Lighthouse Park on a cloudy morning
The Great White Egret (Ardea Alba)
I spotted a dark background element, and then moved around till I could fill the frame with it. I took a spot meter reading for the white plume and placed it in Zone 8 (and added 1/2 extra stop). I wanted the whitest white to contrast with the background.
Canon 560 mm (400 2.8 ii and 1.5x Teleconverter) | f/4.0, ISO 160, 1/250 sec
Lighthouse Park is located in St Augustine just across the Lighthouse. This park has ample parking, shaded picnic tables under the oak trees, and a boat ramp. St Augustine Yacht Club is close by.
Satellite Map showing the location of the park in relation to the St Augustine Lighthhouse.
If you look towards the lighthouse, there are several vantage points from where you can see the historic lighthouse rising above the trees or framed by them. I used a Lee Filter Big-Stopper (10-Stop ND Filter) on a Canon 24mm Tilt-Shift lens for the image below. I made two images and stitched them. During the fifteen-second exposure, clouds and the trees moved to add movement that contrasted with the ever so still lighthouse and the road leading to it.
St Augustine Lighthouse seen from the boat ramp.
Timeline of the Lighthouse
1589: A wooden watchtower was built
1737: the Spanish built a new 30-foot watchtower in its place. This tower was made of coquina rock and wood
1822: A French engineer – Jean Augustin Fresnel (Fruh-nel) – invented the Fresnel lens. Even though Europeans were using it regularly, but these were expensive. The U.S. lighthouses kept using the system of Winslow Lewis Argand lamps and reflector panels
1852: The light tower at St. Augustine was raised another ten feet to improve the visibility of the light for the cruising ships. However, ships continued to wreck and sink.
1853: the St. Augustine tower was fitted with a new fourth-order Fresnel lens. A single lard oil lamp fueled by whale oil was used as a source of light.
1861-1865: During Civil War, someone sabotaged the lighthouse. They removed the lens and clockwork mechanisms. They intended to disrupt the shipping. However, this tactic did not do much.
1867: The Union Navy reached and assumed control of St. Augustine. They found the clockworks and lens and restored the beacon.
1871-1874: The U.S. Congress provided $100,000 for a new lighthouse to the U.S. Lighthouse Service. The workers, including African American workers, built a new 165-feet tall tower. This project was completed in 1874.
October 15, 1874: Mr. William R. Russell lit the oil lamp inside the new, first-order nine-feet tall Fresnel lens. Sauter & Lemonier hand-made this then modern in Paris, France. The light produced consisted of three, fixed-flashes, from three panels. This light could be visible from up to 19- 24 nautical miles.
February 28, 1889:
“The lamp was a brass cylinder of 10 gallons capacity. Inside it has a heavyweight, which governs the flow of oil to the burner. The burner has five wicks in concentric circles. A chimney leads to the roof. It has a damper, which regulates the flame. The globe is a huge case of glass, which revolves around the lamp every 9 minutes. It makes a flash every three minutes when a big bulls-eye lines up between the lamp and the human eye. The cage weighs two tons.” The Saint Augustine Weekly News
April 1942: The Germans attacked and sunk the SS Gulf America off the coast of Jacksonville, FL. Authorities reduced the light strength in the lighthouse in response to this attack.Around the first coast they also mandated the use of blackout curtains, and the drivers were asked to drive cars without headlights.
1940-1945: An armed contingent watched the shore round the clock
1980: Someone set fire to the lighthouse-keeper’s house
1980-1998: the Junior Service League raised more than $1.2 million over the next fifteen years.
1993: The Junior Service League of St. Augustine relighted the lens.
1994: The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum Inc. opened
https://www.staugustinelighthouse.org/get-involved/about-mission-uvp/history/
Dog Walker at the Lighthouse Park: 6x12 Panorama
There is a beautiful fishing pier at the park.
Fifteen seconds long exposure, 6x12 panorama. Lee filter Big Stopper (10-Stop ND filter), and Soft ND graduated filter.
Twenty second long exposure, 6x12 panorama. Lee filter Big Stopper (10-Stop ND filter), and Soft ND graduated filter.
Two-image panorama. Lee filter Big Stopper (10-Stop ND filter), and Soft ND graduated filter on a 24-mm Tilt-Shift lens.
You can often see boats, kayaks, and canoes. These are conveniently located right next to the boat launch.
“Dinghy Racks for Registered Mooring Field Customers Only”
Lee filter Big Stopper (10-Stop ND filter), and Soft ND graduated filter on a 24-mm Tilt-Shift lens.
Two-image panorama using 24mm Tilt-Shift lens.
Twenty-second long exposure. I used Lee filter Big Stopper (10-Stop ND filter), and Soft ND graduated filter on 24mm Tilt-Shift lens.
Birds are happy here. They perch on structures in and around the water, watch over the fishermen, and look for food.
You can easily launch your next adventure here.
Or can take a break. (look at the name of the boat – the Stolen Child)
Be careful! Pirates abound! And, some even proudly fly their flag, even when in tatters!
And only park in the designated areas! I saw these two signs posted and wind was blowing. I used long exposure to capture the movement that stands in contrast to the stationary signs.
Fifteen second exposure. I used a Lee Big Stopper (10-stop ND)
Steadfast, serene, immovable, the same
Year after year, through all the silent night
Burns on forevermore that quenchless flame,
Shines on that inextinguishable light!
—The Lighthouse: Henry Longfellow
