Photographing Civil War Re-enactments

One of my photographic passions is shooting re-enactments.  I have attended Civil War and World War II re-enactments.  The most prevalent opportunities are Civil War era events. The two events that I have attended most frequently are the Brooksville Raid and the Nature Coast Civil War  re-enactment in Williston.

I enjoy photographing the re-enactors as much as shooting the battle between the Union and the Confederate troops.  The characters are wonderfully cooperative.  As a matter of fact, I think that most really enjoy having their pictures taken.

I take some candid shots, but I really prefer to set up the portraits.  The actors are terrific in holding their character though I occasionally ask some to "please lose the smile."  The above photos is one of my favorite from the recent Brooksville Raid.

I use black and white a lot for my re-enactment photos.  I believe that these photos should really reflect the period when these folks were on this earth.  I love to photograph these crusty old fighters.  Of course, I also wonder what these characters do in their real life.

When I do include a color photograph as above I survey the scene to ensure that their are no distractions  that would take the photo out of its era...and that the colors are muted and natural to fit the period.

All of these photos were taken with my Nikon D750.  On most I used my Nikon 24-120mm f4.0 lens.  On  the battle scenes I use a Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 lens on a monopod.  I prefer a monopod for events where there are many spectators. I bring a folding chair.  I like to get to an event like this early so that I can claim a spot as close to the battleground as possible.  Then, I wander the camp looking for people that would make good subjects . I like to photograph with a partner so that we can share photo opportunities. I hope that you put  one of these historic events on your calendar this year.