bonus element in the scene that I like is the original 1963 london cab which one of the owners parks out front on many nights.

A Little Tomato Pie?

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This Christmas window is located at a restaurant called Tomato Pie in the town of Lititz,Pa. It was pouring the night I shot this,and the main reasons I chose this view was the fact I wanted to stay dry and the overhang provided cover. Notice the many different tomatoes scattered throughout the display. This shot required some compromise because if I raised the tripod,I would get car lights reflected in the glass and the building in the distance would get cut off, and I would have preferred to be more parallel but the rest of the scene would have suffered. This would have been a good night to have a warm cup of soup and a sandwich while you watch the dedicated photographer working outside.

New Kid on the Block

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This is another one of my Dreamy Christmas window photos from the town of Lititz,Pa. My title refers to the fact that this shop is new to the downtown area and has a wonderful selection of home decor and holiday items,and they offer a full compliment of interior design services.The owner graciously helped me out by adding the small tree and wreath as accents to my window shop image.This image required me to use a polarizer to help remove the reflections of passing cars in the window glass and I also used a piece of foam to block reflections that were impeding the view of the gorgeous stars in the corner.This building once housed a great camera store that I frequented many moons ago,and the new owners have given it a lovely new coat of paint and made a very inviting place for shoppers to frequent.

The Glorious Poinsettia Tree

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Residents in the small town of Lititz,Pa have many unique traditions that make the community special and one that I find particularly beautiful is the Lititz Moravian Church’s Annual poinsettia tree that is set up on thanksgiving weekend in preparation for the first Sunday of advent. The tree features one hundred poinsettias given in honor or remembrance of someone and stands approximately twelve feet high. The beautiful tree is only up a short period because it cannot be watered in the sanctuary.

I remembered this is the time of year the tree is assembled so I headed over to see if there was any chance I could have access to taking a photo and I was pleasantly surprised by the gracious reception shown by the Pastor to my request. I essentially was given full access to do something for an hour and these two shots are what I accomplished. The well-known Moravian star is hanging at the front but was real tough to incorporate in my composition and was unlit at the time,so I never thought about including it till I decided to light it with my spotlight,but by then I was locked into my composition. The entire sanctuary was dark for my shots and I wished the lights could have been turned on but I forgot to ask about that,so I made due with my spotlight to do everything you see here.Even the lantern in the top photo on the upper left was lit using my spotlight ,and I think it looks like a real candle in there.I feel so blessed to have been given the opportunity to capture something so beautiful. Maybe someday those who view this image will get the chance to see this display in person.

It’s Ewebiquitous

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Well it’s that time of year when I like to check out and photograph the unique shop windows in the quaint town of Lititz,Pa. This year the first one to catch my eye was the newly opened fiber arts destination with the catchy name of Ewebiquitous. I usually like to shoot horizontals but this one worked out in a vertical and features the exterior decorated window box and the sheep dressed in knitted Christmas stockings looking out the window. The owner had closed the shop for the day but graciously allowed me to come inside to light the yarn with some flash to highlight the colors.

Giving Thanks

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This set of images were taken in the small town of Lititz,Pa in the area known as the Moravian Church Square. It is a gorgeous section of town that includes numerous old buildings and is  right along the main street. This year I spotted a dazzling yellow Ginko tree on a friday night and took a shot or two before it got dark.I called a friend to tell him he might want to check it out,and he did just that on the next day.I called him to ask if he got anything and he said all of the leaves were off,to which I laughed and said there is no way all the leaves fell off overnight. He insisted it was true so on Sunday morning I headed over at sunrise to see,and lo and behold  he was telling the truth. I was busy getting more photos in the pre-dawn light when the caretaker strolled by and said he was lighting the church and hoped that would not be a problem,to which I said go for it. The added illumination inside took the stunning scene to a whole other level in my opinion,and I was very thankful not only for the beauty before me but the ability to appreciate it and capture it. I joked with the care taker about the leaves not being cleaned up because he is a very efficient worker and keeps the property well maintained and he said the parishioners love to walk down the golden path as they arrive for Sunday worship so he leaves them lay an extra day.

Foggy Night in the Park

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park-fogThis foggy evening found me in the quaint town of Lititz,Pa doing a photo shoot for a friend at Wilbur Chocolate and when I came outside to leave I was struck by the serenity of the neighboring park with its lamp posts glowing in the fog. I spent almost two hours roaming the park in the quiet of the night taking photos and saying hello to the occasional person walking through this mysterious setting. Lititz,Pa has a certain intangible quality that draws you in and makes you feel like you are in another time. A lucky break happened this night because the local high school band was practicing in the field in the distance and they had large portable floodlights which added the blue effect in the distance that contrasted with the warm lamp-post lights.

Olaf and Sven

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Meet Olaf and Sven, a pair of edible characters straight from the movie frozen and made by self-taught candy aficionado Kathy Blankenbiller of Wilbur Chocolate in Lititz, Pa.  Kathy uses her expertise to create amazing chocolate creations each year for the towns chocolate walk and this was her project this year. Sven stands almost four feet high and it took three men to help deliver him to this display.Both characters incorporate Rice Krispie treats,chocolate and candy clay.She began work on them in august and continued till octobers chocolate walk.This was photographed at Wilbur Chocolate and includes some chocolate making items in the background on the left.

 

1776 Flags

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Fourth of July found me sleeping in until my friend Morrie called to tell me about a wonderful display of flags in the town of Lititz. I quickly got dressed and headed there and was very impressed with the patriotic display that I found at the Moravian church in town.As I was snapping a few photos,the caretaker stopped to make sure the flags were not laying over and straighten those that needed attention,and he told me there were actually 1,776 flags meticulously lined up across the lawn.With his efforts and the help of local boy scouts, the scene was certainly worthy of photographing and a thank you to everyone who put forth the effort.When I first got there all I did was complain how breezy it was but after seeing how the flags were stretching out,I quickly was grateful for the breeze. Countless folks were snapping photos of this amazing scene.

Winter Zen Moment

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This image features a local farm-house and a gazebo the owners have positioned across the street to relax in. I waited till dusk to capture the glow of the gazebo lights against the cold of the night. I used my flashlight to bring out the stairway path in the snow  as well as the snow texture in the foreground. I once again used my camranger wi-fi device with my tablet  to fire the camera and review the images,all the while from a camera that was close to a hundred yards away. I could not dream of pulling a shot like this off without that device. It does have a slightly slower transfer rate to the tablet at this distance,but that’s still pretty impressive.

Merry Christmas

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This nativity is located on the square in the town of Lititz,PA, and a few years ago someone complained and the ACLU got involved trying to ban the display. Thankfully the land is owned by the Church and the ACLU and its misguided agenda were sent packing. Wishing all my loyal blog followers a Merry Christmas.

Winter Wonderland

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A fresh snow blankets the sleepy little village of Lititz,Pa on a quiet night. These poor snowman and santa are trapped behind glass and wish they could get out to frolic in this winter wonderland.

Dashing Through The Snow

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Finally found some time to visit Lititz,Pa again to capture some more shop scenes in the downtown area. The first scene that caught my eye was this set of reindeer,complete with illuminated red noses and a sleigh with christmas packages behind them. I had to rush a bit because they put the reindeer away at closing time,which is just the time the light gets good. A few pops of the flash added a bit of interest to bring the scene to life. This was shot saturday and then it snowed on sunday,which would have added to the shot but this turned out pretty good despite no snow.

 

Window Shopping

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I was pretty happy with my result on this image featuring an Antique store called the Moravian House in Lititz,Pa. The hardest aspect was getting the word antiques on the window to glow and stand out.The shop owners remembered me from the past and gladly left me inside to fire my flash out through the letters from behind. This can be a rather complicated process to get the look I want,and changing camera white balance and getting the flash at the right angle help me get the color the way I envision it.

A Zest For Small Town Life

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This is the time of year I really enjoy shooting store windows in the town of Lititz ,Pa. Lititz has a small town feel that just takes you back to a bygone era,and the stores get all decked out for the coming holiday season,which makes for a delightful evening walk through town. My favorite time to take photos is right around dusk,just as the shops are closing for the day.The quiet of nightfall in this sleepy little town is only enhanced by music emanating from the town square and with a little imagination you feel as if you were just transported to a Charles Dickens novel.This pair of images are of a store called Zest,and the owners always do a stellar job of decorating the windows. Light shining out from the store illuminates the freshly fallen leaves as the cool blue of dusk begins to envelope the street. Many stores are beginning to transition to the Christmas season,so hopefully I will find some unique subjects to share.

Fall into Lititz

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lititz-peddler-halloween lititz-springs-autumn lititz-street-autumn lititz-springs-autumn3 lititz-downtown-pumpkins lititz-street-autumn2 lititz-springs-autumn2Lititz,Pa was voted as Americas coolest small town in a travel magazine contest this year and I thought I would share a few fall photos I took while visiting recently. If you get a chance,plan a trip to visit this quaint little town. These images are from the downtown shopping district and the community park.

 

An Autumn Walk

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This image was taken this past weekend across the street from the Halloween home I posted yesterday, and after the three lamp posts came on,I decided to scoot across the street and get a quick shot. Between the lights,leaves and lovely homes,I could not resist capturing it. Again this was taken in Americas coolest small town,which is Lititz,pa.

 

A Spooktacular Evening

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This is the view from the sidewalk at the Halloween home I was invited to shoot this past weekend. These are the three pumpkin figures behind the fence,but the third one was hard to get with the angle I settled on for my main shot. The pumpkin figures were very simple but very menacing,which was very cool. My image from yesterday included the pumpkins on the porch,which are just visible in the distance. Other cool decor included flaming pumpkins,one of which is seen burning behind the figures and that involved soaking a roll of toilet paper in kerosene and letting it burn inside the carved pumpkins,which was awesome,and a ghost on a pole which was made to move by using an oscillating fan behind it,which was simply ingenious. The cool blue of nightfall and red leaves on the trees rounded out the fall scene. I had to shoot the closeup on bottom before the owners lit them because I had to get set for my main image.

Cool Night in a Cool Town

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Got a call friday from someone I had taken a few photos for the other year,and he informed me of a neighbor that gets into Halloween decorating and asked if I wanted to shoot it. I was intrigued,so I made the trek to see the place. Turns out it was a great family that really knows how to decorate and entertain,and despite never meeting me before,they said I should come on in and join the festivities that evening with about 75 friends they invited.The event took place in the town of lititz,pa which was recently voted as Americas coolest small town and the town really is a slice of americana. I only shot two photos and this front porch shot is one of them and I was glad I went and I really appreciated the graciousness of the home owners to invite me in. It really was a cool night in Americas coolest small town.I will post the wider shot of the view from the sidewalk in my photo of the day tomorrow.

Tomato Pie Anyone?

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This is another light painting session in the town of Lititz,and features the Tomato Pie restaurant. Rain started moving in mid morning on a recent sunday and I decided to take advantage of the resulting reflectivity on the road and shoot this scene.This normally busy road is fairly quiet on a sunday,which I needed to be without cars. My camera got fairly wet during this session and walking back to the camera every so often to check results was a nuisance, but when you are alone,that’s what you do. My camera was across the street about fifty yards away,and I used a wireless remote to fire the camera and radio poppers to fire my flash,which I carry on a pole to light whatever I want,which was pretty much everything from the sign, to the buildings and tree. Shooting in subdued light allows the flash to overpower the ambient and give you the lighted parts you need. By the way,I have never had Tomato Pie,but I hear it is quite delicious at this establishment, but I think I will stick with apple pie myself.

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.

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.

Its Christmas Time

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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.