Gettysburg Sunsets

I know this blog is supposed to be dedicated to real estate and lifestyle in the Ormond Beach area but today I am going to stray a little bit.  I recently took a trip to Southern Pennsylvania to visit my grandfather and was pretty active running around taking some pictures.  One night I wandered over to the Gettysburg battlegrounds at sunset and got some really great shots that I wanted to share with you here.  These were taken from up on a hill overlooking the battlegrounds.  It was a great time of year for the leaves changing colors and luckily it was still also fairly warm too.
I hope you enjoy these:








  


 

Day Trip - St. Augustine

St Augustine is really a wonderful and charming little college town located between Jacksonville and Daytona Beach on the East coast of Florida.  I had the privilege of living there for 2 years while I attended Flagler College.  Even though I only live about 45 minutes away I rarely visit the city as much as I should.  This past weekend I made a trip with my family there for some dinner and shopping.  I, of course, brought along my camera and captured a few good sunset images around the city.



Both of these pictures show the towers that were once part of Henry Flagler's hotel and are now the college.  The second picture was taken down the street that leads to the college.  A special thank you goes out to the lady that probably thought about running me over but instead stopped and waiting while I took the picture.

#flaglercollege #StAugustine #sunsetphotography #hdrphotography

Sunset over the Halifax River in Daytona Beach

Sunset over the Halifax River in Daytona Beach

I took these 2 shots this past Friday from underneath the Seabreeze/Mason Ave bridge in Daytona Beach.  It was actually raining in both of these photos but I was under the cover of the bridge (luckily, since my camera is not waterproof).   The two buildings you see there are the first of 4 condo towers at Marina Grande.  It was actually a failed development that occurred during the real estate bubble burst of 2007-2010.  There are new owners now and they are moving forward with the marina part of the project.

Both of these images are done in HDR and processed through Photomatix.




 

#daytonabeach #florida #sunsetphotography

Daytona Beach under the Pier

I took this picture underneath the pier in Daytona Beach.  I bet it would have been better if I had thought about taking it about 5 minutes earlier but luckily I did catch the full sun in the opening between the pilings.  This is the structure that holds up the restaurants and pier system that goes out in the ocean.  I think I'll have to try it again sometime but for now I thought I would share my first attempt:



The process behind this photograph is called HDR (high dynamic range).  I took three shots here on a tripod with different exposures and then later combined those pictures and was able to pull out the light in the foreground as well as the back round.  It's really the only way I am aware to get a shot like this fully exposed correctly.

#daytonabeach #sunrisephotography #hdrphotography

Daytona Beach Bridge Mosaic Murals

In Daytona Beach the main bridge that connects the peninsula to the mainland in the International Speedway Bridge.  Many people may not know that underneath the bridge on the huge concrete columns that hold it up are a series of mosaic murals.  I recently took this picture of them when I was taking a walk around the City Island Park and the Daytona Beach library.  If you get some time you should go check them out.

 

#daytonabeach #hdrphotography #castlesbythecoast #bridges #florida #art

Daytona Beach Paddle Stars 10K Race

Daytona Beach Paddle Stars Race

This weekend was the paddle stars 10K race off in Daytona Beach.  It included 2 days of racing, Saturday in the Halifax river and Sunday in the ocean.  The grand prize for the lowest combined time was $10,000!  Not too bad.

I kind of stumbled upon this event by chance on Saturday morning.  I was at the farmers market in Daytona Beach on City Island and saw the event set up on the river across the park.  I went over to check it out and happened to catch the Juniors division race.  It was pretty exciting so when I heard they would be racing on the ocean the next day I had to come down and check it out.  Here are a few of the pictures I have processed so far from the event:

The first one is of an athlete before the start of the big race getting her focus.


This second one is of the racers lining up for the start of the race.  This is only a portion of the athletes that were in the race.  There were probably another 25 or so lined up around these people but I thought it looked cool to get the tall guy in the middle to be the center of the line up.



#daytonabeach #castlesbythecoast #paddlestars #hdrphotography #florida #daytonabeachpaddlestars


Tags: Castles by the Coast, Daytona Beach, events, Florida, HDR Photography, Ocean Walk, ormond beach, ormond beach events, Ormond Beach homes for sale, ormond beach life, ormond by the sea, paddle stars, Real estate

Daytona Beach Boardwalk

I spent the evening in Daytona Beach last weekend checking out the free Summer Concert.  It was an Elton John Tribute band that sounded pretty good although I have to admit I didn't hang out around the concert that much.  Instead we walked down the boardwalk and did some people watching and I was playing around with some long exposure photography of the Ferris wheel and various rides on the boardwalk.  He are a couple shots from that night:




This second shot I intentionally left a little "gritty".  I was trying to express the hot, humid, crowded environment.  I am not sure if it worked, but it was my best shot at it.

Daytona Beach Bandshell Summer Concerts

Saturday July 19th the Daytona Beach Bandshell hostsed the Elton John Tribute Show!

Hailed as "The next best thing to Elton John" by the Tampa Bay Times, Rocket man brings an exciting performance to the American public, complete with a full stage and sound production team, costume designer (wearing items actually worn by Elton himself) and ultra-modern LED and laser light show. A solid wall of live piano playing, Elton John's greatest hits, feather boa's and a whole lotta' sunglasses inspires an energetic and memorable night for any event.

Here is a picture from the event:

There were also fireworks over the Atlantic Ocean at 9:45 pm.

#daytonabeach #ormondbeach #hdrphotography

Ormond Beach Summer Concert Series

The summer concert series kicked off on Friday night with Brad Yates and MO'mentum playing classic rock.  The concerts are the next 3 Fridays in July at the Casements park at the South East corner of the Granada Blvd bridge.  They are, of course, a free event.  Bring your blanket and beach chairs and enjoy a night by the river with some great music.

Here is the schedule for the next 2 weeks:

Friday July 18th -- Liquid Jade  (popular rock hits)

Friday July 25th -- Knight to Remember  (Doo Wop, 50's, 60's, oldies)

Here is a photo from the event.

#ormondbeach #ormondbeachlife #hdrphotography #beachlife

Free concert this Friday

My wife spotted this new banner when she was walking over the bridge this morning.  Just thought I would share it:

Here is the information on it that I pulled from the Ormond Beach website:

Friday, July 11^th

Enjoy the "summer sounds" with a free outdoor concert in Rockefeller Gardens Park! The first concert in the summer series features "Brad Yates & MO'Mentum", playing classic rock music! A fun, free concert provided to the community by the Department of Leisure Services. Be sure to bring a lawn chair or blanket.

Ormond Beach 4th of July Schedule

Hello everyone!  Just wanted to post a reminder for the 4th of July fireworks time!

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable 4th of July!

#ormondbeach #fireworks #ormondbeachlife #ormondbythesea

Ormond Beach Corporate Challenge

Last Saturday June 21st at Andy Romano Beachfront Park the Ormond Beach Camber of Commerce put on a 1st annual event called the Ormond Beach Corporate Challenge.  It was made up of 18 teams with 5 people each.  They participated in several events including:

Obstacle Course
Sack Race & Wheelbarrow
Sprint thru the surf
Paddle Boarding
Tug-O-War


The overall winning team was Homes for Heroes which is a program where fire fighters, police officers, educators and health care workers can get discounts when buying a home.  All the money raised was for a new scholarship fund the chamber has started, as well as operating funds for the chamber.

Here are a few pictures from the event:

#ormondbeach #ormondbeachlife #florida #beachphotography

Sunset full of color

Last week I planted myself out on the dock that goes underneath the Granada Blvd bridge in Ormond Beach, Florida and waited to see what the sunset would be like on that night.  I was pleasantly surprised to see the array of colors that made it worth the wait.  Here are 2 pictures from that sunset:

#ormondbeach #sunsetphotography #ormondbythesea #florida #ormondbeachlife

Movies on the Halifax: Frozen in June

This months movie on the Halifax river was Frozen.  Ever heard of it?  Live under a rock?  My daughter loves this movie.....as do most girls under the age of 12.  This was the most crowded I have ever seen the Casements for one of their monthly movies.  It was actually a gorgeous night with a good enough breeze to keep the mosquitoes away.  It's a fun family event and really gives the area that "small town" feel.  Here are a few cell phone pictures from the night:

#ormondbeach #familynight #florida #ormondbythesea #frozen

Day Trip: Deleon Springs

A cool place to visit within 40 minutes of Ormond Beach is Deleon Springs State park.  It's a great place to take a swim, canoe, fish, take a boat tour or have a pancake lunch (more on that later).  The water is a brisk 72 degrees -- good for cooling off on a hot Florida day.

 Here is the path from the parking lot down to the springs.  The Spanish moss hanging down from the oak trees is quite a site.

 This is the water wheel attached to the little restaurant that they have at the park.  It is a functioning water wheel but on this day the water level was too low to actually get it going.  The restaurant is famous for it's pancakes that you make at your table on the hot plate built into the middle of the table.

 Here is a view of the springs looking out onto the open water where they have canoeing, boat trips, fishing, etc.  We even spotted an alligator in the marsh about 200 yards past the restaurant on the left hand side.  It was a four foot long gator sunning itself on the banks of a little island.

#deleonsprings #ormondbeach #florida #freshsprings #daytrip

Spectacular Sunset

A couple nights ago we were treated to a really spectacular sunset here in Ormond Beach.  I was out walking the dogs with my wife and daughter and of course my camera and tripod were back at home....When I realized that this was going to be one of those special nights we had to rush home (obeying all traffic laws) and get my gear and get back out there to take some pictures.  Here are a couple that I have processed so far.  These are taken from the west side of the Halifax river looking north:

#ormondbeach #florida #sunsetphotography #sunsets #hdrphotography

Catching the Sunrise

I managed to drag myself out of bed Sunday morning to catch the sunrise.  I was a little later getting up than I had hoped so I was fighting against time (and light) to get to a spot to take pictures.  I ended up down the street about a mile from my house at the base of the Granada Blvd bridge.  I have been there a thousand times but never at sunrise so I scrambled to take as many shots as I could before the sun got too high in the sky.  Here are a couple of the pictures I have processed so far:

Best viewed large ; )

#sunrisephotography #ormondbeach #hdrphotography #florida #sunrise

Ormond Beach Memorial Gardens

The Ormond Memorial Gardens are located at the SE corner of Granada Blvd and Halifax Drive on the peninsula.  They are an excellent place to take a little walk and check out some Florida foliage.  My daughter enjoyed tracking down the turtles in the various little ponds and water features on the property.  Here are a few pictures from the gardens:

#ormondbeach #florida #ormondbeachmemorialgardens #ormondbeachgardens #hdrphotography

Art of the Automobile

The Art of the Automobile is located on Beach Street in downtown Daytona Beach.  Its a great way to see all types of cars from new to old, exotic, muscle, race cars and old vintage.  It was beautiful 80 degree weather this year.  Here are a few pictures from the event:

#daytonabeach #artoftheautomobile #florida #beachstreet #downtowndaytona

Beautiful Sunrise in Daytona Beach

I got up early and went down to the board walk in Daytona Beach to shoot the sunrise this past weekend and really lucked out.  I was able to shoot for about an hour from all different spots around the board walk and Ocean Walk shops.  It was really more like controlled chaos -- at least I hope that's how it looked. The good thing about getting up early is that there was hardly anyone around so I didn't have to worry about people walking into my pictures. Here are 3 of the pictures I have processed so far:

#daytonabeach #sunrise #florida #hdrphotography #oceanwalk

Under the bridge

I have had a vision of this shot in my head for a while now but wasn't sure if it would ever pan out.  Now that the seasons are changing and the sun is setting in a different place in the sky I finally got the opportunity to capture it from under the bridge.  The trick is getting the foreground, the water and the sunset in focus and exposed right.  I think this one turned out pretty well.

Under the Granada Blvd bridge, east end:

#ormondbeach #florida #sunset #fortunatopark #casements

Art in the Park

One of my favorite events in Ormond Beach every year is the Art in the Park.  It almost didn't happen this year with all the rain we have had recently.  The event runs Saturday/Sunday and it rained all day on Saturday but the sun came out and it was beautiful on Sunday.  They set up all the artists in front of Rockefellers house in the Casements and they set up food on the side lawn.  Here are a few pictures from the event:

#ormondbeach #florida #artinthepark

Sunsets

It was just one of those nights where it was tough to take a bad picture of the sunset.  Here are a few of my favorite from last week in April.  These were all taken at the park on the East end of the Granada Blvd bridge.

#ormondbeach #sunset #florida