For Christmas, my niece had given me a gift certificate to a photo safari. So I wanted to take advantage of this free time I have had to improve my skills. And with the wonderful weather we've been having lately I was not disappointed on the outing. Even though I have lived in this area for over 15 years, I had no idea that this was the best places to get the triple monument shot.  It was one of the last pictures of my photo safari, washingtonphotosafari and our workshop instructor David Luria took us to little known spot in the Arlington Cemetery. 

The Three Monuments

The Iwo Jima Memorial is one place I had never been able to see up close and it was just a simply gorgeous afternoon to visit it. 

Iwo Jima Memorial

It was so interesting to find out that each soldier is a stand-alone piece and had to be assembled by airlifting each on one another. You can feel the spirit of determination on the faces of each marine.  

Soliders of Iwo Jima

And likewise, I am always especially moved by the statues of the three soldiers coming upon the Vietnam Memorial.

Soliders at the Vietnam Memorial

And although my favorite time to visit the Korean Memorial is at night, when it is hauntingly moving, this gave me a chance to capture the mirrored effect of the dark black grey granite.

Reflection at Korean Memorial Wall

One of the fun parts of the trip was taking abstract images from the sidewalks and murals around Adams Morgan. 

Glue Reside

Pot Holed Stone Road

This next one is a close-up of a mural of a man talking on his cell phone walking his barking dog in a random alley by just simply random pointing and clicking. The post production enhanced the saturation of the colors, but it is so fun to create abstract art from the every day scenes people walk by and never take notice. 

Adams Morgan Graffiti Barking Dog