Veteran's Memorial Bridge (Detroit-Superior Bridge)
Saturday I participated in the self-guided tour of the lower level of the Veterans Memorial Bridge in Cleveland. This part of the bridge hasn't been open to the public since 2013 and it's the first time I've been on it. A strong crowd estimated at 10,000 people turned out.
I've chosen to process my photos in black & white with a grungy feel. At one time this may have been a very nice facility, but it now shows the years of neglect. The structure sets up well for abstract shots and vanishing point perspective, as well as detail shots of the structural steel.
History via Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Detroit-Superior_Bridge
The Detroit–Superior Bridge (officially known as the Veterans Memorial Bridge) is a 3,112 foot (949 meter) long through arch bridge over the Cuyahoga Riverin Cleveland, Ohio. The bridge links Detroit Avenue on Cleveland's west side and Superior Avenue on Cleveland's east side, terminating west of Public Square. Construction by the King Bridge Company began in 1914 and completed in 1918, at a cost of $5.4 million. It was the first fixed high level bridge in Cleveland, and the third high level bridge above the Cuyahoga (the first was the Old Superior Viaduct and the second the Central Viaduct, also built by the King Company). At the time of its completion, the bridge was the largest steel and concrete reinforced bridge in the world.
The high level bridge starts on the east at the center line of West 9th Street and Superior, and extends across the Cuyahoga Valley to the junction of West 25th Street and Detroit Avenue. It is 3,112 feet (949 m) long. The total cost, including the land and a right of way, was $5,407,000, split as $1,687,200 was for land and $3,719,800 for the superstructure.[2]
The bridge has 96 feet (29 m) of clearance above the river, and rises to 196 feet (60 m) above the river at the peak of the central span. The original construction included a main deck 75 feet (23 m) wide, with two 15 feet (4.6 m) sidewalks and a 45 feet (14 m) roadway. While the bridge's upper level is for road traffic, the lower level was intended for streetcars. It was built with four sets of these tracks, leaving room for two more, if needed.[2]
The structure includes 12 concrete arches and one steel span. The steel span is 591 feet (180 m) long and crosses the Cuyahoga River. The steel span cost $646,747. About 2,123,300 cubic yards (1,623,400 m3) of concrete and 9,385,000 pounds (4,257,000 kg) of reinforcing steel were used in the construction of the arches.[2] The concrete piles used in the foundation work, if placed end to end, would extend a distance of 28 miles (45 km). Each end of the structure has underground streetcar stations for the trams that operated on the lower deck.
Due to the closure of the streetcar operations, the subway level became unused. In November 1955, ramps to the lower level were closed. The Detroit–Superior Bridge remained a bottleneck during rush hour. A two-year renovation completed in May 1969 added two traffic lanes by narrowing existing sidewalks from 15 to 5 feet and cantilevering the new lanes outside the central arch.[3]
On November 11, 1989 (Veterans Day), the bridge was renamed the Veterans Memorial Bridge.[3] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 18, 1974.
In 2003, Cuyahoga County Commissioners approved the conversion of the two outside traffic lanes for pedestrian and bicycle use.[4] The lower level and subway station are opened to the public for tours a few times per year, typically around Memorial Day, Labor Day, and for the Cleveland Ingenuity Festival. Self-guided tours are free of charge.[5]
Shark
This is a photo I took on a film camera 25 years ago in the Bahamas. I was snorkelling and came upon this resting nurse shark. As I got closer the shark swam away. I remembered the photo and recently dug through a box of pictures to find it. Of course it was in the last envelopes of pictures. The stingray photo was taken on the same trip with the same camera.
Spaceship
The new George V. Voinovich Bridges in Cleveland has some interesting views, underneath. At night it is lit up with blue lights making it look like a spaceship from certain angles.
The George V. Voinovich Bridges are two bridges in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S., that carry Interstate 90 (I-90, Innerbelt Freeway) over the Cuyahoga River. They are named for George Voinovich, former mayor of Cleveland, Governor of Ohio, and United States Senator. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_V._Voinovich_Bridges
The Cleveland Innerbelt Modernization Plan was focused on improving safety, reducing congestion and traffic delays, and modernizing interstate travel along I-71, I-77 and I-90 through Downtown Cleveland. http://www.dot.state.oh.us/projects/ClevelandUrbanCoreProjects/Innerbelt/Pages/default.aspx
Cleveland Skyline
Last night looked like it was going to set up for a beautiful sunset in the Cleveland area, but the sky didn't cooperate. I've had a new site on my list and finally made the effort to get out there. The Cleveland sign in Tremont, at the intersection of W14th and Abbey Ave. offers a nice view of the skyline.
The two middle photos below are panoramas. The first is a 10 shot pano, and the second is made of 6 shots. Both are done with 3 shot bracketing, so they are actually 30 and 18 shots, respectively. They are shot at about 75mm.
Ranger
I recently met up with my dogsitter to take photos of her big guy, Ranger, a Bernese Mountain Dog. Ranger has bone cancer and at the time of the photoshoot was given six weeks to a few months. Ranger's mate, Mercury, joined us at the arboretum. Ranger was a trooper as we walked to several locations in the park.
Funny story...Ranger is hesitant around new people. And although I've met him before, he never let me pet him. But by the end of our time at the park, he was my buddy.
These are the best of the photos we got that day.
Clouds Around the Lighthouse
I took Lacey for a walk past the beach and noticed the cloud layer behind the Fairport Harbor Lighthouse. I went back home to get my camera and telephoto lens.
Ruple Antique Cars
A few weeks back I attended a Chamber of Commerce event held at Ruple Antique Cars, a private collection of mostly Ford vehicles. It's not setup in the most ideal layout for photography, but I had the opportunity to walk around and photograph with my iPhone.
Lacey at Holden Arboretum
We've been going to the dog park where Lacey likes to run, play and splash. My back is feeling better so today we took a walk at Holden Arboretum.
Cleveland Indians
Went to Saturday's Cleveland Indians game with my uncle. It was a beautiful day at the ballpark even though they did not win.
Francisco Lindor
View from our seats.
A Day at the Dog Park
Lacey had fun running, splashing and making new friends at the dog park today. Canine Meadow is a fantastic park run by the Lake Metroparks. There is a small dog section, a large dog section, and a communal pond. The park also has drinking fountains, and hoses to clean the dogs.
Action Shots at the River
Lacey and I have a spot on the Chagrin River that rarely has other people around. So when we're alone I let her off the leash and loves to splash in the river. She'll chase rocks and sticks.
Cinematic Shot
I took this photo 3 years ago in The Flats. The scene had a cinematic quality to it. I processed this photo back then, but I've learned so much more since, that I decided to reprocess it. Here's a small view of my earlier attempt.
In addition to the basics of exposure and highlights/shadows. things I've learned and applied to this shot include better cropping - there is unnecessary sky and junk on the poles up top, and road that doesn't add any value at the bottom. I increased the contrast and selectively added clarity. And lastly, boosted the vibrance to bring out the color in the sky.
Eddie Kendricks
Sorting through my Lightroom catalog, here's another unprocessed photo from a few years back. On a tour of Birmingham, Alabama we came across this park with a statue of Eddie Kendricks.
Description from RoadsideAmerica.com | Birmingham native Eddie Kendricks was the sometimes-lead singer of the soul group The Temptations. He died in 1992, and Birmingham has erected a tribute to him, sculpted by Ronald Scott McDowell, in a tiny downtown park.
A plaque at the Eddie Kendrick (he dropped the "s" at some point) Memorial Park notes that his nickname was "cornbread," and the sculpture features the entire five-man Temptations line-up, standing on what appears to be a giant vinyl record.
Eddie is frozen in bronze, performing with microphone in hand, eyes cast heavenward, crooning one his trademark "Ooooooohs." His skinny frame stands in front of a granite wall engraved with musical notes and the titles of the Temptations' hits ("Just my Imagination," "Since I Lost My Baby," "Papa Was a Rolling Stone," etc.). Quasi-3D sculptures of the rest of the group, in mid-performance strut, extrude from the wall.
KelbyOne - The Grid: My Website Critiqued
Thank you Scott, Kalebra, and Erik for your critiques on The Grid. I was a couple weeks behind in watching The Grid. My website was selected this time around (June 1st). It was near the end of the show and you considered it the best you had seen for the day. I apply what I've learned from previous episodes of The Grid, along with other education content from KelbyOne and others. It is nice to get the validation.
One of my favorite shows for photography education is The Grid produced by KelbyOne. The Grid is recorded live and streamed for free every week. I've watched it for several years and have learned so much. My photography has improved tremendously over the years, in large part from the blind critique episodes of The Grid. For the blind critiques, photographers can submit a few photos with the opportunity to get critiqued by professionals. They have more submittals than they can share in an episode, so the selection is random. They are considered blind because the photographers are not named publicly.
After about a year of trying, I was fortunate to have some photos blind critiqued in episode 139. They get to my pics at 38:09. They gave some good, helpful feedback. Here's a link to the episode. http://kelbytv.com/thegrid/2014/04/17/the-grid-blind-critiques-with-erik-valind-episode-139/
It's not only critiquing my photos and website that is helpful, but hearing the critiques of other submissions, and applying what I learned from those.
A funny sidenote... I was a couple weeks behind on watching The Grid and I had no idea my site was in the episode. Shortly after they recorded the episode, but before I watched, I had transitioned my website to a new layout. After watching the episode, I switched my site back to the previous layout. There were some design elements in my new layout that were not critiqued favorably in other websites. Applying what I learned, I switched back.
Here's a link to the website critiques. My site comes up at the 1 hour 1 minute mark.
http://kelbytv.com/thegrid/2017/06/01/the-grid-website-critiques-episode-286/
If you are trying to learn or improve your photography skills, check out The Grid.
Bridges in Cleveland
I took this photo a few years ago and recently processed it. Two of the many bridges in Cleveland and I like the abstract lines of the steel.
Festival of Lights USA
I took this picture in 2008 in Olde Town Conyers, Georgia. I had the opportunity to participate with a team of lighting designers in an event called The Festival of Lights sponsored by Acuity Brands Lighting. Our team did not design this house, but it had some interesting colors.
Horse at the Farm
Here's a picture I took in 2011 at my aunt and uncle's farm in Virginia. It's another photo that was previously unpublished.