January 24, 2020
Winter and the Lampost 1998
Winter and the Lamppost 1998
This is a photograph I took with negative film in December of 1998 near the edge of the Canadian Horseshoe Falls. You can see in the distance Terrapin Point on Goat Island in Niagara Falls N.Y. I remember the day clearly.
It was a very cold morning, but the sun had just started to appear. I used a six foot step-ladder to get up higher to capture this image. Note the ice at the bottom of the photograph covering the top part of the railing. The frozen mist on the lamppost is a result of a strong south west wind crashing the spray from the falls against the lamppost. When I had the negative developed it became one of my favorites but I still felt something was missing. I asked graphic designer Walter Pick to digitally turn on the light in the lamppost.
When he did this, the photo just sparkled.
Few people ever mentioned to me,”Why was the lamppost lit during this daytime shot?” Now you know the reason why.
Today I see this image in lots of publications. Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati even uses it as the backdrop for his winter business card.