One Photograph Was All He Needed | Kitty Hawk, NC
Before December 17, 1903, John T. Daniels had never used a camera and after that date, he would never use one again. As a member of a local life saving station who had been helping out with the Wright Brothers’ attempts at flight, John was one of just five people present on the day when Wilbur and Orville made history. Before the first flight attempt, Orville Wright handed Mr. Daniels a camera and asked him to take a photograph of what was to happen. In the midst of excitement, he pressed the shutter creating one of the most important images of all time.
Later that day, a gust of wind would topple the Wright Flyer-I, destroying it and injuring John T. Daniels at the same time. He would later describe himself as ‘a survivor of the first plane crash.’ He died on January 31, 1948, the day after Orville Wright passed. With just one image in his portfolio, John T. Daniels goes down as one of the most important photographers in history. One photograph was all he needed.
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555 | Rural Eastern North Carolina
I’m beginning a new series titled, ‘Abandoned NC,’ that will focus primarily on rural abandonment in Eastern North Carolina. There are many, many of these big old farm houses that have been left to be reclaimed by Mother Nature in this part of the country. Driving around, I have always noticed them and somehow felt drawn in to them. I can’t help but wonder what they looked like back in their prime. How many kids played in those yards? How many long days of farming went on in the now overgrown fields around them? How many young couples lived there and grew old together? There is so much untold history in these places that it is next to impossible to uncover it all.
This home had the address ‘555’ clearly viewable above the front door. I noticed it immediately and knew that’s how I’d always remember this home. Despite the obvious age of the house, it looked fairly structurally sound; just a slight lean. Through the smashed out windows I could make out at least two fireplaces inside. Seems to have been a pretty nice house in its time! Now, the farmland meets the backdoor and there is very little evidence that it was ever inhabited.
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My Afternoon With the Bladen Guards
A few days ago I was called in to work for the newspaper on short notice. When I arrived I noticed some very interesting assignments on the board including one covering a Civil War demonstration involving the 18th NC, Bladen Guards (originally from Bladen County NC). I love to attend these things and was excited to see that one was being held on this particular day. I spent some time getting my shots for the story and also some extras, shown here. Enjoy!
Upon arriving, I immediately noticed this militia man sitting along by the fire scrolling around on his Blackberry. I overheard him mutter something like, “the daggum Facebook app never works. My brother told me Grant issued his boys iPhones. All Lee gave us are these darned Blackberry Bolds.” Morale seemed low, so I continued on. As I walked, I could hear his buddies giving him a hard time, shouting, “He caught you! The camera guy caught you!”
I caught this nice little moment in which Brian Lee played with his daughter in between demonstrations. I loved the way the low, warm sun back lit the entire scene with a warm glow.
A few moments later, Lee directed his troops to fall in and load their muskets. I always enjoy shooting (or trying to shoot) these types of demonstrations. You only really get one try to get the shot and I am always trying to time it correctly. I was a little late on this one, but I do really like the way that you can see some fragments of debris from the barrels of the guns flying through the air ahead of the smoke. Once again, the lighting was amazing. So warm.
Immediately following the gun demonstration, there was a brief moment that the smoke from the soldier’s muskets hung in the air and the low light peeking through the trees cast really neat blueish rays through it. I couldn’t have asked for better conditions to shoot in! What a fantastic way to spend an hour of my afternoon.
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Cogs of Yesterday | New Bern, North Carolina
Note of scale: The gear lying to the rear right is at least 12 feet tall and I could put my arm through the links on that chain. Heavy, heavy stuff indeed!
Along the river is a large park complete with a boat ramp, dog run, elaborate play sets and a disc golf course. What many people don’t realize is that this park has quite a history, dating back to the 1920’s when it was local retreat featuring a dancehall and ferry to cross the wide Neuse River. Even more surprising is that during World War II, it was used as a camp to house Nazi prisoners of war- many of whom were captured after a U-boat was sunk by the Coast Guard near Cape Lookout.
When I first came upon these massive gears and chain, I really didn’t know what it was. They certainly seemed far too big to have been dumped there by someone just looking to get rid of the garbage. Upon learning of the German POW camp that was set up here and a mill that is said to have been operation at the time, I quickly thought it to be a fascinating relic of that time period. I was finally able to get in touch with a local historian, Jim White, who said that in his research he learned that it was part of the ferry that ran at the site at one point. He wasn’t sure of the exact dates, but his answer put to rest some of the questions I had about the hulking pile!
The shot: 3 bracketed exposures, tripod mounted, remote fired. Merged in Nik HDR Efex Pro, tweaked with Color Efex and Viveza. Finished with a slight Glamour Glow in Color Efex to add a little ‘dreamy’ look to the scene.
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The Old Burying Ground | Beaufort, North Carolina
In preparation for Halloween, a friend and I visited the Old Burying Ground in Beaufort, NC last week. The oldest cemetery, in North Carolina’s third oldest town, was established in the early 1700’s with the oldest legible grave stone dating to 1756. The oldest part of the cemetery was also, to me, the most interesting and best to photograph. It was not only very crowded, but overgrown and spooky looking. Peeking into the brush that had grown up around the trees, you could see more grave markers, long forgotten. A little known fact that I learned was that most of the grave sites face east, as the families of those buried there in the early years wanted their loved ones to face the rising sun on the morning of judgement day.
Some notable, and creepy, grave sites:
- Vienna Dill (1863-1865): Died of yellow fever and was buried in a glass topped casket. The child would later be exhumed by vandals and reburied after her body ‘disintegrated’ upon opening of the casket.
- An officer in the British Navy who died in port at Beaufort. He was buried standing up, facing England and saluting the King.
- A mass grave in which the sailors of the ‘Cassie Wright’ are buried. They froze to death in January 1886 when their ship ran aground.
- A little girl who died at sea during a voyage from England with her father. He had promised her mother that he’d return her home safely, however she died at sea. Rather than being buried at sea, she was preserved in a barrel of rum so that she could be returned home, as promised. Her grave site is distinguishable because of the pile of toys and gifts that visitors leave there.
- Captain Otway Burns, great privateer during the War of 1812. He sailed from Nova Scotia to South America, plundering British ships all the way. His tomb is marked by a canon from his ship, The Snapdragon.
There are many others buried here including soldiers of the American Revolution, War of 1812 and Civil War, as well as a grave marked “Here lies the remains of the settlers killed in the Tuscarora Indian War; September 1711.”
On my visit, the sun was bright and the sky was cloudless. I can imagine that as conditions change, the Old Burying Ground changes as well. I’m looking forward to visiting again with some more dramatic light to shoot!
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