Pennace Photography » Random

Fireworks ● the Story of Love

Laura Pennace — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 07:09:18 +0000

I love fireworks. When I was a kid, my dad and I would snip out the fireworks schedule for the various nearby towns from the local paper – and we’d go to all of them. If we could we’d go to 2 or 3 in a night. For one week a year, I saw fireworks every night. I was a girl obsessed.

It’s been more difficult now that I live in Manhattan, since the fireworks often bring out insanely huge crowds. Watching on TV is just not. the. same. So I’ve actually missed them the past few years. Sadness!! I was determined to see them this year, so I hightailed it out of the city.

I intended on taking pictures of fireworks, and I came away documenting a couple’s love. I didn’t even really realize until I was going through the photos and this couple showed up in pretty much every one. It’s kind of amazing – a candid, brief moment in a couple’s journey together.

It started off subtly enough, since there were a fair amount of people around me watching.

Then the couple just seemed to move closer to me. He started taking pictures himself – of the fireworks, and of her. He took a lot of photos of her as she looked up at the fireworks.

Love.

Technorati Tags: beach, couple, fireworks, love, people, photography, photos, thoughts

Adventures ● Independence Pass, Colorado

Laura Pennace — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 14:43:35 +0000

Over the summer during my Western meanderings, I came across Independence Pass. I had to get from Point A to Point B, and I could tell the GPS was leading me somewhere crazy – hairpin turns up the wazoo, windy roads that never ended – I thought I was going to be entering another dimension. And then…I saw it. Carefully driving around the roadkill that had unfortunately met its demise before the first hairpin turn, I began on my journey up. And up. And up. And up. I thought I was already in the mountains, but I clearly knew nothing before ascending.

I came across a parking lot, and I pulled over. I was pulling over a lot on this trip, and it’s why it took me forever to get anywhere (as a side note, my original Point B turned out to be a total dud, so I had to cross back over this exact spot later in the day – only to go over it AGAIN the next day to get to the airport. I’m not very good with planning…)

I spent about two hours in the area – which is over 12,000 feet above sea level – and I was mesmerized. It was the middle of July, but there were large areas of snow covering the ground – I saw people snowboarding down hills. I was in a t-shirt, and both cold and hot. Did I mention the lack of air? Everything was super quiet and hazy.

Despite all the signs that said things like “don’t go off the marked trails!” I couldn’t help myself. C’mon, would you?? I decided to climb to the top of one of the less jagged mountains. It seemed so easy from the parking lot. That in itself took me about 45 minutes to climb (with all my camera gear). I got to the top, fell over and laid down for awhile, then enjoyed the view (such as looking down on pine trees from far above). As I was leaving I (almost) ran into a man who was walking up the hill, and going much higher and farther than I dared. It looked like he was going to walk along the mountain ridge forever when I left him.

Technorati Tags: black and white, black and white photography, colorado, hairpin, independence, independence pass, Landscape, people, photos, rocky mountains, sea level, thoughts

Dewey Service Station/A Tribute to Ballard Harris

Laura Pennace — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 02:46:39 +0000

Last month I went on a little roadtrip. I was supposed to stick exclusively to Colorado, but since I didn’t actually plan anything on the roadtrip (besides the flight and the car rental), I made some improvisations along the way. And that is how I came across the Dewey Service Station in the “ghost town” of Dewey, Utah. Prepare for some history!

The Dewey Service Station was, as far as I can tell, owned and operated exclusively by a man name Ballard Harris, who was referenced in a Johnny Cash song while working at another gas station a ghost town over in Cisco, Utah (I wish I knew this while I was out there!). The station was opened at some point after he retired from his job at the Utah Department of Transportation in 1976. He lived directly behind the gas station while he worked there, and over the years became “somewhat of a tourist attraction himself.”

By the time I stumbled out there in July, four and a half years after Harris’s death at the age of 91, the gas station was a mere shadow of what it used to be. Even in 2003, there was a lot more there than there was when I found it:

It looked like it used to be a service station, but all it I saw was a series of faded signs with paint that was curled up and peeling. The property was adorned with a variety of spiritual and social messages. There was a sign with the Ten Commandments; The Lord’s Bulletin Board listing the names and numbers for a mental health service, Alcoholics Anonymous, a number for runaway kids, and the Suicide Prevention Hotline; a sign listing all of the churches in the area; and a number of signs denouncing drug use. One of the many anti-drug signs said: “Warning! Drugs Do Kill. Say No.” There was a big sign proclaiming that “Three of the World’s Greatest Problems are (1) Misused Drugs, (2) Greed, (3) Waste” and “When Satan Rocks Your Boat, God is Your Best Anchor.”
http://www.roundamerica.com/trip/journal/day67.htm.

I peered into the building while I was there. Actually, I tried to get IN the building (my curiosity never wanes) through all available means, but it was closed tight. I saw an old black and white photo hanging up on a wall. The front of the gas station was painted with a huge mural from 1982 of the nearby and burned down Dewey Suspension Bridge. I probably spent over an hour at the site total. Love.

Technorati Tags: ballard harris, bridge, colorado, dewey, dewey service station, dewey suspension bridge, dewey utah, gas station, ghost town, johnny cash, people, roadtrip, service station, suspension bridge, ten commandments, thoughts, utah

Fort Mifflin

Laura Pennace — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 01:18:28 +0000

In early May I took a trip to Philadelphia with some friends to Fort Mifflin, a Revoluntionary War fort and Civil War Confederate prison. Since I did a blog post last summer about Fort Knox in Maine, I thought this would be an appropriate follow-up. This fort is rumored to be very haunted (and was even investigated on an episode of Ghost Hunters), though it was quiet and peaceful when my friends and I were there.

The fort is actually located directly over the landing flight path of the Philadelphia International Airport, and so every few minutes or so low flying planes would sail seemingly dangerously close to the top of the fort. The best plane seen? The Pittsburgh Steelers plane! Insert some sort of bad joke here…

Technorati Tags: airport, ben roethlisberger, civil war, confederate prison, fort knox, fort mifflin, ft mifflin, ghost hunters, ghosts, grant wilson, haunted, jason hawes, maine, paranormal, pennsylvania, people, philadelphia, philly, pittsburgh, pittsburgh steelers, plane, planes, revolutionary war, thoughts

The Aquarium

Laura Pennace — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:23:22 +0000

I like sea life. The question is, does sea life like me?

I went to a display where you could touch things like starfish and crab. I watched as a man held a starfish in his hand (his hand was submerged in water). So after he left, I did the same thing. I watched as the starfish slowly (though perhaps quickly, in starfish speed) suction cupped its way off my hand.

I take comfort in the fact that the Beluga whale liked me, so much so that, when I had my face up against the glass (am I six years old?) and was waving at the whale, it came up close to the glass and suddenly opened its big ol’ mouth super wide, its jaw and teeth clicking loudly in the water. People behind me gasped, I yelped and thought my end was near. But he was just playin’. I mean, look at that face!

Technorati Tags: aquarium, beluga whale, mystic, mystic aquarium, people, photography, seal, thoughts, walrus, whale

Carlsbad Caverns

Laura Pennace — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 23:20:42 +0000

You ready for a bad joke? Carlsbad Caverns was so cool, it was Carlsgood! Ha! Ha ha! Hoooo. But seriously folks, if you get a chance to go, you should.

I foolishly did not bring my tripod with me into the caverns. I ended up kicking myself (which is quite difficult to do in actuality). I managed though. I know they say “don’t touch the rock formations,” but, well…I touched them. A lot. To balance my camera! I know, I know, the oils from my fingers have probably ruined the whole thing. I’m sorry guys!

Technorati Tags: carlsbad caverns, caverns, new meico, people, photography, photos, thoughts

Horses

Laura Pennace — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 01:01:05 +0000

My trip through Arizona and New Mexico was loosely planned. I had a goal each day, and drove hundreds of miles each day in between stops. The process of getting from one place to another was slowed down considerably because I had this tendency to swerve off the road (in a controlled manner!) when something caught my fancy. Such as this guy, right here.

You’d think I never saw a horse before. At least that’s what the people driving by seemed to think, judging by their expressions. Oh well! The horse came right up to me and let me touch it. As did a very insistent cow. But that’s another story for another day. They both thought I had food, I’m sure, though I like to think that maybe they both just thought I was an awesome person.

I have titled this one “Horse who sees me and immediately goes behind a tree to crap.” I like to use subtle, thoughtful titles for my photos, with very deep meanings. Not literal at all….

I photographed this horse on my first night in Arizona, when it started getting dark, my cell phone had died, and I had no hotel reservation and an unclear idea of where I even was. Ah, adventure! I love character building. This seemed like a forgotten horse, surrounded by empty, run-down buildings. And lots of power lines…

Fort Knox

Laura Pennace — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 01:17:41 +0000

For all you non-Revolutionary War lovin’ people out there, you must know that Henry Knox was such an awesome guy, he had multiple locations named after him. He brought the cannons! From Ticonderoga! He’s also got a fort named after him in Penobscot, Maine. According to the official information on the fort, at various points in history Maine was seen as a possible place for the British to attack and weaken the Union. Yes folks, you read that correctly. There was a time when the glorious State of Maine was known more for its valuable natural resources than for Stephen King novels and moose.

I don’t know how many of you out there have been to Maine, but it’s not exactly the hub of activity. There’s actually a rumor the British finally did take Maine, back in 1987, but nobody noticed.

Exciting to my libertarian senses, there was absolutely nothing in the fort blocked off, and no artificial lighting to help you along the way. If you didn’t bring a flashlight, you were in big trouble, and it was nobody’s fault but your own. I could’ve probably impaled myself on something, if I wanted to, or fallen down a variety of stone staircases. I saw children playing atop the fort, precariously near the edge, and in that moment loved Maine more than I ever had before.

Shelves

Laura Pennace — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 01:27:36 +0000

You find the darndest things when you aren’t looking for them. Sadly, this butterfly and moth have “moved on.” I didn’t touch or move them – I just found them like this. This is one of my favorite shots I’ve ever taken.

Muddy Water

Laura Pennace — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 03:22:09 +0000

I recently took a semi-roadtrip to Arizona and New Mexico. I kinda cheated in that I flew out there, but I drove about 1,600 miles in six days, seeing random sites in both states.

Unfortunately for me, it rained most of my trip (in the desert! During a typically non-rainy season!). This phenomenon is commonly known as the “Pennace Family Curse.” Anyway…the unexpected rain resulted in some flooding. And lots and lots of muddy water.

Technorati Tags: arizona, boating, bridge, clouds, mud, new mexico, photography, photos, rafting, rafts, rain, sky, sun, water