PHOTOGRAPHING FACES AND PLACES IN KEY WEST

As you can tell from my blog this week, I really like the Florida Keys and especially Key West. There are interesting places to see and faces filled with interest and fun! As a photographer I am always looking at people. I find it fascinating to see people's expressions and demeanor. When I see a group of people together in one spot, I love to see how different everyone looks, I mean both physically and in their expressions. I am always trying to take candids and sometimes it's easier in a crowd. It's almost like hiding in plain sight!


There were some interesting places around Mallory Square and Duval Street and we tried to capture some of them! Many of the people were looking out at the setting sun!!

As we walked on the boardwalk in Mallory Square we saw this building and the sun was creating a great light on it. As we walked over towards it, I saw something behind some trees that looked interesting!

We saw it was a sculpture and a different type then we were used to seeing!

As I was photographing it I saw this artist working on a painting of the statue.

I thought this was really creative! This sculpture was part of the first one. It was a sculpture of a man painting people dancing and included the picture of the sculpture.

These sculptures, by J. Seward Johnson, are located in the back of the Key West Museum of Art and History. There are some really fun sculptures here and a place to visit if you're down there.

  
We went back to the boardwalk where many people were enjoying the ambiance, the entertainers and the setting sun.

                      As always there were many people with cameras.

As the sun set couples were sitting or standing together watching a beautiful sunset.

One of the strangest sights we saw were chickens running free in the streets of Key West. We first saw them in front of a breakfast spot and later that night in Mallory Square. We found out that they have been there for over 175 years but really grew in numbers during the 1950s. Thousands of Cubans fled the revolution and came to Key West and brought their chickens with them. 


Over time these chickens escaped or were let go by their owners when eggs and poultry were easily available in supermarkets. There are not many predators (hawks and feral cats) and the chickens thrive on a diet of native insects and lizards. Several generations later the chickens still roam free throughout the island.

  
If you're in Key West and looking for a local bar that serves pretty good food and over 100 different rums, this is the place. It's called the Rum Barrel.

Key West has its own unique character and it can be seen on almost every street.

  This was the last image we saw before going into our hotel.

This was the sunrise we saw the next morning as we left for home. We really enjoyed our visit and will be coming back soon!!
If you plan a vacation in Florida, I would suggest staying a few days in the Keys and especially Key West!

PHOTOGRAPHING SUNSETS AT KEY WEST

As a photographer I love sunsets. Something about the finality of it plus the saturated colors just grabs my heart and eye!! You really never know for sure how colorful a sunset is going to be. Depending on atmospheric conditions some are wonderfully colorful events while others are just the sun going down!! A great sunset is lyrical, its nature's own rapture, a combination of saturated reds, oranges and yellows combined with dramatic cloud cover. They sing out to be documented, to be gazed at in wonder. 


Through the years as we see the sun, beautifully, set we hear the sounds of people appreciating what they are witnessing; awes, ohs and a few "oh my god". To see a dramatic sunset is like looking into the soul of nature, it is hard to forget.  


In Key West there is a place called Mallory Square known for having some of the best sunsets in Florida, some would say in all of the USA. When we were visiting there recently we found all of those claims to be true! So here are a group of sunset images I took from Mallory Square in Key West, Florida, While viewing them listen to Dino Crocetti sing Red Sails in The Sunset. You may know Dino by the name Dean Martin, my favorite singer.

All of these images were taken over a few different nights.

When I saw this schooner passing by I just kept shooting looking for the best composition. I think I like the third image best, the one where the schooner has passed the island.

One night as the sunset, the sky went from orange to deep red and I just kept shooting till the sun actually set!!

The island that you see in some of these images is Sunset Key, formally known as Tank Island. This island was converted from a fuel depot to some of the most prestigious real estate in the country, with no homes worth less than a million dollars. Owners include Madonna, Julia Roberts and Oprah Winfrey!!

I hope you enjoyed seeing these Key West sunsets and that someday you to will stand in Mallory Square with the one you love looking out at a really dramatic sunset!  It can be very romantic!!!!!!! I know!!!!!


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