I must say, there is a lot that I love about this photograph.  How distant the subject feels, yet so intimate because of the vignetting and the soft smoothness of the water….That the scene is warm with the evening sunset’s glow, yet signs of an industrialized location are evident with the power lines and the cranes and salt piles on the horizon.  The leading lines of the power lines pass right over hotels of the downtown area and reach towards the waterfront.  Lots of great elements….but mostly, I love the colors and the transitions. I hope you enjoy one of these little elements as much as I do.

The bucket of the crane is empty.  It’s been unloading sand from the freighter Hera for days now….replenishing the nearly depleted supply on the Market Street terminal. I loved being out at night and watching how the lights on the massive cranes illuminate the scene…yet only enough to shed some light where it was needed to unload. I actually saw each of the four bays on the freighter being unloaded at various points throughout the week…with the sand/salt mountain looking pretty ominous all over again.

I thought it was time to mix it up and return to some working waterfront images after all the waterfront beach shots featured recently.  With the onslaught of winter we’ve been having since 2011 arrived, I had been amazed that the sand/salt piles at Granite State Minerals shrunk as much as it did.  That meant one thing – more freighters would be in town soon…so that local trucks could come to the rescue of Public Works departments across New England.  Sure enough, upon getting back from Miami on Tuesday…I was greeted by two freighters in port.

The night shot add a dimension to the working waterfront feel for me, as we’re all used to seeing boats do their thing during the day, but it’s more rare that I stop to appreciate the fact that the cranes move through the night until all the minerals are unloaded.  Here is a glimpse of the freighter along with the Heritage (the boat I take most often for some summer weather harbor cruising).

It is sounding like we might be graced with more white fluffy stuff from the skies over the weekend.  In honor of that, here’s another take on the salt piles along Market Street….which will play a huge role in keeping our streets drivable.  Thanks to Granite State Minerals for keeping New England salted and sanded!  I’m hoping to get out for a round of snow shooting if it arrives.

More warmer weather & sunny images to follow over the next few days so stay tuned!

Market Street received a recent facelift when the sidewalks were torn up and replaced with new brick walkways and period lighting.  I must say, despite however expensive it must have been, it’s a nice classy look for that section of town.  The salt piles look as rustic as even along with the mural of the US Coast Guard Eagle adorning the entrance to Granite State Minerals, but the walkways are looking sharp and will be well lit during evenings from now on.  Hopefully the new design will help curb the queueing up of the massive salt trucks along Market Street on cold winter mornings.

Also – be sure to check out the new “Exhibits” tab listed above the header!  I hope to use this as a guide to where you can see a display of my work in person…as long as there are exhibits to share with those interested throughout the Seacoast.

A freighter sits docked at the New Hampshire State Pier in Portsmouth, NH next to the Middle Bridge (The Sarah Long Bridge).  I made a quick trip over to the other side of the bridge during lunch this week after getting stuck in the rain the night before, when I was completely soaked from a giant truck that drove across the roadway overhead….splashing whatever puddle was on the decking onto me and the camera (I called it an early night after that).

Unfortunately the boat wasn’t around long enough to capture it at sunset…but I still like this shot with the wind blowing across the Piscataqua River and the vibrant greens of the bridge pop against the cloudy sky.

Another Moran Towing shot of the quintessential tugboats, unadulterated by editing for all of your viewing pleasure.  The subtly lit shot of the waterfront is a nice contrast to the shot below, which captures the vibrance of the Tsuru freighter from Nassau docked at the Granite State Minerals terminal for unloading in downtown Portsmouth earlier this week.