Veterans Park

Most of my photo excursions always seem to begin or end at Veterans Park here in Northeast Ohio. I’m not sure if it’s the park’s proximity or how unique the park is with it’s ever changing scenery and wildlife.

Veterans Park protects the largest inland pond in Lake county and is a remnant of original Ohio swamp forest. The park offers four accessible fishing piers, a 1.78-mile loop trail though native wetlands with 830 feet of boardwalk, and a wetland/wildlife viewing area. Granger Pond is generally stocked with catfish, bass, bluegill and rainbow trout. The property was purchased from The Granger Family by the City of Mentor in 1970 and was Mentor’s first neighborhood park. (Courtesy Lake Metroparks)

Now for a few photos Veterans Park…

Thanks for stopping by,

Sean

(Images acquired with Canon Eos 40D and Olympus SP560Z)

Paine Falls and Indian Point

I recently had the opportunity to head out to the eastern part of Lake County and visit a few of my favorite parks out there for hiking and taking a few photos, Paine Falls and Indian Point. The parks are relatively close to each other, within a couple of miles, and are far enough off the beaten path that you really get that feeling of “solitude” while you’re out there.

Colonel Hendrick Paine, nephew of Edward Paine, founder of Painesville, moved his family from Parkman, Ohio, in 1818 to this little valley. It became known as “Paine’s Hollow.” Paine built a log cabin on the terrace on the north side of the valley. With the planning and financial help of his son’s (Elazer A. Paine) father-in-law, Samuel Phelps, Paine carried out the industrial development of Paine’s Hollow. He first built a sawmill.

In the years that followed, many other industries came to the Hollow. By 1840, valley businesses included an iron forge and furnace, a tannery, a shoemaker, a blacksmith shop, and a wagon maker. An ashery was built to produce lye for soap and potash production. The area also included several houses and a school for local children.

By 1850, surrounding forests had been felled and prosperity began to decline. With the lumber supply gone and new technological advances, water power was no longer needed. The area fell to ruin and many of the settlers moved to neighboring cities. In 1974, the area was named Paine Falls at which time it was dedicated as a park by Lake Metroparks. (Courtesy of Lake Metroparks website)

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places by the National Park Service, Indian Point has one of the earliest architectural works in this part of Ohio. A tribe from the Whittlesey Culture lived here; a Whittlesey structure was built on the 100-foot ridge between Paine Creek and the Grand River. Two parallel mounds of their earthworks can be seen. The Whittelsey were an early people who lived from 900 AD to 1650 AD in stockade villages on high bluffs overlooking rivers and lakes. Because they had no contact with Europeans, the name of their tribe is unknown. The culture is named after the archaeologist who discovered the tribe.

Charles Lyman bought several acres at the Point in 1901. He had camped here often. In the years before World War I, he used the area as a military camp for high school boys. More than 150 youngsters attended Lyman’s Camp Wissolohican during its seven-year period of existence. Lyman began carving the names of campers into a Totem Stone, which can be seen along the trail near the point. Later, the point became a Finnish camp, Kaleva Lodge. During this time, a stone hut was built and used as a sauna, intact until the 1970s, when the park system dismantled it. The property was purchased from John Phelps in 1964. A plaque was erected here, in honor of James and Edna Phelps, his parents. (In 1802, part of the property had been deeded to his ancestors by the Connecticut Land Company.)(Courtesy of Lake Metroparks website)

For more infromation and directions to Paine Falls and Indian Point, please visit:

Indian Point Metropark

Paine Falls Metropark

Thanks for stopping by,

Sean

(Images acquired with Canon Eos 40D, 28-135 IS Lens and 72mm Polarizing Filter)

Fairport Harbor and the Lighthouses

Some of my favorite images from in and around Northeast Ohio are from Fairport Harbor.

Fairport Harbor is home to two lighthouses: the Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Light in Painesville Township, operated by the United States Coast Guard and the Grand River (Fairport Harbor) Light operated by the Fairport Harbor Historical Society. 

Fairport Harbor is also a popular destination for seasonal activities. Fairport Harbor Lakefront Park, operated by Lake Metroparks features a beach, playgrounds and picnic areas. Nearly a dozen protected marinas and launch facilities provide ample opportunity for boating and fishing.

If you’re ever up this way looking for some great photo opportunities I highly recommend a trip to Fairport Harbor. The two lighthouses offer some great chances for photos at virtually anytime of day and the beach is very nice as well with play areas for the kids and relatively shallow water extending a good ways into the lake.

Thanks for stopping by,

Sean

(All images acquired with Canon Eos 40D.)

Sports and the Business Catchphrase

I’ve always had an appreciation for relationships and how diverse things can often come together to provide an unified theme. Northeast Ohio provides a lot of opportunities for a wide range of photos that can be used to express concepts and themes. Today’s post takes a look at how a sport in this case football ties into some business themes and popular catchphrases with some images I’ve taken locally.

First off we have “Opportunity” and the warning “Don’t get caught on the sidelines.” 

The image of an empty bench on the sidelines of a football field conveys the notion that you’re the only one that won’t be participating if you miss this opportunity.

Next we have, “Do You Know Your Audience?” and an image of empty bleacher seats.

With the implication that this could be result of not knowing one’s audience or market.

And finally, at least for this post we “Goals”and an image of an nearly impossible shot,

Reminding us that while goals are nice to have, short term more realistic goals might be more to our advantage.

Thanks for stopping by,

Sean

(All images acquired with Canon Eos 40D and polarizing filter.)

Happy Father’s Day

Just a quick post to wish all the Dads out there a Happy Father’s Day and post up a few pics from around Northeast Ohio symbolic of the guidance and hope a Father can provide.

Here’s hoping your Dad finds his favorite chair,

or fishing hole,

and gets to sit back and enjoy the day,

Thanks for stopping by,

Sean

(Images acquired with Canon Eos 40D and Olympus SP560Z)

Summer means Outdoor Fun !!!

You know summer is officially here when the neighbors around the corner have their annual “Summer Solstice” party. It also kicks off the season (albeit a seemingly shorter one every year here in Northeast Ohio)  for outdoor fun. Long hot days hiking through the woods or playing at the park,  water fights and running through sprinklers and getting blasted by the hose before even being allowed to set foot in the house. I miss the simplicity of my youth But I digress, summer is also the time I manage to get out and really get my favorite photos from the local city and metroparks that we are quite fortunate to have here in Lake County and the surrounding area. So with this in mind today’s post is dedicated to Summer Outdoor Fun.

Now step away from your computer and get outdoors!

Thanks for stopping by,

Sean

(All images acquired with Canon Eos 40D with 28 – 135 IS lens and Polarizing Filter)

Flowers, Lighthouses and Sunsets

If I were asked to give advice to someone just getting into sellling photos, I ‘d offer these three words, Flowers, Lighthouses and Sunsets. It doesn’t seem to matter where I post these types of photos, they always seem to be amongst the top draws of the portfolio. I’d also stongly recommend a polarizing filter, but that for another post. So without further adieu, I present a few Flowers, Lighthouses and Sunsets…

So there you have it. Lets see if this post gets the attention like these images do in my portfolios.

Thanks for stopping by,

Regards,

Sean