Some cool photos from Gettysburg yesterday

Joined
Aug 5, 2007
Location
Richmond, VA
Hey guys,

My wife and I were in Gettysburg yesterday and I took some photos that I think you guys will enjoy. As you probably know, Gettysburg does not light any of their monuments at night, so it gets pitch black out on the battlefield at night. Well, there is a photo technique that I have been trying to learn for the past year called "Painting with Light" with varying sucess. Well, at sunset we drove over to the Pennsylvania Monument and I tried to put everything I have learned over the past year to the test. Here is one of the shots I got.......if you would like to see more, they are in the "What's New" section of my website, http://www.virtualcivilwar.com Enjoy!

IMG_1072a.jpg


Mike
 
You have some great pics on that sight! Very enjoyable. You really managed to catch the essence, and the intensity!
 
Thanks guys! I plan on doing this with each trip to various battlefields now. This Friday we are going around Richmond to have some fun with it (probably Monument Ave).

Thanks Dred!

Mike
 
You have a great site! I am an aspiring amateur photographer and I try to get pictures of everything CW in my area. Your new book looks great. I love the idea. It take then "then and now" shots to new heights. What type of equipment do you use? From looking at your pics of the Remembrance day Parade, I think I was standing about 50 feet or so from you!

Mike t.
 
Thanks Mike....I have a Canon Digital Rebel XT. That's cool that you were right by me during the parade.....I haven't been able to get to the parade the past few years (I had moved up to Buffalo), and since I was going to be back, I knew right where I wanted to be...it was a great view there wasn't it? I loved having the period buildings in the background instead of Friendly's :smile: Thanks for the compliment on the book, I am actually working on Volume 2...that's why I was in Gettysburg this weekend. Thanks again for the compliments!

Mike
 
I am going to look through some of my Texas stuff and email them to you so you can post them on your site. Once again your site has some great pictures; wonderful subjects and artistry.

Mike T.
 
That would be great, send me whatever you would like and I will get them posted. Thanks again for the compliments, I'm looking forward to seeing your work.

Mike
 
Hi Mike: I like your website. Are you a reb? :smile: (messin' with ya) Your Gettysburg photos are excellent, and the "painting with light" photo on the board here is almost beyond awesome. Excellent photography. I hope you keep up with it.


Terry
 
Dear VirtualCivilWar/Mike,

Thank you for sharing those wonderful pictures. I have gone beyond and taken a peek all around your site and, must say--what wonderful work you have done on that site. I really appreciated the 'old Civil War' photographs from the period. Duke Street defenses is as close as it will come to be near my home. (Annandale, East of Alexandria and three streets North of the Little River Turnpike/Duke Street).

I also appreciated your effords to have period photographs of those Generals to whom participated at Gettysburg. Actors are great but, there is nothing like the real photos of the actual individuals.

Thanks again for sharing your photographs with all of us and creating such a wonderful web site for all to draw information from.

Sincerely,
M. E. Wolf
 
William42.....I actually northern by birth, southern by choice :smile: I live down in Richmond now. Thank you very much for your compliments, I really appreciate it.

M E Wolf, thank you very much for your compliments on my site. I came up with the idea back in '03 when I was doing my book and visiting so many sites. I wanted to share my passion with others with a similar passion with the Civil War. The site has grown quite a bit over the years and I have loved every minute of it. As much as it is focused on my photos, I wanted to make sure that I honored those who actually fought in the struggle. I had a lot of fun fixing the contrast of those original photos to try to make them look as good as they ever did. I hope you saw the "Honoring those who Served" section too. I am going to be adjusting the format of that gallery to bring it up-to-date with the other galleries and have the larger images, but it is worth taking a look at the faces of the young men that fought on both sides.

One other thing, I used to live over on Seminary Road, it is a beautiful area, and make sure you get over to check out Fort Ward! :smile:

Thanks again guys, I am really glad you liked my work.

Mike
 
Dear VirtualCivilWar/Mike;

Fort Ward (Alexandria) is one of the total of 76 forts, batteries and out posts that created the 'circle forts' around Washington, DC.

Fort Stevens (Washington, DC) was the only fort to see a battle, and the only fort where a sitting President (Lincoln) was in the battle exchange, July 11, 1864--a Union officer next to Lincoln was killed and President Lincoln was unhurt. Fourty-one Union soldiers were killed repulsing General Early's attempt to enter the city and disrupt train services of the B&O Railroad.

Fort Leslie McNair, is the longest fort occupied--since 1791. It was known as 'The Washington Arsenal.' An explosion took place where 23 civilian women were killed, as they were making ammunition.

There are many other forts that still exist but, have been renamed over the course of the years.

Just some thoughts.

Sincerely,
M. E. Weyraugh
 
M E Wolf,

Oh, trust me, during my four years in Alexandria I visited them all. Actually I was a press photographer in DC, and I got to get on Fort McNair quite a few times. The people over in the museum at Fort Ward were always very nice to me and helped me with some questions over the years. It was close enough to my apt that my wife would go run there when she would come over and visit....she would jog to the fort, loop it, and job back to my apt.

Do you have the book "Mr. Lincoln's Forts"? That is a fantastic book on the subject of the Defenses of Washington. I picked it up a few years ago (on the advice of the people at Fort Ward) and love it....it gives turn by turn directions on how to get from one fort to the next. (plus is very useful for Google Maps!)

Mike
 
ME Wolf,
Just read your post and realized you live so close to where i use to be! I lived in Alexandria off Telegraph Rd On The Parkway.
 
Neighbors!!!

Dear VirtualCivilWar/Mike and Dred--Pity we hadn't met prior to the moves you folks took.

I could have hitched my horse (now deceased) and wagon (circa 1870 Banner Wagon) and given you a horse drawn tour of Washington, DC and areas of interests. I can tell you the statues are proper proportions from the box of the wagon. Optically, they are not when sitting in a car.

I think it would have been wonderful if I could drive you with horse and wagon over the Manassass/Bull Run Battlefield as well.

I had taken a few handicapped individuals in my wagon and gave them an opportunity to enjoy a treat. [Ah..pleasant memories]

Telegraph Road is a very old road, which the first telegraph lines were set up. It really is a beautiful drive on the old road.

By the way--My father had saved his AAA (Triple A) maps from the 1950's. At one point, Little River Turnpike from where Shirley Highway is through the area of Pinecrest-- was named Lee-Jackson Hwy. [Chuckles]. A lot of our streets are named for Confederate Generals and notables.



Sincerely,
M. E. Wolf
 
Sounds like that would have been a blast! Have you been down on Telegraph here in Richmond? The JEB Stuart memorial where he was wounded is on old Telegraph Road.....it's only about 2 miles from where I live. Actually the sunken road in Fredericksburg with the stone wall was once part of the Telegraph Road. Those maps sound really cool, I didn't know about the Lee-Jackson Hwy......but of course Rte 1 is still the Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway. It's not called that here in Richmond anymore, although there are monuments along it still labeling it as such.

Mike
 
Dear VirtualCivilWar/Mike;

Yes, I have been to 'Fredericksburg' and seen the battlefields, to include 'Bloody Lane.' But, I haven't been far beyond Carmel Church.

The city of Fredericksburg has plenty of building still standing that wear the scars of the Civil War. It really is a pity, that 'Gods and Generals' could use the actual city and buildings--as it would be more 'real' and can see these sites.

I think too many battlefields have been lost to development. I realize the need for land and covering expenses but, this is 'holy ground' to me. Just as Revolutionary battlegrounds should be preserved but, get less attention than the Civil War.

I saw somewhere, that the US Military in the 1950-1960s era, had conducted an actual 're-enactment' on Manassass/Bull Run Battlefield. I 'think' I saw someplace where West Point cadets were allowed to shoot live full measure weapons of the Civil War. Can you imagine having artilery field pieces going off full charge and live canons sail miles off?

Too bad I'm not a 'General' at the Pentagon who could command such to be done for civilians as to give that 'exclaimation point' as to what it might have sounded like during the Civil War. I think reenactors would be tickled to death to have their canons boom full strength, no holes bar. I'm sure tests done for each field piece could be done to scan for metal fatigue in period pieces would help. (Safety first).

Just some thoughts.

Sincerely,
M. E. Wolf
 
The Library of Congress has photos of Marines training on the Gettysburg battlefield. Can you imagine that today? I think it was too close to when it actually happened to be considered sacred ground....at least I hope so, otherwise I would really question what they were doing. As for Fredericksburg, I was told by a ranger there that after the Civil War one of the guys in Congress that was helping to preserve the battlefields was a former Union soldier and a G.A.R. member and he called Fredericksburg "The Union Graveyard" and he hated that city, that's why he didn't do anything to protect it. I don't know how true that is, but that's what I was told.

You should come this way and check out what we have in the Richmond area....all of the battelfields around here are pretty close to what they used to look like, all farmland, it's great driving around Cold Harbor, Gaines Mill, Five Forks, the outskirts of Petersburg (only 20 mins south of Richmond)...of course there is a lot that is gone here too, most of the 7 days battles locations are gone, but the Park Service has Chickhominy Creek, Bever Dam Creek, Malvern Hill and of course Cold Harbor preserved pretty well. We don't have the urban sprall problems of Manassas yet....yet.

Mike
 
M.E. Wolf

My parents still live in Alexandria, and I figure eventually we will be heading back that way for a visit. I'll have to keep you in mind for that tour when I do!
 
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