West Virginia 3, a photo from West Virginia, South

Photographer's Note

Another in my ongoing project to visit and photograph all 50 US state capitol buildings. This series is from Charleston, the capital city of West Virginia.

A view of the West Virginia State Capitol from across the Kanawha River, on the campus of the University of Charleston. It was a beautiful, clear, cold night, and I spent a while trying out varying angles and focal lengths to get a shot that really showed the capitol, its reflection, and the general darkness surrounding it.

I'll be away for the next several days on a little trip through the American South, in Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas; I've never been to three of those states, so I'm happy to add them to my list. I'll also be checking off two more state capitol buildings in Tennessee and Arkansas! Have a good week, everybody.

Larger version on Flickr, here.
West Virginia set on Flickr, here.

ikeharel, krzychu30, Sonata11, abmdsudi, timecapturer, tyro, holmertz, Hansaphotos, delpeoples, adores has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

MadelinaVizoso (64) 2013-02-16 6:43 [Comment]

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krzychu30 (8797) 2013-02-16 7:34

Hello Andrew,
fabulous night composition!I like this strong visual effect you´ve created here.Just the Capitol building so beautifully illuminated,its reflection in the water,few lamps along the river bank and completely darkness around.It only intensify perception of this scene.

Have a good and safe trip
Krzysztof

Noel_Byrne (7259) 2013-02-16 8:51

Hi Andrew,
As Krzysztof says, the amount of darkness intensifies the beautiful light of the building, and its fine reflection. THe eye is drawn to the dome, but is then led off down the river through the trail of lights. Really nicely composed and thought out shot, thanks.
All the best
Noel

Sonata11 (28235) 2013-02-16 11:12

Hello Andew,
Wow! very beautiful composition in blue hour and great framework as well. This picture is very beautiful and fabulous reflection. An excellent executed with fabulous quality. Perfectly well done. Tfs.
All the best and have a great WE,
Barbara

kasianowak (2215) 2013-02-16 11:15

Hi Andrew
I really like this one! Especially the minimalist composition and the delicate pastel colours enhanced by elegant dark background.
Great work.
Greetings from Kosovo. :)
Kasia

jcpix (3207) 2013-02-16 17:39

Hey Andrew,

I'd say this falls in the category of "Big risk, big reward." At first glance I thought there was too much black, dead space for this composition...but after a short moment it really sets in that this works! The darkness sets a great night time mood and the reflection leaves the imagination to wonder what else is out there. Have a great trip, I look forward to more capitols in the near future.

Cheers,

Jason

abmdsudi (26215) 2013-02-16 21:05

Hi Andrew - my neighbour
Great location from your mini serie, I like the ideas and composition with the eyes led to concentrate on the bright colored Capitol Building & the reflections and my eye is continually drawn to walk that direction diagonally into the far end which adds to the whole feel of the atmosphere and mood. The impact of pitch darkness really emphasises the focal of interests with the decent satisfying colours, providing a punch that enhances the picture' s strength. Your sharp in focus is spot on and great exposure control, indeed a very satisfying quality night shot so well taken. My congrats.
KInd regards

timecapturer (30226) 2013-02-17 3:29

Hi Andrew
a superbly executed night shot. It is peppered with wonderfully colourful spots of light that make the magnificence of the main building so outstanding and attractive. Excellent!

Enjoy your Sunday - Brian.

JFS (32053) 2013-02-17 8:22

A special shot Andrew, i'd say magic, delicate reflection of nice architecture where all colors are welcome.
Thanks and best regards,
Juan

tyro (13021) 2013-02-17 11:01

Hello Andrew,

Anohr interesting note and another fine photograph of this capitol building with some beautiful reflections on the still waters of the Kanawha River.

Gorgeous reflections, lovely colours and excellent detail and sharpness which are, of course, much more evident in your much larger "Flickr" picture.

I wish you a safe and happy trip south - and hope you manage to capture some more capitol buildings in your travels!

Kind Regards,

John.

dkmurphys (36727) 2013-02-18 1:18

Hi Andrew,
Spectacular night capture. I like the colored lights and the impressive architecture of the dome. Well taken.

Daniel

holmertz (26876) 2013-02-19 12:08

Hello Andrew,
This is an attractive night picture with some spectacular reflections. It's well composed and well exposed.
I wish you luck on yout future trips to Alaska and Hawaii :-)
Best regards,
Gert

fabbs99 (5334) 2013-02-19 21:06

Hello Andrew,

Impressive shot of the West Virginia State Capitol from across the Kanawha River with good sharpness and lighting.Great POV and good composition.Very well done, TFS.

Cheers
Farhat

Hansaphotos (5417) 2013-02-20 5:06

Hello Andrew

Another fine shot of this beautiful building. A fine black hour shot. The illuminated building really stands out well here with its reflections in the calm water. Have a nice trip. Looking forward to see your pictures from the south. Great work:) TFS.

Best regards, Erling

delpeoples (44900) 2013-02-21 4:07

HI Andrew

No doubt you're now on your trip. Sorry I haven't been on TE much lately, I'm drowning at work. This is a beauty. I like your nightshots alot, and am glad to see you posting more of them. I see your settings have obtained an excellent result here in terms of sharpness and light management. But I think an even smaller aperture of between f/11 to f/16 would have achieved even greater depth for the BG lights and also succeeded in turning those lights into starpoints. I probably would crop a little off the sky so as to concentrate more on that magnificent state house. It's a superb shot, with amazing reflections, congratulations.

Thanks for sharing
Lisa

ikeharel (37222) 2013-02-24 2:12

Good morning Andrew,
Fine night scene, 6 sec.exp. well collected, reflection along the waterfront promenade gave extra DOF to a very clear picture.
Have a nice sunday,
Ike

steph (398) 2013-03-03 2:16

nice colors lost in this deep black background
the reflects are perfect
personally, I think I would have cut just a bit on the right side and the top to keep just a straight line between he lights and decrease the black area... but it is just my view on a beautiful picture

adores (28182) 2013-03-05 2:44

Hi Andrew!
and your series keep growing:)! I like the line formed by the lights and the illuminated capitol. The reflection makes a very good symmetry and it really stands out in all this darkness!

Juzo (4240) 2013-03-06 5:35

Hi Andrew,
A neat and clean composition, the slither of light and the blacks bring forth the structure with no distractions. A nice presentation.
Cheers
Justin

jmdias (45774) 2013-04-10 17:17

andrew

marvelous nocturn view where the dome of the capitol is perfectly shown and produced a marvelous visual effect with the colored lights and these reflections. nice job.

hugs

jorge

Photo Information

Copyright: Andrew Lipsett (ACL1978) (5729)
Genre: Places
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2012-12-27
Categories: Architecture
Camera: Nikon D3100, Sigma 10-20mm F4-5.6 EX DC HSM
Exposure: f/9.0, 6 seconds
Details: Tripod: Yes
More Photo Info: view
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): A Shot in the Dark, US State Houses - East, Your Favorites [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2013-02-16 6:38
Favorites: 1 [view]