The Jefferson Memorial on the Tidal BasinBuilt at the urging of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the Jefferson Memorial was approved by Congress in 1934 and constructed in the 1940s. It was dedicated on April 13, 1943--the 200th anniversary of Thomas Jefferson's birth. The memorial was designed by architect John Russell Pope, who incorporated elements from the architecture on Jefferson's estate, Monticello, as well as from buildings Jefferson designed at the University of Virginia. He also incorporated features from the Pantheon of Rome, reflecting Jefferson's fascination with Roman architecture.
Thomas Jefferson is perhaps the most well-known of America's founders. He penned the Declaration of Independence, our founding document which put the King of England on notice that we would no longer be ruled by a tyrant or taxed without representation. On July 4, 1776, America declared its independence from England. Fortunately, the animosity didn't last for long. England has been, and remains, one of the United States' strongest allies and peers on the world stage.
Located on the Tidal Basin, the Jefferson Memorial is at its loveliest in the spring when the cherry blossoms bloom and bring more than a million tourists to our capital city.
Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 12/07
8 comments:
This series is JUST GORGEOUS! You so have to give me a tutorial on how you took these.
Wow, this photo is great! I love the moon and the lit memorial. This night photography should appeal to Debi soon as she gets her tripod that Mamma promised :)
Jefferson did much for our country and I'm only surprised that it took 200 years to get this memorial. Thank you FDR!
NG: I finally read the little book that came with my point-and-shoot! Some of these are the result of using my aperture settings and some are a result of adjusting the length of time the shutter is open. I also made an accidental discovery about how to use flash and shutter settings that resulted in some cool pictures as well. I want to go out and take some pictures of the Lincoln and FDR Memorials one evening. For the latter, I'd rather not go alone. Want to come along? (I really probably shouldn't have gone alone last night either and might have been wise to take someone along--at least for the East and West Potomac Park photos--but I was being spontaneous and figured, "What the heck.") Maybe we could get someone like Reya Mellicker (The Gold Puppy) to go along. I haven't met her in person yet, but maybe she'd be interested, too... Just a thought.
Bobbie: The moon was great last night! Although, I'm thinking if I'd gone out around 11:00 or later, it would have been lower in the sky and a bit more dramatic. I may go out later in a few days and see if I can't get some BIG moon pictures... And yes, Jefferson's memorial was long overdue.
I know what you mean; I've spent my share of dangerous alone time downtown after dark. I'd be happy to go... but maybe not for a few more months while I've still got a two foot tall dictator yelling at me to feed her every two hours. The needy little brat!
NG: Sounds good! Maybe we should shoot for late February/early March, when things warm up a little more.
How can I love this more? Let me count the ways: NONE!
This is a stunning photograph! D.C. you are growing by leaps and bounds and it is a huge pleasure to watch unfold.
If you would have told me a month ago that I would look forward to pictures of Washington D.C. memorials I would have laughed. Now, I'm not laughing, except with joy and delight.
(I agree. You need a buddy for certain not-so-safe photo safaris. Sad, but true. I know that with Donna, I am able to venture a lot more. She says the same. )
Debi: I'm glad you're enjoying these. I'm having fun shooting what's here and obvious, but I'd like to venture out a bit and try to find the cool nuggets and gems just in the everyday neighborhoods and outlying 'burbs. Now that I'm just loving this night photography thing, I need to find more subjects for this type of shooting.
And yes, I need to find a photography partner, especially for stuff like this. While I was continually aware of my surroundings that night--constantly checking to see if others were around, etc.--I also know, I didn't feel as free to just hang out and shoot for as long as I wanted. Sad, isn't it?
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