Indian Echo Caverns

Today started around 6:15 AM when my alarm went off. I awoke a bit later after hitting the snooze button, groggy and heavy on the allergies acting up. Nothing was stopping me though from today’s adventure- not even the leftover tuna noodle casserole I made the night before with Lipton onion soup mix, fake parmesan cheese and cream-of-celery soup with a couple cans of the “chicken of the sea.” Tuna… they call it tuna.

Around 7:20 AM I fired up Big Red and departed towards Sheetz to withdrawal money for my admission and obtain caffeine. Final destination: Indian Echo Caverns.

I had not visited (and I feel old saying this) Indian Echo Caverns for 30 whole years. Yep. Last time I was there I was probably in third grade on a field trip with Sporting Hill Elementary School! Such a geezer I am becoming!

Call time was 8am for the West Shore Photography Club. Our fearless leader, Joe, gave us multiple focus stacking demonstrations and we met our guides Karen and Mike. Massive thanks to both of them for being our guides and lending their knowledge of the cavern.

Additional thanks to the WSPC leaders Elaine, Mary, Joe and Mike for putting this amazing trip together.

-Mike

Eastern State Penitentiary

Finally, after years of dying to visit this place I got a chance. I met up with a few of the folks from the camera club, some of whom knew this place very well. I opted not to take a guided or audio tour, rather just focus on exploration and taking my time photographing all I could. I live close enough to and frequent Philly enough that I will find some time to carve out to take one of the tours since I love learning history. Their Halloween events look pretty neat as well.

I did miss a few spots in the prison (aside from what was closed off) but overall was able to capture most of what I set out to get. I considered this trip a massive success and was happy with my results as well as everyone else’s from my club.

This prison is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For more information on this historic landmark, you can visit their website here.

-Mike

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex

Annually, my camera club gets together to photograph the interior (and exterior if we please) of the state capitol complex in Harrisburg, PA. Generally, we get to adventure into rooms normally not open to public tours which gives us more opportunities to explore this architecturally amazing building. The craftsmanship through out is spectacular and gives you a massive appreciation for the amount of integrity builders once had when designing and constructing these buildings. While modern architecture definitely can be stunning, nothing in my opinion, beats these old facilities. Around every corner and space there is an opportunity for creative photography. And just across the street is Jackson House. Meaning, after a couple hours of shooting, a fantastic hoagie is just a few minutes away. Their burgers are most likely the best around, too.

-Mike

Heishman Mill, Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Early this morning I met with my camera club at an old Mill in Carlisle, PA called Heishman Mill. As part of the National Register of Historic Places, the Heishman Mill has a rich history dating back to the beginning of the 19th century. For more historical information, please visit their website.

I was extremely impressed with the owner as he was responding to my tags on my Facebook page almost instantly excitedly filling in bits and pieces of history to each image I posted. To me that shows drive and initiative and a very proud owner who wants to keep this place preserved and offer it up as a historical part of PA for everyone to see.

-Mike

Longwood Gardens Christmas Lights

This evening (actually, like 9pm at night) I visited Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA. I’ve visited these gardens in the past but had never had the opportunity to explore them during Christmas with all of the lights. What an amazing job they do. Not a square inch left untouched with lights or decorations. I can’t wait to re-visit again next year, although this place is phenomenal any time of the year.

“Pro tip” if visiting during the holiday season: Buy tickets early and opt for a later entry time as it seemed as if they let less and less people in the later you sign up. Although there were a lot of people when I visited, it was not overwhelmingly packed.

-Mike

Shepherdstown, West Virginia

Today I met some friends in Shepherdstown, West Virginia. We spent the day exploring the various shops, doing a little Christmas shopping and walking their British Golden Retrievers around the town. It’s a quaint, vibrant small town along the Potomac River boarding Maryland.

After getting some good exercise in we had lunch and my buddy gave me some smoked meats he smoked on his new smoker. I’m a huge BBQ/Smoker guy so this was quite the treat!

We had lunch and I departed back home as I had to play host this evening.

I would say my least favorite spot was this coffee shop called Lost Dog. It was nothing special. It was nothing to write home about. It served as a coffee shop and generic gift store on the main drag. The gifts…very lame and generic. The tea barely had a scent and seemed stale. The coffee was mediocre at best, so I won’t link them. They had “I’m better than you” attitude condescending vibe. They didn’t feel inclusive or tolerant at all. Didn’t really feel like a marketplace of ideas existed with the owners/employees.

However, THIS place was amazing. The staff was engaging, excited for outsiders to visit and served us quickly and provided some PHENOMENAL pastries, coffee and desserts. They were accommodating with the dogs and their customers were so warm and inviting to us “outsiders.” I highly and when i say highly I mean HIGHLY check these folks out if you’re in or around this town. They can be found on the web here. The woman who served me picked my brain about the Eagles and how she should place her online bets. I hope whatever I told her was fruitful! GO BIRDS!

The general store was awesome as well. Again, if you visit, please check this spot out! They really do have some cool stuff to buy! Great spot to buy gifts and little trinkets for your home.

-Mike

Christmas at Old Bedford Village

Every December I take a trip out to Bedford, Pennsylvania to visit a small colonial town called Old Bedford Village. Most of the structures are not utilizing any electricity and are only lit by candle light and fireplaces. The rustic feel is cozy and inviting and the reenactors all do a fantastic job wearing period clothing and explaining history. Some of the shops where demonstrations and historical context can be found are a blacksmith, gunsmith, general store, stables, chandler, two schools, a church, a tavern with refreshments and more. This is one of my favorite Christmas time traditions.

They do two Saturdays in December for their Christmas/holiday events but have other events and educational opportunities throughout the year. I have not yet attended any of these, but they look pretty cool. Check Old Bedford Village out here.

-Mike

Rocky Ridge Park, York, Pennsylvania

Every Christmas I love traveling around to see what different places do to go “all out” with Christmas lights. For two or three years now I have been visiting Rocky Ridge Park in York, PA. Their light display is really amazing and rivals others in the Central, PA area.

This year I decided to do something a little bit different and abstract with my photography. Using the ICM (intentional camera movement) technique with the different lights, I captured interesting images which I tossed into Photoshop where I experimented with different filters including the liquify filter. This isn’t a difficult process but encourages creativity in symmetry, abstract imagery and just testing out random results.

Even with a really capable PC, some of the processing really put it to the test.

Again, something different this time around!

-Mike

Photo Walk Through Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania + Business Open Houses

Today’s trip didn’t involve a whole lot of travel since it took place in Mechanicsburg, PA which happens to be where I reside. Several business opened up their doors to privately invite my camera club in for photography opportunities.

The day started off at Eckles Ice Cream Fountain, whose previous life was as a drug store. This store was featured in the 1999 film, Girl, Interrupted. Here we had a nice lunch with the business owners as well as Mayor Jack Ritter of Mechanicsburg.

After our meal, we were free to adventure to any of the open businesses. My favorites were Hershey Violins and the Frankenberger Tavern (this place has some really awesome history).

-Mike

Fall Time at a Friend's Cabin

Some friends of mine have been telling me I need to get up to their property with my drone to do some aerial photography. Finally, I was able to take them up on that offer. Here’s a couple panoramic images I was able to capture of the fall foliage.

-Mike