02.24.11 - AMERICANA

I had two shoots in Aiken, SC for Practical Horseman and The Chronicle Connection early last week. I drove down on the 14th, shot the 15th drove to Wilmington, NC to meet Christy and the dogs and then home on the 16th. The drive is about 12 hours without stopping, but I am one of those people who can sleep anywhere, in any position. So when I start to feel drowsy I know I need to pull over and close my eyes, thus extending the length of the time in the car.

I have done trips down 95 annually for many years, and one of the most unique landmarks is South of the Border just at the NC/SC state line. This trip I needed gas, I needed to stretch my legs, and since it was just after sunset I wanted to shoot some HDR of the tourist trap.

Since Brody is always happy to get out of the car, and I was was toting a few $ in my D3, a number of lenses and my tripod, I snapped him to my belt loop and off we went. (I keep a carabiner on his leash for just this purpose.)

If you have never passed SoB, it is much "prettier" at night. But darkness also brings out the sketchiness of it. Needless to say I was glad to have my 80lb body guard watching my back.

This shot below of the giant Pedro mascot was the first image I shot. My oh-so brave dog didn't notice it until we had been underneath it for about 5 minutes. And then he growled at it the entire time. :}

This shot of the fireworks sign with the burnt out bulb is my favorite of the 30 minute quick shoot. I was starting to attract some attention that was making my little voice chatter, and I still had hours in the car. So we hit the road for Aiken.