Consider this a preview of a series I’ll be embarking on in the next week or so…in which I’ll detail the nearly completed State Street improvement project. This instantly recognizable door some (or remarkably unrecognizable for others) is located on State Street towards the Memorial Bridge and Prescott Park. I’ve always enjoyed this nondescript yet withered door, and loved the play of light/shadow on it in the early afternoon sunlight.
As promised, here’s a closer view of the Eastern Point Lighthouse in Gloucester, MA. Just like hundreds of other New England photographers, I love the opportunity to get out and shoot some of these coastal sentinels. I’m always happy when I can walk away with a decent shot or two – so the trip last weekend was well worth rushing around to catch sunset.
It’s no secret that I think much of Portsmouth’s charm comes from its working waterfront and active port. Here, you can see the sand/salt piles of the Granite State Minerals terminal on the waterfront and the reflections of its cranes and the Middle and Piscataqua River Bridges. This was one of the first set of brackets I fired off with my latest rental lens, the Carl Zeiss 21mm. The lens has incredible reviews for its sharpness and color rendition, with minimal distortion and high build quality. The scene wasn’t anything terribly remarkable, but made for a good test shot with the bricks in the foreground and the grey sky. It’s been a joy to use so far, and I look forward to a few more days of shooting before I have to ship it back out west to BorrowLenses.com.
If you travel north on the Piscataqua River, you’ll find your way to Dover, New Hampshire. Dover is another historic New England town…and claims the title of “Oldest Permanent Settlement” in New Hampshire. Downtown you’ll find one of the most massive mill buildings you’ll find in the seacoast. The Cocheco Falls Mills building is a sight to behold (and served as the Dover Cotton Factory from 1812-1821). I hope to feature some mill buildings on a more regular basis in coming months, including a glimpse of the Manchester, NH millyard.
Today I’m featuring the same scene as shot by two very different cameras. As you can see, the light was simply gorgeous in the late afternoon on Veterans’ Day at Perkins Cove in Ogunquit. The image above was taken with my uncle’s beloved Hasselblad camera, dating back to somewhere in the 1950s or 1960s. This medium format camera is the dream of many photographers, and I’m lucky and thankful to have the opportunity to use it. This image was one of my favorites from the first roll of color film I had developed – using one of the lovely Carl Zeiss lenses I’ve been shooting with and writing about lately. Below, you can see another wave in the afternoon light as shot with my modern day dream of a digital camera, the Canon 5d Mark II. It’s incredible what advancements can take place in technology, and despite all this – some people still prefer to stick to the tried and true….although at this point I think it’s safe to say that the majority of photographers are shooting on digital cameras. Now, if I could only get my hands on a digital Hasselblad!
Happy Thanksgiving to all! Thanks for visiting, I always appreciate your feedback and support. I’ve got an incredible amount to be thankful for this year, a wonderful family & new fiance, a great audience & community, and many milestones I’ve been thrilled and appreciative to record over the past year. Cheers to all & I hope you have a great day filled with thanks for all the things big & small that fill your days.
Here are more shots featured from the jaw-dropping sunset I enjoyed while checking out the Eastern Point Lighthouse on the southern point of Gloucester, MA. The late afternoon’s sunlight was incredible, despite being just after 4pm, thanks to the angle of the sun early in the day. The jetty was pretty cool, though Chris and I never strayed too far from the lighthouse itself. The tower and light of a lighthouse always fascinate me – so I was sure to get a closer shot…which will be featured this weekend!
State Street’s facelift continues. While I was driving home and treating my car to the luxurious new pavement on State Street, I realized that the new street lights were actually lit! Along with the new pavement and brick sidewalks (that are well on their way to being done), the city had turned on the street lamps on Thursday night. After realizing the street had a whole new look (finally), I decided to stop and snap a couple photos to prove it.
It was after I stopped that I met Eddie Sargent, the Chef/Owner of The Chef’s Table. Eddie was kind enough to get out of the way of what he thought was my shot (even though he wasn’t in it)…so I went over to say hello. Turns out he had just installed the new sign, which looks great. I loved the clean look of the new sidewalks and the granite stairs welcoming guests into the building, and the new sign was the icing on the cake. Hopefully – in a few more weeks, we’ll get State Street back to enjoy for ourselves, free of delays, construction cones and dust clouds. Below – see what a difference a day makes. Both shots were taken around 1pm at lunchtime…
I had some time to travel out of my ordinary routine this weekend, and found myself shooting in Gloucester for sunset. I met up with Chris Lazzery and we scouted a few spots and ended up at a lighthouse Chris knew of off the southern point of Gloucester facing towards the sunset. The lighthouse was gorgeous and there was a huge jetty that made its way out into the cove, but I was so struck by the gorgeous sunlight that I kept the framing of this shot simple to highlight the simple beauty of the day’s last light. The rays sneaking around the clouds and reaching towards the blues of the sky just blew me away.
The early morning sea was churning the waves out in Portsmouth Harbor. I was fortunate to have a 100mm-300mm lens to get a bit closer to the action as one of the waves did its best to rattle the massive stone lighthouse. I love the iconic scene…I would love to get out during an intense storm to snap a shot with some bigger waves, but I wouldn’t have such nice early morning light.
Also – thanks to everyone who bought raffle tickets to raise money for The Music Hall and the Portsmouth Museum of Art. It’s important to support our local cultural destinations no matter how small the contributions.
THE DAILY PORTSMOUTH 