Giles Hoover

Photography and design for print production

Category: Regional Imagery

Photography from selected cityscapes, rural scenes, landscapes, and architectural photographs from ten US states — plus several additional locations in the UK — on gileshoover.com and media.gileshoover.com.

  • Gallery Update: Madison (Part 3)

    Gallery Update: Madison (Part 3)

    As promised, I returned to Madison, Georgia, to complete the gallery my camera battery didn’t permit last time. Special thanks to Gerald, who accompanied me around the beautiful downtown historic district and on the lovely drive from here to there.

    This round is mostly details, taken with my stunning new Leica APO lens. (Introduced in this Macon post.) The whole line has been discontinued, so I am incredibly glad to have gotten one while they’re still available — every single photograph shows just how good this lens is. I’ll try to do it justice:

    Morgan County Courthouse #6
    Light Detail, 131 E. Jefferson St.
    Madison Welcome Center, Madison Square
    Flower Detail, Organic Market
    Building and Light Detail #2, W. Washington St.
    Hart & Crown Sign, Madison Square

    I’ve revamped the gallery with the new shots mixed in with the old. Several are improved versions of shots taken last time, meaning those were deleted in favor of the new ones.

    132 Madison photographs have been posted in all. Peruse and enjoy; remember to click on any individual photograph to start a slide show, and if you’d like, click “buy” to get options for fine art prints in a variety of sizes and finishes. Thank you!

    See also: Madison Part One and Part Two.

  • New Gallery: Madison (Part 2)

    New Gallery: Madison (Part 2)

    Continued from Part 1, below.

    According to Southern Living magazine, “In Madison, Georgia, you can witness the power of tireless historic preservation efforts and take in the glory of old Southern architecture — from Greek Revival to Victorian, this town showcases all the great architectural styles.” (Read their day trip advice.)

    DAR Statue and Morgan County Courthouse, Downtown

    It’s certainly worth taking some time to visit — and for this guy and his camera, the restaurants, shops, stroll-worthy streets, and simply spectacular historic district represent a great opportunity to add to the treasure trove of Georgia architectural photography.

    Building Detail #2, Madison Welcome Center, E. Jefferson St.
    Building Detail #1, The James Madison Inn
    Gazebo and Stage, Madison Town Park
    Metallic Sculpture, Madison Town Park
    Train and Silos, Madison

    A total of 90 (!) photographs have been posted to the new Madison gallery. Once there, click on any photo to enlarge or start a slide show.

    I’m not done, either: I had two lenses with me, but only one battery — which gave out before I could make a round downtown with the second lens. I’ve got another trip through the area scheduled, and will absolutely make the time to return, camera in-hand, to complete the gallery. Stay tuned.

  • New Gallery: Madison, Georgia (Part 1)

    New Gallery: Madison, Georgia (Part 1)

    The past couple of days represented a much-needed break from the recent heat wave — an opportunity to get out of the house and celebrate a stunning morning with camera in-hand.

    I pass through Madison regularly (it’s along the route from Macon to Athens), and have been meaning to stop and take some photographs for literally years. Today, the first of two parts this week, with more to come soon.

    We start at the Madison Morgan Cultural Center and loop through the historic district — and its many, frankly stunning buildings — south of downtown:

    Madison Morgan Cultural Center (Detail #4)
    507 S. Main Street #1
    411 Old Post Road #1
    413 S. Main Street, Photographed from Old Post Road

    There are a few detail shots mixed in, too, like this one from the Presbyterian Church:

    Madison Presbyterian Church (Door Detail)

    See the first 34 photographs in the new gallery. (Remember to double-click on a photograph to see larger.) Next time, downtown. Happy Monday!

  • Updated Galleries: Macon Downtown x3

    Updated Galleries: Macon Downtown x3

    FedEx pulled up around 8:30 this morning and dropped off a new lens. (It wasn’t due ’til Tuesday — bonus!) Given that it was an absolutely beautiful morning, I shelved my plans for the day, picked up the camera, and headed downtown.

    Verdict? It’s so a keeper. See for yourself:

    Catholic Cross, St. Joseph’s, Macon
    Purple Hydrangea, St. Joseph’s, Macon
    (Funeral) Chapel, New St., Macon
    552 New St. (Brick Detail), Macon
    Public Art (Detail #1), D T Walton Sr Way, Macon
    Tree and City Auditorium, Macon

    Wound up with sixty new items posted. However, the downtown Macon gallery was getting almost too big — confusing, even — so has been separated into three parts:

    Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend!

  • Gallery Update: The Columbus Museum

    Gallery Update: The Columbus Museum

    As I mentioned in the last entry, Gerald and I were in Columbus, Georgia on Saturday, where our primary photographic mission was The Columbus Museum — specifically, its Olmsted Garden.

    ArchDaily is to blame here; they pointed me to the following:

    Celebrating the bicentennial of the birth of Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr., known as “the father of landscape architecture”, the Cultural Landscape Foundation has created an ever-growing digital guide of Olmsted’s most notable works.

    I immediately looked up what was near me, and lo and behold…. (Full disclosure: the garden is actually by Bradley Olmsted, one of Fredrick’s sons.)

    Of course, the building’s interesting, too, so there’s a good mix of architecture, gardens, architecture from the garden, and — you guessed it — garden architecture:

    The Columbus Museum (B&W #1)
    Urn, Columns and Bricks, The Columbus Museum
    Crawford’s Kindred (B&W detail), The Columbus Museum
    Olmsted Garden (Flower #3), The Columbus Museum
    Old Pool House (B&W), Olmsted Garden, The Columbus Museum

    I enjoyed the visit, and as a result of that visit, added 32 new photographs to the Columbus gallery. (They’re grouped together: “Columbus Museum – Mar22.”) Peruse anytime; purchase if you’d like. Thank you!

  • Updated Gallery: Columbus, Georgia

    Updated Gallery: Columbus, Georgia

    Gerald and I were in Columbus, Georgia, today, which included a delicious lunch at The Black Cow — no word whether the name is related to the Steely Dan song — and which meant a few photographs:

    United States Post Office and Court House (Eagle Detail), Columbus, Georgia

    One of several of the Post Office and Court House (the header photograph is that building, too), along with a few others from downtown:

    Lamp and Buildings, Downtown Columbus, Georgia
    Arches, Planes, and Sky, Downtown Columbus, Georgia
    Tower and Spire, Downtown Columbus, Georgia

    Columbus is really well covered in its dedicated gallery: check it out. The majority of today’s photographs, however, were from the Columbus Museum; those will be posted Monday. Stay tuned.

  • Updated Gallery: Sarasota – Ringling Museum

    Updated Gallery: Sarasota – Ringling Museum

    The Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida has been a place I’ve been taking photographs since I lived in the area, almost twenty years ago now — and a place where I continue to enjoy taking photographs whenever possible.

    The grounds have these amazing banyan trees, with root systems larger than many houses:

    Banyan (black and white, detail)

    They’ve expanded over the years, adding buildings, a new entrance, and additions. This is the Chao Center for Asian Art:

    Chao Center’s Asian Art Siding #3 (Detail)

    The old Ca d’Zan gate is the new main entrance:

    Ca d’Zan Lion

    And, of course, the whole compound is right on Sarasota Bay:

    Ringling’s Bayfront

    Take a virtual stroll through the Ringling grounds with 24 new photographs, along with many more over the years, and a few extra photographs from Sarasota proper. Enjoy.

  • Updated Gallery: Franklin Delano Roosevelt State Park, Pine Mountain

    Updated Gallery: Franklin Delano Roosevelt State Park, Pine Mountain

    As I mentioned yesterday, Gerald and I enjoyed a lovely first-of-spring drive out of middle Georgia. Our destination was Pine Mountain, home of F. D. Roosevelt State Park. Needless to say, there were cameras involved.

    Starting on Dowdell Knob, FDR’s favorite picnic spot — with its amazing valley overlook:

    Roosevelt’s Grill With a View, Dowdell Knob

    Next was the park’s office and overlook complex:

    FDR State Park Office (B&W Study), Pine Mountain
    Stone, Shutters, and Stars and Stripes
    FDR State Park Overlook: Rocks

    Peruse the entire gallery here. And when you have some extra time, all of FDR State Park is worth a visit; it’s got everything from hiking trails to cabins to the Callaway Gardens Country Kitchen in its 9049 acres. Enjoy!

    Bonus: Georgia Public Broadcasting, at the premier of its film A President in Our Midst: Franklin Delano Roosevelt in Georgia, said:

    Franklin Delano Roosevelt had a very special relationship with the State of Georgia. This compelling documentary spotlights the mutual benefits that the friendship provided to both the president and the people of Georgia. The film is based on the book, A President in Our Midst: Franklin Delano Roosevelt in Georgia.

    It’s no Ken Burns, certainly, but if you’re not familiar with FDR’s extensive time spent in west Georgia, it might be worth your time. See it here.

    Bonus gallery: Callaway Gardens, from 2008.