Last October we took a family trip to Washington DC, Philadelphia PA and Amish Country. I was able to get most of the typical and some not so typical photos of monuments, museums, street scenes and people.
US Capitol, Washington DC
I had two shots in mind that I really wanted to get while in DC. The Jefferson Memorial and the Washington Monument at night. I wanted to capture the lights and reflections on the water surrounding these landmarks.
Before we left for the trip, I spent time researching the lay of the land in DC, knowing that I would need to find my way around the very difficult city streets at night to get to the right location near the monuments, not to mention trying to find parking which is also very tough. I studied Google Maps and Street View to determine the right angles and distances across the water to set up the photo I was visualizing.
Jefferson Memorial, Washington DC
At 11 pm I arrived at the predetermined location on the North Shore of the Tidal Basin. I looked across the water at the Jefferson Memorial which was about a third of a mile away. I knew this would have to be a long exposure with a telephoto lens which was a challenge because I couldn't bring my tripod on the plane. The camera would have to be perfectly still to let the image slowly burn into the sensor for probably about 30 seconds or so.
In the darkness, I found myself laying on my stomach across the pedestrian walkway at the edge of the water, using a piece of trash to prop up and steady the camera at the right angle, and the glow from my iPhone to see the camera settings.
I was only there for 15 minutes, to get a handful of exposures to pick from. I didn't want to stay any longer than I had to, because DC is not the safest place to be at night when you are alone.
Periodically, people would come strolling down the walkway towards me and each time they would be startled when I announced my presence from the darkness. As they slowly diverted around this weird guy on the ground, they would hear "I'm OK... Sorry."
Washington Monument, Washington DC
For me, the adventure of planning and actually pulling off the shot makes looking at the final product more satisfying.