I’m thrilled to share a recent photo restoration that I completed of a remarkable historical photograph… a panoramic image capturing the German zeppelin ZR-3 landing at the Naval Air Station Lakehurst in New Jersey on October 15, 1924 – just over one hundred years ago! This iconic moment occurred about twelve years before the Hindenburg disaster at the same location, which would forever link Lakehurst with airship history.

Wendy Tully, from North Ridgeville, reached out to me about a vintage, rolled-up photograph that had been tucked away for years at her home. She knew the photo depicted the ZR-3 zeppelin, which held special meaning because her grandfather, John Wintermute, had been part of the U.S. Marines ground crew assisting with the landing that day. (The zeppelin was acquired by the United States from Germany as part of World War I reparations and was named the USS Los Angeles.)

When Wendy finally decided to unroll the photograph to revisit its memories, the first inches crackled as they unfolded. Realizing she might damage it if she continued, Wendy wisely decided to seek help and brought this precious heirloom to my studio.

After examining the photograph, I advised Wendy that a full unrolling would be necessary to scan and digitally restore it accurately. Since the photograph was too large for a single scan, I captured it in six smaller sections, then used Adobe Photoshop to stitch them seamlessly together. I carefully removed dirt, dust spots, and other signs of age, adjusted the exposure and contrast, and enhanced the faded details to bring the image back to life. The restored print was mounted on artboard for stability, and a protective lacquer coating was added to guard against fingerprints and sunlight.

For a personal touch, I included her grandfather’s name, the event date and airship’s name in the photograph’s border, transforming it into a unique family keepsake. When Wendy and her husband, Rick, came to see the finished restoration, Wendy encouraged others to think twice before discarding old photos, saying, “If anyone has an old photograph that looks unsalvageable, don’t just throw it out. Take it to an expert who specializes in photo restoration to see what can be done to save it.”

Now, Wendy proudly displays the restored photograph in her living room, where it has become a cherished family heirloom destined to be passed down through the generations. Interestingly, Wendy’s original photograph is also cataloged in the Library of Congress database, though not in the vibrant, restored condition of her new print. (You can view the cataloged photo here: https://www.loc.gov/resource/ds.09689/)

If you would like a print of this historic photograph WITHOUT the caption below it – view or order one here: https://mark-madere.pixels.com/featured/historic-landing-of-german-zr-3-zeppelin-in-new-jersey-mark-madere.html

Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of restoring hundreds of photographs damaged by time, elements, and even disasters, including similar panoramic images as this. If you have an old photograph (or even a recent one) you’d like to save; feel free to reach out. I’d be happy to provide a free, no-obligation quote and offer options for restoring your treasured memories. You can reach me here.

See more or our work at https://SpectraLight.com/PhotoRestoration/

Do you have an old photograph showing a historic moment in our nation's history? Please share what event it was with a comment here.

The post Amazing Photo Restoration of Historic ZR-3 German Zeppelin – aka: USS Los Angeles appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

As excitement builds for the solar eclipse on April 8^th, I’ve compiled some tips for getting the best possible photos with a smartphone.

[UPDATE: Order Our 2024 Solar Eclipse Montage and Support 3 Cleveland Area Non-Profits!]

Safety First:

Never look directly at the sun with your naked eyes during the eclipse as it can cause permanent eye damage. Wear eclipse glasses with an ISO safety rating of 12312-2-2015. This rating should be found on the cardboard frame of the glasses.

Unfortunately, there are some unscrupulous companies that advertise an ISO rating of 12312-2-2015, even though they aren’t using the correct filters to protect your eyes. You should not search for eclipse glasses on the internet or Amazon and buy whatever pops up in the ads or search results. Order from one of the sources listed on this page provided by the American Astronomical Society: https://eclipse.aas.org/eye-safety/viewers-filters

Choosing a Solar Filter for Your Smartphone:

If you’re planning to get closeup photos of the sun with your smartphone, you must protect your camera’s sensor with a solar filter. However, there is some confusion about the type of filter to use with smartphones.

My research found that you should only use a dedicated solar filter designed for smartphone photography. These filters fit securely to your phone’s camera lens and allow for safe solar imaging. I then searched for “smartphone solar filters” and found that many have an ISO rating of 12312-2-2015. That is the same ISO rating that solar eclipse glasses should have so will eclipse glasses work?…

Using Solar Eclipse Glasses on Your Smartphone:

From NASA’s website: “The best thing to do is to cover the camera lens with a solar filter during the moments before (and after) totality when the sunlight is still blinding. This will eliminate sun blooming and give you a clear image of the solar disk. You can use one of those ISO-Certified sun-viewing glasses that will be available for eclipse viewing to cover the smartphone lens.” Read more:
https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/static/img/smartphone-photography-eclipse/Photographing_the_Eclipse_with_your_Smartphone.pdf)

From Highpoint Scientific’s website: “… take photographs of the partial eclipse with your eclipse glasses. This is as simple as it sounds and could yield some great photographs of the eclipse…” Read more:
https://www.highpointscientific.com/astronomy-hub/post/solar-and-lunar-eclipses/ultimate-guide-to-photographing-the-2024-solar-eclipse

If you decide to use your solar eclipse glasses with an ISO rating of 12312-2-2015, be sure the filter covers ALL the lenses of your smartphone to protect your camera’s sensor. Here are photos of my solar eclipse glasses showing how I cut the frame and mounted it securely with rubber bands to my phone to completely cover the lenses.

I did some test photos with my old Galaxy S10 phone with this method and it worked perfectly. Although my camera’s sensor was unharmed, I cannot guarantee your sensor won’t be damaged so use caution!

Photographing Techniques:

• Switch Off Flash: Disable the flash on your smartphone because you just don’t need it to photograph the sun!
• Don’t Use Your Phone’s Digital Zoom: Digital zoom lenses reduce image quality because all they do is magnify the pixels of your image to make it appear larger.
• Do Use Your Phone’s Optical Zoom: Optical zooms magnify the actual image using the glass elements of the camera’s lens giving the best photo quality possible.
• Lock Focus: Manually focus your camera on the sun to ensure sharp images.
• Use Burst Mode: Capture a series of rapid shots to increase your chances of getting a clear image.
• Shoot RAW: If your smartphone supports it, shoot in RAW mode for better post-processing flexibility.
• Use a Tripod: For stable shots, use a tripod because your exposures will become longer as the light fades. If you're hand-holding your phone, you will experience camera movement resulting in less-than-sharp images. Here is the tripod with smartphone holder I bought for under $20: https://amzn.to/3J3bSgJ. If you already own a tripod for a film or digital camera, you can use this smartphone holder that easily mounts to your tripod: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08XMLK656 (NOTE: These are affiliate links so I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you if you purchase through them.)

When to REMOVE the Solar Filter from Your Camera Lens:

During a total solar eclipse, you can safely photograph the totality phase (when the Sun is completely covered by the Moon) without a solar filter. This phase lasts only about four minutes in Northeast Ohio. However, outside the path of totality, where only partial phases are visible, always have a solar filter over the camera’s lens.

Practice With Your Smartphone BEFORE the Big Day:

I’ve spent two afternoons experimenting in my back yard with three different DSLRs and a smartphone to determine which cameras and settings to use. I also have the luxury of a college buddy, Max Muir, who is driving in from Omaha, Nebraska joining me on April 8^th. He photographed the full solar eclipse out west in 2017 so it'll be good having someone with prior experience alongside me as an advisor.

Additional Resources:

• What to Expect: A Solar Eclipse Guide – includes how to pick the perfect viewing spot, preparation for travel, snacks and things you may not think of until you realize you need them.
• How to photograph a solar eclipse with a smartphone 2024 — 8 tips from an expert
• Five Tips from NASA for Photographing a Total Solar Eclipse

Conclusion:

Although I’ve covered some techniques on photographing the eclipse with a smartphone, I will be using two DSLR cameras to capture the event in photos and video because the image quality will be superior to that of a smartphone.

Finally, eye safety comes first. Use proper filters, follow guidelines, and enjoy capturing this rare celestial event!

If we’re lucky here in Northeast Ohio, the “Star” of the show will make a cloud-free appearance and we’ll all have amazing photos to remember the day!

The post Smartphone Photography Tips for the April 8th, 2024 Solar Eclipse appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

Vintage Olmsted Falls Wall Decor Available for Purchase!

It has been over 20 years since I took my first scenic photograph of historic Olmsted Falls and I still believe this quaint little town has the most picturesque spots packed into a small area than any other place I've visited.

Situated in Western Cuyahoga County, Olmsted Falls has a gorgeous wooden covered bridge, a couple of publicly accessible gazebos, a beautifully restored old train engine and caboose, a park with flowing waterfalls and a beautiful historic district with century homes that have been restored and are now inhabited by specialty shops with hand-crafted goods. In fact, some buildings in the Grand Pacific Junction shopping district date back to 1840! See my photographs of Olmsted Falls dating back to the early two-thousands at www.SpectraLight.com/OlmstedFalls

I’ve always wanted to create stunning images of landscapes and unusual architecture. Unfortunately, I never did well in art class as a kid. I understood good composition but just couldn’t draw a stick figure to save my life! I then fell in love with photography and was finally able to capture amazing scenes with a camera when the artist’s brush failed me. However, my images still looked like pictures since they were taken with a camera. The digital process I’m using now has elevated my photographs to look more like the paintings I wanted to create since I was a little boy.

Along with Olmsted Falls scenes, my artwork includes photographs from around the world including a fog-shrouded Golden Gate Bridge taken from Alcatraz, the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island (appearing as if it were taken in a by-gone era) and more. I also share NASA images of the planets and galaxies in our universe!

I offer my images as traditional and canvas prints with mats and frames, canvas wraps, acrylic and wood prints as well as aluminum panels which sets each photograph apart from all the other mediums. There’s nothing as striking as a photo that shines on an aluminum surface with a bright, clear, glossy base and brilliant color that pops!

I also offer my images as puzzles, on tote bags, smart phone cases, yoga mats, beach towels, t-shirts and so much more.

SPECIAL BONUS: If you mail or email me a copy of your receipt showing a total purchase of $60 or more of any of my artwork (not including sales tax and shipping) – I will send you a set of three uniquely shaped, limited edition collectors' cards as shown below – each one individually signed by me (or not signed by me if you prefer). Maybe they'll be worth something as a collector's item someday (but probably not ). Also, I would be happy to sign any photographs you purchase through my website if your bring them to my studio in North Ridgeville. Contact me here to arrange an appointment: www.SpectraLight.com/contact

My photographs are most sought after during the Christmas season so I created a special website where they may be viewed or purchased: www.SpectraLight.com/ArtSale.

For last-minute shoppers, I keep a limited inventory at my home/studio in North Ridgeville. To see them in-person, call 440-748-6300 (a landline – text messages won't come through) for more information or to schedule an appointment.

The post Timeless Olmsted Falls Scenes From 20+ Years Ago… Including a Covered Bridge, Gazebos, Waterfalls and Train! appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

This video features a drive through 4 of the active tunnels of the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike: Allegheny Mountain Tunnel, Tuscarora Mountain Tunnel, Kittatinny Mountain Tunnel, Blue Mountain Tunnel.

Who doesn’t like a good tunnel… unless you’re claustrophobic? I’ll share my personal reflections in a moment.

But first, a little history… (continues below this video)

The Pennsylvania Turnpike was designed to improve automobile transportation across the mountains of Pennsylvania during the 1930s. It was built along the path of an unfinished railroad project from the 1880s and used six of the railroad’s tunnels.

The turnpike opened on October 1, 1940. The turnpike was touted as “America’s First Superhighway” and was the national standard for superhighway design and engineering.

Currently, the turnpike has four active tunnels that you’ll see in this video. They are the Allegheny, Tuscarora, Kittatinny, and Blue Mountain Tunnels.

The Allegheny Mountain Tunnel is the longest in active use at 1.16 miles or 1.85 kilometers in length.

One experience I had at the Allegheny Mountain Tunnel was a severe weather change from the east side of the tunnel to the west side. It was mid-May and the weather was beautiful with sunny skies. Temperatures were probably in the fifties or sixties. We entered the east side of the tunnel and finally came out on the west side. What was amazing is that we entered a snowstorm as we came out of the tunnel! There were cars spun-out all over the road. It was like playing dodge-cars as I exited the tunnel and proceeded to slide along the highway, narrowly missing several of the cars that were spun-out around me. But for some miracle, I managed not to hit anything and continued on my way.

The Tuscarora Mountain Tunnel measures 1.01 miles or 1.62 kilometers and is the second-longest active tunnel on the turnpike.

Now I want to share some thoughts about some other tunnels in Pennsylvania… specifically in the Pittsburgh area.

As a child, going through the Squirrel Hill Tunnel on the way to Kennywood Park was pretty exciting… almost as fun as the amusement park. I’ll never forget the continuous flash of brake lights as we entered and proceeded through the tunnel.

In college, I remember emerging from the Fort Pitt Tunnel and being greeted with an amazing view of downtown Pittsburgh from the high vantage point overlooking the city below. Seeing the convergence of the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers to form the Ohio River is always breathtaking. As a side note, I met my amazing wife while attending the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. As of 2025, we’ve been married for 45 years with two daughters, and three grandchildren!

The Kittatinny Mountain Tunnel is approximately 0.89 miles or 1.43 kilometers long.

The Blue Mountain Tunnel is the shortest tunnel in active use at 0.82 miles or 1.32 kilometers in length.

What has been your experience driving through the tunnels of the Pennsylvania Turnpike or those in Pittsburgh?

Have you experienced other tunnels in the U.S. or other countries?

Do you get claustrophobic driving through tunnels?

Please like share your experiences with a comment here.

Contact us, today, to chat about YOUR photography needs and discover how surprisingly affordable our services are: Call 440.748.6300 (NOTE: This is a landline so text messages won’t come through) or email: https://spectralight.com/Contact

The post Driving Through the 4 Active Tunnels of the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

Get ready for some “big” hair styles and clothing rarely seen in over a quarter of a century!

In this video, we travel back to 1996 to experience a promotional video for our portrait studio located in our home on the corner of Bagley and Fitch Roads in Olmsted Falls.

We've been based in Northeast Ohio since 1980 with our first location in the Kamm's Corners area of Cleveland, then Olmsted Falls and now in North Ridgeville.

We truly appreciate the nearly 3000 clients that have trusted us to capture special moments in their lives through photography. Many have returned multiple times – beginning with their wedding photography, then family portraits – and years later – their children's senior portraits.

If you're a past client, please share in the comments which photography service we provided and when. We would also love to hear what you and your family are up to now!

The post “Blast-from-the-Past” – SpectraLight Photography’s 1996 Promotional Video appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

Scrapbooking takes a TON of time… if you want to do it right. And then only a few people can enjoy it. Well, not anymore!

It starts with a lot of research, gathering of photos, newspaper and magazine articles, and so much more. Then there's the design aspect… how to put it all together creatively with special adornments to make each page “pop”!

I've watched in amazement as my wife, Doreen, has taken on the responsibility of family historian – lovingly creating beautiful scrapbooks of our two daughters from birth to high school graduation. And now she's doing it for our three grandchildren – currently six, eight and ten years old.

After observing the number of hours (days, weeks, months, YEARS) that she invests in these scrapbooks; I decided to make a video of each one to be shared on our family's private YouTube channel. Now only those with the URL (web address) to that channel can enjoy those videos from anywhere in the world. What I really like about copying the scrapbooks to videos is they can not be lost in a fire, flood, earth quake, tornado or other disaster since they're hosted on YouTube's redundant servers.

Also, with our grandchildren being so young; it's impossible to monitor their handling of these large, heavy volumes. I'd hate to see Doreen's labor of love being dropped, torn, spilled on or lost. These videos are the perfect answer.

I wanted to demonstrate what a “video scrapbook” can look like but I also want to respect the privacy of my grandchildren. So I created a video of the scrapbook my wife created for the company she worked at as her final project before retiring – Christian Educators.

After she manually assembled the scrapbook, I copied each page with a digital camera attached to a copy stand with color-balanced LED lights and then added motion graphics and a music track to create the video. Watch it below.

Are you into scrapbooking? Have you ever lost a scrapbook to a man-made or natural disaster? Have you considered making and/or sharing your scrapbook in video format? Share your experiences, questions or comments here.

The post Video Scrapbooking – A Great Way to Save and Show-Off a Hard Cover Scrapbook appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

Don't let your precious memories fade away! With every passing day, your old photographs continue to deteriorate due to exposure from sunlight, humidity in damp basements, storage in hot attics and pollutants in the air.

You can now repair your faded and damaged photos yourself with “PhotoGlory” – an affordable and easy-to-use photo retouching software! With it you can:

• Colorize B&W photos with 1-click
• Repair torn corners, cracks & tears
• Correct faded or washed-out colors
• Fix major defects & recreate missing parts
• Lifetime license
• FREE technical support and updates

Save over 30% on your purchase of PhotoGlory through this special link: www.photoglory.net/order-special-spectralight.php
Hurry… Offer expires soon

Now is the time to restore and share your priceless treasures with your children and grandchildren… and relive the sentimental memories that go with your photos.

If your photo is extremely faded or damaged to the point that PhotoGlory can’t provide a satisfactory result – it may still be recoverable! The photo restoration specialists at SpectraLight Photography combine today's digital technology with old-fashioned artistry to repair worn, stained, spotted, torn, cracked, bleached and faded photographs to their original luster.

See more samples of photos that SpectraLight Photography has completely restored AND get a FREE guide with tips for saving water or flood-damaged photos at www.SpectraLight.com/PhotoRestoration.

Please subscribe to our YouTube channel and then click the bell icon to get instant notifications when we upload new videos: www.SpectraLight.com/YouTubeSubscribe

NOTE: If you purchase anything through the links on this page – I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Your support allows me to research products and services to improve your life and mine… and I thank you!

For a no-cost, no-obligation appointment to examine your faded or damaged photographs and receive a free quote – contact us TODAY through this link or call 440.748.6300 (NOTE: This is a landline so text messages won't come through.)

The post Easy-to-Use and Affordable Photo Restoration Software – PhotoGlory appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

For years I've been bored with photographing fireworks. Fighting the crowds to get a good spot, dealing with hot and humid July weather, bugs, crying children… the list goes on. I'd rather stay home and chill-out with the Mrs. – UNTIL NOW!

A few years ago, I read an article by a photographer who captured some amazing fireworks photos. He gave the technical settings that he used for beautiful shots over a scenic lake. He inspired me to see if I could create images unlike any I've made before.

So I set out for the annual fireworks display in my town – North Ridgeville, Ohio. The weather was cool and comfortable for a July evening. I was able to stake out a spot by the lake where the fireworks would be launched. The bugs weren't annoying either (I think they preferred the taste of those around me.) And the crying children? It's amazing what ear plugs can mask out!

For 20+ minutes I shot photos with my Nikon camera mounted on a tripod with exposures ranging from one to four seconds at f/11 at ISO 100. If you don't have a clue about those settings – have no fear! It seems that anyone can get decent photos with just about any camera – even with smart phones. Even if you have firework photos from previous years that you wish to add some excitement to – read on!

Upon returning home, I loaded the photos onto my computer. Sadly, I was UNDERwhelmed by what I had captured. They looked similar to the old, boring fireworks photos I'd taken in the past.

Instead of using an expensive software program called Adobe Photoshop; I opened the photo, above, in an affordable program called “Studio“ by Topaz Labs. I've used this software to spice up photos from my previous travels with amazing results. The three variations of the original photo in this article were created with just a couple mouse clicks using Studio!

Pro tip: To achieve similar results in Topaz Studio, choose “Add Filter” > click the “STYLISTIC” tab > choose “Flare”. Then you can experiment with the various adjustments to make each star unique.

Topaz Labs is a company that has created several easy-to-use photo enhancement programs that can be used without even reading the instructions. It has a simple user interface that will have you creating photo masterpieces in minutes.

I found myself immersed in the software for hours as I created countless variations of each image.

See the rest of Topaz Labs photo enhancing software here: www.SpectraLight.com/TopazSoftware (NOTE: You won't see Topaz Studio on this page.)

Have fun!

NOTE: Some of the links in this article are affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, you'll help support this blog at no cost to you – allowing us to continue sharing information like this for your education and enjoyment. Win/Win! Thanks!

The post Fireworks photos with a unique twist… these aren’t your mamma’s snapshots! appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

As a photo restoration specialist, I combine today's digital technology with old-fashioned artistry to repair worn, stained, spotted, torn, cracked, bleached and faded photographs to their original luster. Digital restoration costs have been reduced to at least half of what they used to be and the quality has improved substantially!

See samples of badly faded or damaged photos and how they look after restoration here. You will be amazed with the results.

Learn about our photo restoration services here. Get our FREE guide with tips for saving water or flood-damaged photos here. See a photo restored in a high-speed video here. Read our photo restoration FAQs that may answer questions pertaining to your faded or damaged photograph here.

Do you have damaged, faded or crumbling photos representing an important part of your family history? Don't give up on them just yet – they may be recoverable! For a no-cost, no-obligation appointment to examine your photographs and receive a quote – contact us TODAY through this link… BEFORE  it's too late. (NOTE: This is a landline so text messages won't come through.)

Please subscribe to our YouTube channel and then click the bell icon to get instant notifications when we upload a new video: Subscribe to SpectraLight Photography's YouTube channel.

Have you had a damaged or faded photograph restored? Why did you have it restored? To preserve a special memory? To remember a special family member? Please share your story with a comment here.

The post How to Remove Photos That Are Stuck To Glass appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.

Last year, I volunteered to create a 360° virtual tour of the Old Town Hall Museum for the North Ridgeville Historical Society. I also created a video with a brief history of the museum narrated by North Ridgeville voiceover artist, Doug Mullins.

After watching the video, scroll further down this page to experience the 360° virtual tour of the building where you'll be able to click on any photo and move in any direction to see all the detail the museum has to offer! (Be sure to look up at the ceilings.)

Click the play button to begin…

See more of our virtual tours: https://SpectraLight360.com/TourSamples

Discover more about our services: https://SpectraLight360.com

A virtual tour is an excellent way for prospective customers to “walk through” any business without having to leave their home. So, if they like what they see, they’re 81% more likely to visit your business and make a purchase.

The 360° wrap-around photos used in a virtual tour are more immersive than “regular” photos because online visitors can “look” all around each room to see exactly what they'll experience when they choose your business.

Research shows that a virtual tour embedded on a website keeps visitors browsing longer, causing Google to send more traffic to your website instead of a competitor’s. The more a prospect interacts with the 360° photos and videos – the greater likelihood they will do business with you.

For a no-cost, no-obligation quote, contact us today at https://SpectraLight360.com/Contact

Have you ever visited the Old Town Hall Museum? Please share your experience with a comment here.

The post History and Virtual Tour of the Old Town Hall Museum – North Ridgeville, Ohio appeared first on SpectraLight Photography and Design.