Springdale Cemetery

October 16. Great day—a friend and I went to Springdale Cemetery in Peoria since I had to do a “visual rhetoric” photo shoot. The day was perfect weather-wise: sunny and warm enough for a jacket, but not oppressively chilly. The cemetery was rather busy with others doing what we were doing—people had cameras, or were dog-walking, making grave –rubbings, or a combination of both. Peoria Wilds people were also doing something (seed collection?) as there were several vehicles parked by the savanna with “Peoria Wilds” and “Yard Smart” bumper stickers. The Peoria Public Transport System had a “trolley” bus that cruised by when we were near the table graves. The sculptures proved to be very compliant and posed without complaint against a very blue and largely cloudless sky. One bronze sculpture was particularly photogenic . I knew there was a dog sculpture at the cemetery—we ended up finding four, and I found a horse too (I can’t say I’ve ever found one of those before—and none of these were in the pet cemetery section). Many of the mausoleums had glass behind the decorative ironwork doors and these reflected the autumn trees (the autumn color season was just starting) as well as the light and sky. I had fun at the main mausoleum trying to capture the stained glass windows on the far wall through the glass doors as the glass also reflected the trees behind me (who needs Photoshop?). We then went to two cemeteries in Metamora and did more of the same. Both of us got some really great photos.

I had been at Evergreen Cemetery in Bloomington earlier in the week--it was gray nad rainy, and I was by myself, but that's okay. It was fresh air and no computer screen and the colors were starting to change (although they always seem to be in front of the sculptures I wanted to shoot). It is amazing what you can find in these places when you have a camera and are on a mission.