Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion.
—Abraham Lincoln

We got to Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania on a dark and rainy day. On our fall trips, we accept the weather we get, take our photos, and continue on our journey. The morning sky was covered in heavy clouds, but we were hopeful that the rains would stay away for our visit to the park. We stopped at the visitor center and elected to take one of the tour shuttles rather than drive ourselves. If you have the time and inclination, you can drive yourself and follow a map to each of the many battlefield monuments, but you will miss the narrated experience by a guide.

I processed the opening photo from a digital HDR image in Adobe Lightroom, then cropped it square to remove some extraneous background. I was not happy with the three downspouts from the roof of the park building, but they were there, and making the image darker didn’t help much to eliminate the distraction. I finished the edit in DxO’s Silver Efex 2 and called it done. That was several months ago, before Adobe’s Generative Fill and Luminar Neo’s Gen-Erase tools. In readying the rest of the photos, I decided to try Gen-Erase to see if Luminar Neo’s AI tool could remove the downspouts from this image. Following the tip guide that accompanies the tool to erase multiple and larger items in small sections, I applied Gen-Erase three times, once each to remove the three downspouts. For your review, I’ve included a copy of the image just before the Gen-Erase application on my Flickr site here. All of the rest of the images are there as well in 2K HD with photo statistics for the pixel nerds among us.

There are far more monuments than I will feature in this short post. Visitors with more than a passing interest in the Civil War will find a single-day visit to be inadequate. The Battle of Gettysburg was waged from July 1 to July 3, 1863, and though the core battlefield can be defined as roughly 6 square miles (15.5 square kilometers), the broader military context stretches significantly further, depending on the level of detail one might consider.

Our first stop on the tour found us at the Eternal Life Peace Memorial. On July 3, 1938, President Franklin Roosevelt was present to dedicate the memorial on the 75th anniversary of the Civil War. There were many Civil War veterans in attendance, and it would be the last time a large gathering of Civil War Veterans would assemble at Gettysburg.

If you choose to drive through the park, the placards in many places denote important points of the battle site. As it turned out, this stop would be the last stop where we got out of the tour bus. Shortly after returning to the bus, the rains started and we viewed the rest of the monuments through the bus windows.

The Eternal Light Peace Memorial is an imposing Civil War memorial featuring a 47-foot (14 m) tall stone tower with an eternal flame in a bronze urn, atop Oak Hill northwest of Gettysburg. From our vantage points, the flame was not visible.

Sometimes on our tour, the rain was heavy and the best images I got through the bus window became an abstract image like this view of the Pennsylvania State Monument. The monument is a commanding structure that stands in honor of the 34,530 Pennsylvania soldiers who fought in the Battle of Gettysburg. Erected in 1914, it is the largest of the state monuments on the battlefield.

The 88th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Monument is a short walk from the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum & Visitor Center. The monument is a 13-foot-tall obelisk topped with a large eagle. It was dedicated in 1889 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in honor of the regiment’s 296 soldiers who fought at Gettysburg.

The bronze equestrian statue of Major General Oliver O. Howard stands on Cemetery Hill. General Howard commanded the XI Corps of the Union Army during the Battle of Gettysburg. The statue depicts Howard on horseback, looking out over the battlefield. The inscription on the base of the statue reads: “Major General Oliver Otis Howard, XI Corps, Army of the Potomac. He commanded on this hill during the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863.”

In November 1863, President Lincoln stayed at the David Wills House, which belonged to attorney David Wills, a close friend and supporter of Lincoln. It was during this stay that Lincoln put the finishing touches on his iconic Gettysburg Address where delivered at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery. The house is now a free museum and is part of the National Park Service.

The echoes of cannons and the cries of fallen soldiers linger in the crisp air, forever imprinted upon the rolling hills and weathered monuments. Each inscription etched in stone is a testament to unwavering courage. Though the battles have long since ceased, the battlefield remains a crucible of history, forever smoldering with the embers of a nation divided and reforged. Gettysburg National Memorial Park weaves together the solemnity of the battlefield with the enduring hope for unity and a brighter future. The many monuments further emphasize the profound impact of the experience, leaving a lasting impression on the soul.

John Steiner

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Call me paparazzi. Yes, this image features a prolific motion picture background cast member. I’m not writing about anyone who might happen to be in any of the vehicles pictured in today’s photo. I’m talking about the Ben Franklin Bridge that connects Camden, New Jersey to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The bridge has appeared in background shots and cameo roles in several motion pictures set in Philadelphia. This view gives us a glimpse of the City of Brotherly Love behind the cars and underneath the arches on the left.

The span has appeared in several films, adding to its cinematic history and cultural significance. Here are a few notable movies that feature the Ben Franklin Bridge:

1. “Witness” (1985): This thriller directed by Peter Weir stars Harrison Ford as a detective investigating a murder in an Amish community. The Ben Franklin Bridge is featured during a pivotal scene where Ford’s character confronts the culprits on the bridge’s pedestrian walkway.
2. “National Treasure” (2004): In this adventure film starring Nicolas Cage, the Ben Franklin Bridge appears as one of the landmarks visited by the characters in their quest to find hidden treasure. It is shown in several scenes, including a car chase across the bridge.
3. “Limitless” (2011): This science fiction thriller stars Bradley Cooper as a struggling writer who gains superhuman abilities through a mysterious pill. Cooper’s character is shown running across the Ben Franklin Bridge as part of a pivotal scene.
4. “Silver Linings Playbook” (2012): Directed by David O. Russell, this romantic comedy-drama features the Ben Franklin Bridge in several scenes. The bridge serves as a backdrop to various moments in the story, including a climactic scene where the characters played by Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence meet near the bridge.
5. “Dead Man Down” (2013): Starring Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace, this action thriller includes the Ben Franklin Bridge in its setting. The bridge is featured in a car chase sequence, highlighting its architecture.

One notable movie that was shot in Philadelphia but didn’t include the bridge as a background actor is “Rocky” (1976), however, the bridge was featured in “Rocky II” (1979) in a montage showcasing various locations in Philadelphia. Rocky II was the only movie in the series to include a shot of one of Philadelphia’s most recognizable landmarks.

The bridge is supported by its two main towers, one located in Philadelphia and the other in Camden, New Jersey. These towers are constructed using steel and rise to a height of 382 feet (116 meters) above the typical high water level. The main span, which is the distance between the two towers, measures approximately 1,750 feet (533 meters). Its total length, including approaches on both sides, is around 9,573 feet (2,918 meters).

The final design provides six lanes of traffic, two tracks for subway/elevated trains, two tracks for streetcar/trolley operation, and two walkways for pedestrians. The pedestrian lanes are used by bicycle riders, walkers, and joggers and are visible in the photo above the roadways on either side. The train tracks run on both sides of the roadways underneath the pedestrian walkways. More facts about the bridge and its construction can be found here. As Janet noted in the comments, there is a toll when coming from the New Jersey side. No toll coming in the other direction.

About the photo: Normally on our fall trips, Lynn and I ride in the rear seats of my niece and her husband’s SUV. I usually capture images out of the left-side rear window. For whatever reason, I was riding shotgun position as we approached the bridge. Cleaning the windshield at fuel stops is my usual duty and it was freshly cleaned when we filled the SUV up with fuel that morning. The light and angles were right to minimize reflections and I got a nice panoramic view of the bridge as we crossed. Using Adobe Lightroom, I cropped out the hood at the bottom of the shot, most of the car on the right, and adjusted for a slight tilt. I then sent it off to Luminar Neo for final tweaks. I added just a bit of structure and used the Enhance AI tool to increase the contrast. You can pixel-peep at the image in 2K HD on my Flickr site by clicking on the image above.

I encourage fellow bloggers to create their own Cellpic Sunday posts. I never have a specific topic for this feature, and the only rules are that the photo must be captured with a cell phone, iPad, or another mobile device… If you have an image from a drone or even a dashcam, that’s acceptable as well. The second rule is to link your challenge response to this post or leave a comment here with a link to your post in the comment. Oh, and, you don’t have to post it on a Sunday.

John Steiner

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

On our first-ever visit to Pennsylvania, there were plenty of places we planned to visit. Of course, I will feature our trip through the commonwealth in future Travel Tuesday posts. Due to the route of travel, Independence Hall wasn’t our first place to visit in the state, but it was first on my list of places to see. The most important founding documents of our nation were first debated and then adopted in this large brick building. It is fitting that a statue of our first President is prominent on the property. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were both created as a framework for our country here.

As an aside, I finally learned why Pennsylvania is called a Commonwealth. The state, and three others, Kentucky, Massachusetts, and Virginia define themselves as commonwealths. The term, created by 16th-century founder of modern political theory, Thomas Hobbes, created the term that simply refers to the “common-wealth” of its citizens.

About the photo: On a mostly cloudy day, I used my Samsung S20U to capture the essence of the entrance and clock tower of this historic building. The camera set the exposure at f/1.8, 1/950 sec, and ISO 16 for a noise-free image. From the camera, it was imported into Adobe Lightroom Classic and then into Luminar Neo for final processing. Click on the photo to view it in 2K HD on my Flickr site.

I encourage fellow bloggers to create their own Cellpic Sunday posts. I never have a specific topic for this feature, and the only rules are that the photo must be captured with a cell phone, iPad, or another mobile device… If you have an image from a drone or even a dashcam, that’s acceptable as well. The second rule is to link your challenge response to this post or leave a comment here with a link to your post in the comment. Oh, and, you don’t have to post it on a Sunday.

John Steiner