Harpers Ferry, Antietam, Fireworks, Cleveland, and Lake Erie

It’s been a long time since I’ve done a What’s On Moosey’s Mind Series. July has been a crazy traveling month for me with having somewhere to go every weekend. It wouldn’t have been so bad except for that pesky day job I have during the week ;) I have no idea where August went, and now it’s September. I wanted to share some of my photography with you before fall sets in too quickly. This summer, I went to Harpers Ferry, WV; Cleveland, Ohio; and Erie, PA. This post may be a little over the place today, but I’ve been dying to share my photos with you.

Harpers Ferry and Antietam

Back in June, my parents, brother, and I went to Harpers Ferry (technically West Virginia but also overlaps into Virginia and Maryland) and Antietam in Maryland. It’s a couple hour day trip and something that’s been on our to see list. Harpers Ferry is where West Virginia, Virginia, and Maryland meet and has a lot of history behind it – John Brown’s attack on slavery, the arrival of the first successful American railroad, the largest surrender of Federal troops during the Civil War, and more.

Harpers Ferry has such a pretty ambiance with the buildings. Employees also dressed up in era clothing.

Harpers Ferry has a big history with the railroad system.

Lots of kayaks and rafting going on

Geese just hanging out

I had the best brownie ever there at some gift shop that happened to have a bakery counter – Marshmallow Brownies. Can you guess why I was in love?

Church

The sign says the stairs are from the 1800s and may be uneven, so be careful.

On the left is Jefferson Rock. Thomas Jefferson claimed it was the most beautiful view he’s ever seen. Clearly he never made it to the Grand Canyon.

While we were there, they recreated a historic baseball game, which means they didn’t use baseball gloves.

One of the battlefields with Harpers Ferry in the background

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Antietam is considered the bloodiest one day battle of the American Civil War and led to Abraham Lincoln’s issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation. Touring the battlefield reminded us of Gettysburg.

4th Of July and Fireworks

Have you ever taken pictures of fireworks? I’m sure we all have with our point and shoot cameras or even our phones, but this year I wanted to try taking them with my DSLR. My parents’ neighborhood shoots off fireworks every 4th of July, so I was lucky enough to set up in the backyard without worrying about crowds. However, it was a rainy night. Although the rain stopped in time to shoot off fireworks, halfway through it started raining again, so I was limited to under the back porch’s roof.

The three things you need are a tripod, a remote control, and the bulb setting. The bulb setting is part of your shutter speed. If you scroll your speed all the way to the end of the slow speed (to the left for me), it’ll eventually hit bulb. This means the shutter will stay open for as long as you hold the button down (hence the remote and tripod for less camera shake). The longer you hold down the button, the more light is let in. This is especially important for fireworks because the only light you have is coming from the fireworks. However, you don’t want to leave the shutter open too long because the sparks will then become overexposed. To read more about taking pictures of fireworks, click here for a more detailed guide.

Cleveland and Erie

During 4th of July weekend, my parents, brother, and I traveled to the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio then to Lake Erie, PA. We were supposed to go in December, but then the region got hit by a ton of snow. I’ve been to the hall of fame two times – once in middle school and once in high school – but it’s always great to go back as an adult to what has and hasn’t changed.

Also, it was quite difficult to shoot inside because of the low lighting. This is why it’s important to understand manual mode! You need to be able to adjust for the lack of light yet have a fast enough shutter speed since you don’t have a tripod.

The building itself stands out!

Johnny Cash’s bus. It was closed so we couldn’t go on it.

I’d be in trouble if I didn’t include Elvis.

The Beatles

The Rolling Stones. There was a special exhibit dedicated just to them.

Word.

My parents kept asking if I got a picture of Janis Joplin’s car. Yes I got the car.

Emer – if you are reading this, I took this for you! One of the songs from Scrubs you gave me.

The Supremes and Aerosmith. A good bit of the inductees had little booths dedicated to them with their memorabilia.

Michael Jackson

Signatures of inductees. By far the hardest room to photograph because there was barely any light. I got super lucky with Dick Clark.

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As a family, we’ve been going to Presque Isle in Erie, PA numerous times but haven’t been back since before graduating college (maybe even before starting college):

Honk!

Watching the boats (no I don’t know him)

Hi!

Gone fishing

I love lighthouses

If you look closely at the clouds, there’s a small rainbow

I would never stay in those houses. They are on solid foundations but the thought of being surrounded by water when it’s raining?

The beach

Ghost ship! (just kidding)

Before we left, we stopped at Waldameer Park

I made everyone wait until I got this shot, so I had to include it.

Where did you go this summer?