Category: Notable Places

Blackwater Falls

Blackwater Falls 1982

It’s not particularly easy to get to Blackwater Falls in West Virginia, but it’s well worth the trip. Not only is Davis the highest incorporated place in the state, it is also fairly remote.

Once you’ve made it to the park, there’s another 200+ steps down the side of a mountain to get a good view of the falls. Going down, not so bad. Coming back up? Not so easy.

This is especially true if you’re carrying a medium format camera on a tripod along with a bag full of accessories.

I think the resulting image was worth it though.

The photograph that inspired this image was taken in the early 1980s. At one point, it graced the front page of The Charleston Gazette and drew a number of compliments.

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Union Station Chicago

Union Station

Not long after I met Tanya, who later agreed to become my wife, we went to Chicago to visit some of her friends. One of the things we did while there was visit the Chicago Museum of Art, a wonderful place.

To get there, we took the train. Living in a city where trains aren’t much of a commuting option, this was a fun experience although I suspect it gets boring after a while.

When we got to the top of the steps in Union Station, I was struck by the many parallel vertical lines. I waited until the person in the foreground — the dark shadow — was exactly in the middle of the columns before I made this image.

Bok Tower, Florida

BoksTower

 

Many of my images are made while killing time before a flight out. This is one of those times. I was on my way back from Tampa to catch a plane in Orlando and had a couple of hours, so I took a detour through the Bok Tower and Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida.

Their website says this: Bok Tower Gardens has offered some of Florida’s most remarkable experiences to more than 23 million visitors since 1929. Through its historic landscape gardens, unique Singing Tower carillon and magnificent 1930s Mediterranean-style mansion, the Gardens offer unparalleled opportunities for artistic, cultural, personal and spiritual enrichment.

Turns out, I didn’t think any of the photos I captured of the tower did it justice. But I did fall in love with this massive tree and a reflecting pool of water. To me, this symbolized Florida.