Big Snow, Little Italy

Now for something that is a bit outside of my comfort zone - urban street photography.  

There is a small section of the large metropolitan area I live near called "Little Italy".   As the name implies, this was a very dynamic Italian neighborhood for the last 100+ years.   In more recent years, the area has become an arts district with trending shops, galleries and a wide variety of restaurants and famous bakeries.    The middle class feel of the area remains.  

Several years ago, I was visiting a friend who lives in the area during a heavy winter storm.   I was fascinated at the scene of piled snow and limited driving in the area.    I had thought of trying to revisit during a snow event to photography the scene. 

Finally the combination of available time and wintery conditions all came together.   I just had to battle the elements to walk and photograph the scenes.  

I really enjoyed finding and capturing the street scenes, but as I told some friends, unless I live near this area in the future, I'm not fighting the traffic again to photograph this scene.    The driving was terrible, but luckily I got home without any incidents and have some nice images to remember the scene by.

Cleveland From Terminal Tower

This past weekend the local Cleveland Photo Society had a group shoot high above downtown Cleveland.     It was a pretty sunset and the evening glow of the street and buildings was fun to photograph around dusk.

After the sunset, I started playing with 'light painting'; to create some dynamic energy to the lighting.

You can view all of my images from the sun evening at my photography web site:

Terminal Tower Sept 22, 2013

Cleveland Tall Ships Parade

Every few years, the City of Cleveland hosts a Tall Ships festival.   About 10 or so ships sail into Cleveland for the event.

This year I was lucky enough to get a seat on a chartered boat by the Cleveland Photographic Society.  About 60 fellow photographers ventured out on the lake to enjoy the ships as they made there final approach into the Cleveland Harbor.

The conditions with the sky and calm lake were ideal to try and convert the scenes into high contrast black and white images.

You can view my favorite images from the afternoon at my photographic web site:

Cleveland Tall Ships Parade - July 3rd

Out from the cold

For the third year in a row, I have had the good fortune to visit the historic Cleveland Trust Building for photography.   Some of you may recall my blog posting from earlier this year:

Blog Posting - Cleveland Trust Building - March 2012

The building is a beautiful and ornate design that features a huge Tiffany glass ceiling in the main rotunda.  This visit I was prepared to capture the entire dome ceiling in a single image.

This time, while visiting, I found another vault which in my past visits, I was unaware of.    In either black and white or color, the intricate beautiful that the building craftsmen put upon this metal is exquisite.  

You can view all of my visits to the beautiful building in these galleries:

Cleveland Trust Building - Dec. 2012
Cleveland Trust Building - March 2012
Clevleand Trust Building - April 2011

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame May 28

Over the memorial day weekend, my good photography friend Jeff Gibson emailed me about an exhibit at the local rock and roll hall of fame.   The exhibit features large 7' high guitars that are decorated by artists.

Jeff and I visited on the holiday morning and boy were we in for a treat.   We had a gorgeous sunrise along with great light and clouds to enjoy the exhibit.

Jeff and I also explored some of the abstract features of the rock hall building.   Made for a nice contrast in style to the guitar exhibit.

You can view my images of the guitar exhibit here:  Rock Hall Guitar Mania - May 28, 2012

and my B&W abstract ideas of the rock hall here: Rock Hall - B&W Abstracts

As a contrast, here is a link to Jeffs blog about the morning:  Jeff Gibson Blog on Rock Hall

Happy Easter

Wishing you a blessed and joyous holiday weekend.    

The above image is from the beautiful Wade Chapel in Lakeview Cemetery in Cleveland.  The beautiful chapel interior was designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany.  It is registered as a historic building.   You can read more about the chapel here:

Wade Chapel History

Here is a link to a larger version on my image:

The Flight of Souls Stained Glass

Cleveland Trust Building Revisited

The Cleveland Trust Building is one of the architectural gems in Cleveland Ohio.   The building built in 1908.   It has remained vacant for over 20 years, but luckily over the last 2 years, a group of photographers were allowed access to enjoy the beautiful building and vaults.

In April of 2011, I had my first look with my camera inside the building and was so overwhelmed by the images, that I knew I had to return.   Luckily, almost a year later, access was again granted.

Here is a link to my images from April 2011:  Cleveland Trust Building - April 2011

This year I wanted to concentrate more on the beautiful gearing inside the main vault door.   Truly a piece of art with all of the gearing and decorative parts of the 'machinery'

Here is a link to the images I shot just a few weeks ago:

Cleveland Trust - March 2012

Cleveland Botanical Gardens Orchids

Every year the Cleveland Botanical Gardens has an orchid show in February.  It is a great way to beat the winter blues by sharing some time with these beautiful plants.

Thanks to one of the administrators at the gardens, I was able to get access for a group of photographers to use tripod equipment along with access before the public was allowed in.

It really was nice to have the ability to use the tripod to compose images and take some time with a subject.

I tried up close macro images, along with small intimate landscape shots like the one above.

The beautiful colors and shapes are inspiring for all who attend.

The following is a link to my favorite images from a fun morning:

Cleveland Botanical Gardens Orchids

Revisiting Lakeview Cemetery

I continued to explore the famous Lakeview Cemetery in Cleveland this past weekend.

I'm continuing to explore the beautiful monuments and details evident around the grounds.   The possibilities are nearly endless of beauty to capture with the camera:

You can view my latest Lakeview efforts at my smugmug website at:

Lakeview Cemetery Monuments

My newest images start at image 25 - enjoy. 

Cleveland Lake Erie Shoreline

I live near an industrial city that I have seldom photographed.   Recently I had the idea to visit the lake front by the city during some storm conditions.   On January 2, my photography friend Jeff GIbson and I visited during some impressive wind and snow.

The energy from the lake was impressive.    As we scouted the area, Jeff mentioned an area he knew of with abandoned piers.   When we arrived we got an up close impression of the energy and force of the lake.

This past weekend, Jeff and I revisited to try some other photography techniques using long exposures to create misty effects of the water along the piers. 

A fascinating location to observe with the camera.   Jeff and I revisited this location for a sunset, but I still have to process the images.     So stay tuned.

You can view my thoughts from two different moods from the Cleveland Lake Erie shoreline.

Cleveland Lake Erie Shoreline - Jan 2 and 14