Cemetery Flowers

Snow Angels - Day 65

Mourning Fog - Day 34

Freedom - Day 146 #CY365

The price of freedom is high. So thankful for the men and women who paid it. Hampton National Cemetery. Olympus OM-D E-M1 1/250 sec @ f/13.0, ISO 200.

Peaceful - Day 113 #CY365

I often walk through the churchyard in Downtown Norfolk's St. Paul Episcopal Church. The oldest parts of the current building dates to 1737 but other church buildings occupied the site for years before. It is a peaceful oasis in an otherwise busy downtown, Canon G15, 1/30 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 100.

In the Air - Day 15 #CY365

It was a very foggy morning and historic Elmwood Cemetery in Norfolk Virginia seemed the perfect place to capture today's theme "In the Air". Canon G15, 1/320sec @ f/6.3, ISO 200 converted to black and white using Silver Efex Pro plugin in Lightroom 5.

Veterans Day

Veterans Day had its beginnings back in 1919 when President Wilson proclaimed November 11th as the first commemoration of Armistice Day marking the one year anniversary of the cessation of hostilities generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.” In 1954 President Eisenhower issued the first "Veterans Day Proclamation" and the date become the Veterans Day holiday. A law was passed in 1968 to ensure three-day weekends for Federal employees by celebrating four national holidays on Mondays: Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Columbus Day. The first Veterans Day under the new law was observed with much confusion on October 25, 1971. President Ford signed a new law in 1975 changing Veterans Day back to November 11th. Since 1978 when the new law took effect Veterans Day has been observed on November 11th, regardless of what day of the week on which it falls. Canon G10, 1/320 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 200.

Here Lyeth

This 17th century grave marker bears the skull and crossbones and is located at St. Pauls Church in Norfolk Virginia. On July 1, 1875 the stone was brought to Norfolk from Weyanoke on the James River. It was found amid the ruins of an old colonia church. Today the stone is attached to the south wall of the old church.

Did you notice the year of William Harris' death is noted as 1687/8? So what's up with that? Were they not sure what year he actually died in? No, according the the USGen Web project "the practice of double dating resulted from the switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. Not all countries and people accepted the new calendar at the same time. England and the American colonies didn't officially accept it until 1752. Before that date, the government observed March 25 as the first of the year, but most of the population observed January 1 as the start of the year. For this reason, many people wrote dates falling between January 1 and March 25 with both years." Now you know.

iPhone 5, 1/144 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 50, Camera+ app using the Clarity adjustment and Pinhole FX Effect.

Death's Head

This creepy skull is on an old garvestome at St. Paul's Church in Norfolk Virginia. The inscriptions are long since worn away but the skull remains. The marker most likely dates from the late 1600's to the early 1700's. The death's head, often with wings and/or crossed bones, was a stylized skull. Some have speculated that winged skulls were intended to symbolize a combination of physical death and spiritual regeneration. iPhone 5, 1/20 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 50, Camera+ app.

This the Season

Getting into the spirit of America's second bigest holiday, Halloween. This spooky photo was taken at Norfolk Virginia's historic Elmwood Cemetery. Nothing says Halloween like a foggy graveyard. Canon G10, 1/125 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200 converted to black and white in Lightroom using Silver Efex Pro plugin.

Guiding Angel

- Victorian Funerary Arts produced interesting and beautiful cemeteries during the 19th Century. Many of the customs of the day carried forward into the first half of the 20th century and some still influence how funerals are carried out today. The Victorian cemeteries of the 19th century were treated as parks are today with family outings and picnics often held on their carefully landscaped and maintained grounds. Norfolk has several historic cemeteries from this time period including Magnolia Cemetery in the Berkley neighborhood where this guiding angle can be found. The guiding angel points a finger heavenward to direct the deceased's soul. Canon G1x, 1/400 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 100, converted to black and white in Lightroom 4 using Silver Efex Pro 2.

Little Willie

- Meet Willie - a marble memorial to Willie Stewart who died in 1892 at 16 months old. The small statue was commissioned by Willie's mother and is said to be in his likeness. He's a rather famous occupant of the Victorian era Elmwood Cemetery in Norfolk Virginia. His mother must have loved him and missed him very much. A long inscription begins:

I cannot touch thy hand nor see thy face,
never more shall press my lips to thine,
sleep within thy lonely resting place.
Thou will not wake to any words of mine.
Farewell my son I leave you in God's keeping.
His will for thee at rest from all earth's care.
Farewell my Willie, farewell my darling.

iPhone 4, converted to black & white.

Broken Wing

- Even with a broken wing this angle continues to maintain watch over a tomb in the historic Lafayette Cemetery #1 in the Garden District, New Orleans. Canon G11, 1/500 sec @ f/7.1, ISO 200.

Daniel Fire-Cloud

- I have long had an interest in old cemeteries and for the past five years I've been fulfilling photo requests for the Find a Grave website. Today I had occasion to stop by the small cemetery on the campus of Hampton University for a photo request but I was unable to locate the grave I was looking for. I did however spend some time walking among the graves of Native Americans who were students at what was then Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute. The "Indian School" existed from1878 through 1923 and many young Native American men and women from western tribes attended the school. Some like Daniel Fire-Cloud a Sioux from South Dakota died while attending school. His grave is marked by a traditional stone and a more fitting massive cedar tree. Canon G11, 1/125 sec @ f/3.5, ISO 200, converted to black and white in Lightroom 3 using the Silver Efex Pro 2 plugin.

Decoration Day

- Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, which was first observed by Freedmen in Charleston, South Carolina in 1865 to remember the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War. Today Memorial Day is a time for us to remember and honor all of those who have fallen in the service of our freedom. Hampton National Cemetery was created in 1862 by the Union Army to bury Civil War dead. While most were Union casualties there are several hundred Confederate dead buried there as well. Today almost 30,000 veterans rest here from all conflicts of the past 150 years. The cemetery also holds the graves of 29 German sailors killed during the sinking of the U-85 just off Oregon Inlet North Carolina in April 1942. Canon 40D, 1/1600 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200, 200mm focal length.

Thankful

Thankful for blue skies, fall colors, red roses, and the freedom to enjoy it all. Canon G11, 1/400 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 100.

The Fallen

- In honor of all of our Veterans. Canon 40D, 1/125 sec @ f/9.0, ISO 100, 55mm focal length.

356 - Holiday Honors

From 365 Project

2500 wreaths adorn the graves of fallen veterans at the Hampton National Cemetery in Hampton Virginia. The wreaths were placed as part of the Wreaths Across America project and honor veterans from the Civil War to the present who rest at the historic and beautiful Hampton National. Canon G10, 1/200 sec @ f/6.3, ISO 200.

349 - Fog

From 365 Project

I have been thinking about trying to capture the old Elmwood Cemetery in Norfolk shrouded in fog since I began this 365 project almost a year ago. I drive by it everyday on my way to work. Well this week we have had two foggy mornings so I took the picture. Fog is actually pretty difficult to photograph and it took some trial and error to capture the picture I had envisioned. Sorry for the break from the recent run of holiday themes but they weren't generating any excitement or comments anyway. Enjoy the macabre. Canon G10, 1/200 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200 converted to black and white using Silver Efex Pro in Photoshop Elements.

315 - 11th

From 365 Project

Veterans Day in the U.S. is also celebrated as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day in other parts of the world, falling on November 11, the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice to end the "Great War" on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. The day is of particular meaning to me as my father was a decorated Army combat veteran of WWII and the Korean War. I took this photo yesterday since the forecast for a major Nor'easter ruled out today. The Hampton National Cemetery was in tip top shape for the holiday. Canon G10, 1/250 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 200.