A photographer revisits a 2016 visit to Washington, DC that completed a long-running War of 1812 project. The trip combined targeted historical photography with long drives, unexpected local help, and frustrations with car-dependent suburban lodging.
The trip’s primary purpose was photographic: to finish a War of 1812 project by photographing the Madison shelter house in Brookeville, Maryland.
Brookeville’s resident who guided the author to the Madison house allowed on-site shooting, producing usable 4×5 film images despite a tripod jostle.
Staying in Maryland introduced practical hassles: no sidewalks or safe walking routes to transit, extra driving and parking, and limited local delivery services.
A photographer looks back at a 2016 trip to Washington, DC taken to finish a long-running War of 1812 photography project. The visit is framed around one concrete goal — photographing the house in Brookeville, Maryland where President Madison sheltered after the Battle of Bladensburg and the burning of Washington in 1814 — and the practical realities of getting there.
The stated aim was to complete the War of 1812 series. Brookeville was the last stop. The author arrived with knowledge of the house's name but not its location. A local on the street turned out to be the homeowner and led the photographer to the site. Permission to shoot allowed a 4×5 exposure that, despite a tripod disturbance, produced a usable sheet of film.
The author combined modern mirrorless snapshots with large-format film for formal historical images. Travel images were made with a Sony a6000 and a Sony E PZ 16–50mm lens. The Brookeville house was shot on a Graflex Crown Graphic using Fuji Fujinon-W optics and Adox CHS 100 II film developed with Blazinal.
The trip started with a long drive across the border at Buffalo, through Pennsylvania and into Maryland. Stops included Hershey, PA for chocolate and a brewery lunch, and scenic interstate overlooks. The travel pattern favored getting the bulk of miles done early and taking short, purposeful stops along the way.
On being "in a place where history was being made"
The piece frames the trip in temporal terms: it happened a month before major national events of 2016. The author finds the image of a bus labelled "series finale" compelling as a metaphor for an uncertain moment charged with historical consequence. The narrative avoids sweeping commentary and keeps attention on the photographic mission and the concrete experiences of travel, lodging, and on-site shooting.
The trip ties together project closure, regional travel rhythms, and the small logistical headaches that shape documentary photography.
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