Battle of Big Bethel

Each spring the good folks at Endview Plantation host a Civil War reenactment and each spring I look forward to shooting the two day event as I have since 2007. This year was the 150th Anniversary of The Battle of Big Bethel which took place on June 10, 1861. This was the first land battle in Virginia and very possibly the first land battle of the American Civil War. Okay, the history lesson is over...
If you've never been to a Civil War reenactment, it is definitely worth the time because it is like walking around in a History Channel documentary. The participants are very keen on doing their best to keep everything as close to the period as they can in order for the spectators to get a better idea of what life was like during this time. At Endview Plantation visitors are allowed to wander through the camps prior to the battle. I tend to find myself spending more time in the Confederate camps because the folks just look more interesting. The Union's uniforms were issued whereas the Confederate Infantry uniforms, many times, were nothing more than the clothes they were wearing when they left for the war.









The first day of the reenactment was cloudy and cool with rain showers on the way. We spectators had a great position along the side of the battlefield. It was like watching a football game from the sideline at the 50 yard line. As troops on both sides made their way to the battlefield and set in formation I was hoping the rain clouds in the distance would hold off until the battle was over. As the first shots of the battle were fired, the rain began to fall and I spent the next 20 minutes protecting my gear and not shooting. Eventually the rain moved off and I was able to shot some of the battle.







The weather forecast for the second day of the reenactment was calling for better weather and I figured I'd be able to get more shooting time. Murphy's Law had other plans and they weren't good. The second day of the reenactment the spectator area was moved to the rear of the battlefield. The battle that day started on the other side of the property behind a dense tree line. The reenactors fought the first half of the battle out of sight of the spectators. Then the two sides moved to the battlefield to continue the fight.
The Confederates quickly advanced on the retreating Union soldiers and fought the second half of the battle at the end of the battlefield opposite the spectator area. I'm not sure why this was done this way, but it was disappointing as a spectator. It was like going to a football game and the first half of the game was played in the parking lot while the fans were in the stadium. Then during the second half of the game, all the fans were sitting in one endzone while the teams played the rest of the game from the opposite 20 yard line. After that you probably wouldn't go to watch another football game.



I was able to come away with some photos from those two days, but again it had to be disappointing for the people who were attending for the first time or those like myself who knew that in previous years the spectator areas had a much better vantage point. Despite the rain on the first day and the terrible point of view the second day, I enjoyed shooting this event as always. Click the link to view the Battle of Big Bethel photos and you can also view previous reenactments here.

March: In like a Lion and out like a Lion

March was more of an administrative month than one for shooting. There was a lot of email correspondence, scheduling, and one on one meetings. I had the opportunity to meet a number of potential clients and book a bunch of weddings this month. I attended the first meeting of the Oyster Point City/Center Business Association which is a no-cost forum for local businesses to network, share ideas, and generate business for one another.
I purchased some new gear this month. I picked up the Canon 7D just before Canon's $200 instant rebate ended. I picked up a few other odds and ends including a 28x28 Wescott Apollo umbrella-style softbox for a speedlite (which produces great light). I also sent my favorite lens (my Canon 100-400m IS L) off to Canon to have the locking ring replaced. Canon fixed the issue and had my lens back to me in a week!
March wasn't all work, I did shoot. Although I held off on a few things until my new gear arrived and I had an opportunity to familiarize my self with everything. I had a family session and worked with a local model looking to build his portfolio. The month rounded out by photographing a performance of The Wizard of Oz at the Ferguson Center for the Arts.
April has shaped up to be a full month of shooting including a Civil War Re-enactment, commercial work, and portrait sessions. I definitely see two posts for April, so stay tuned...

Serendipitous Spring-like Day

One of the great things about the Hampton Roads area is that from time to time the dreary days of winter can be broken up by spring-like warmth. Another nice thing about this area is that there are a variety of beaches close by.
The day before this image was shot I was planning to go shoot something because the weather was forecast to be 75 degrees and sunny. Then I received a phone call from Pamela. She wanted to do some photos to submit for consideration by a corporate restaurant chain (I'm not going to plug them they already make a ton of money selling wings...oops) doing a model search for their calendar. I called her back to tell her that the next day was going to be perfect to do a location shoot on the beach. As it turns out the day was gorgeous and just right for a bikini...and it was February! The day after the shoot the temps dropped back into 40's and we were back to our typical late winter weather. It's always nice when things fall neatly into place.

"Paths"

The winter months can be cold and dreary. After the hustle and bustle of the holidays, things slow down a bit and I get an itch to get out and shoot something. Typically I like to wander through a few local parks in search of wildlife to photograph, yet during the winter months most wildlife await the return of spring. So I tend to turn inward to fulfill the need to shoot.
The image above is called "Paths." The photo was inspired by a number of different things that were going on both internally and externally before I shot this photo. The drug cartel violence along the U.S. and Mexico border was just starting to be reported in the media. Then there was the day to day violence that plagues much of the world whether it is in the name of religion, love, drugs, or the lust for money. Next was the layering of the things that people will often turn to in order to fulfill their "needs" during these long winter months (violence, shopping sprees, self-medication, etc or a combination of these things).
Internally I was asking "Why? Why do people do these things?" It was a question that was child-like and simplistic and had an astoundingly complex answer. At that point I thought, "Somewhere along the way, a person had a decision to make. A path to choose." That was when this image popped into my head.
As I planned this shot and arranged the items, a sort of "6 degrees of separation" started to take shape for me. I also began to think about the individual components of the image and depending on the path chosen aren't necessarily "bad." Derivatives of illicit drugs (the ones in the image are not real) are used as medication for patients, firearms and religion save countless lives every year, alcohol is often used to celebrate some of the most important days of our lives, and so on...
As a note, one of the things I struggled to incorporate was "love." The Bible is associated with love, yet I wanted love to stand out a bit more and a heart or ring were just too obvious nor would they mesh well. I came across a book of matches and it just clicked. A phone number on a book of matches, love, spark, flame, and burn just felt right for what I was wanting to get across and linked to the other components of the image. I substituted the word "Love" in the area where a phone number would be and it was complete.
There is a connection that can be made between all of the components in the image, both good and bad. When faced with decisions to make in your life, which path will you choose?

You can view my "Melangé" gallery for additional photos.

34 hours In The Field: U.S. Marine Corps Artillery

In October of 2010 I was tasked with documenting the aspects of a United States Marine Corps artillery battery as they operate in the field. As one would expect, the first day started out bright and early at 4:30 am. After a quick cup of coffee, we headed to Hotel Battery of the 3rd Battalion 14th Marine Regiment in Richmond, VA. Nearly 130 U.S. Marines prepared their gear and staged some twenty-three vehicles (including four 155mm M777 howitzers) into a convoy to make the fifty-five mile trip to the training grounds.

The maneuver training area was a 35,000-acre facility in the lower piedmont of southeastern Virginia near Blackstone, VA. The "open/broken" terrain is intermixed with patches of forest that closely resembles an eastern European landscape.The vastness of the facility allows units like the U.S. Marines’ Hotel 3/14 battery to maneuver and fire live, high-explosive artillery shells in order to improve combat readiness.

Upon arrival to the training facility, the Marines moved the convoy to the first objective. An advance party of Marines established security for the area and prepared to receive the main body of Marines. The main body consisted of MTVRs, Humvees, and the artillery, which moved into position after the area was secured. The different crews went straight to work on their appointed tasks of establishing the gun line, raising communications, setting up the fire direction center, sighting the artillery, and sending the forward observer team to an elevated position to monitor the target area. All the while I was moving through the terrain shooting each facet of the operations.

(A Marine maintains his field of fire while the advance party secures the area.)

(Marines with an MTVR, aka "7-ton" truck, set a 155mm M777 howitzer in place.)

(Using a pair of binoculars with a special lens coating, a Marine forward observer scans the target area.)

The battery went through a number of training drills, packed up, set off to the next objective, and started the process over again. The third movement of the day was conducted under the cover of darkness. From this objective point, the battery would conduct the live fire portion of the exercise the following morning. One would think that moving a group of that size, in the dark, and having everything set properly in place would be a serious task. With the aid of night vision, communications, and survey equipment, Hotel Battery maneuvered into position with little difficulty and was set to spend a star-filled night in the field.

(A 155mm M777 howitzer set in place under the cover of darkness. This was shot by hand holding a night vision monocle in front of the camera's lens.)

First light was still an hour from breaking the horizon when the battery began to come to life the next morning. As dawn finally broke on that crisp October morning the Marines where conducting final preparations to begin firing live 155mm high explosive artillery rounds down range.

(Marines man an M777 as day breaks.)

The battery conducted its live fire throughout the morning. Once again, it was time to pack up and move the convoy, however, now they were going to be heading back to the reserve center in Richmond, VA

(The M777 firing a high explosive round to the target area.)

The shoot was a success! I captured the many facets involved during the maneuvering and engagement of a United States Marine Corps artillery battery. Not all of the aspects are “sexy” or exciting, however, each job is vitally important when the lives of their fellow Marines depend on the battery in combat.

(My in field accommodations: a cot, a warm and dry sleeping bag, and a clear, star-filled sky the night before.)

You can view the images from the training on my website. The photo gallery is dedicated to my late grandfather Master Sergeant Howard G. Gray, USMC (Retired) who served in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam.

Special thanks to Lt. Col. Clark, Capt. Bailey, and the Marines of Hotel 3/14 for their hospitality and all they do for our nation. My images from the training will be fortunate enough to grace the halls of the Battery Headquarters in Philadelphia, PA as well as the United States Marine Corps Reserves Recruiting Center in Richmond, VA.

The End to 2010

2010 started off a bit slow, but once spring rolled around things really took off. Initially I had intended to post more on the blog, but between shooting and enjoying the summer I didn't find the time. So for 2011 I will be posting here twice a month.

What kept me so busy? You can view some of my favorite shots from 2010 here and my 2010 wedding photo highlights here.
You can also find me on Facebook. Stay tuned the next post will be coming soon...

"Above and Below"

For 20 years I've been crossing the Bonner Bridge to surf along the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The bridge spans over Oregon Inlet and connects Hatteras Island to the northern beaches. Over those years I've driven north on highway 12 countless times, whizzing past the row of fishermen that crowd the catwalk along part of the bridge.

With an onshore wind there were no waves to surf and I was roaming the Outer Banks taking photos. As I started to cross the bridge heading north, I noticed a lone fisherman had waded about 200 yards out in to to shallows and he was fishing in thigh deep water. I thought it could make a great image and continued across the 2.5 mile bridge until I could turn around and go back.

When I arrived at the parking area on the south side of the bridge the fisherman was still fishing in the shallows. I grabbed my camera and started shooting. I took about 3 frames and then the fisherman started to wade back to shore. It was at this point I noticed the people fishing from the bridge's short catwalk and that there were people fishing from the base of the bridge's support structure.

In the image above, a man fishing from the support structure of the Bonner Bridge looks up at those fishing from the catwalk above (notice the fishing lines coming down from above). As it turns out, this image was more interesting to me than the few frames I shot of my intended subject.

I'm sure there have been people fishing from the support structure during the many years I've been driving over the bridge. Had it not been for the fisherman out in the shallows, I'd have made another trip across the bridge never aware of what was going on below.

"Waiting"

In May I had the privilege of photographing a firefighter training in Chester, VA. During training, the firefighters enter a "burn building." A burn building is a specially designed structure that allows instructors to control fires and expose trainees to environments and tactics they may experience in the field. The photo above, "Waiting," was shot as firefighters were preparing to put on their gear at the start of the session. You can view more photos from the training here.