2,500 miles driven, 1,566 photos taken, five abandoned locations, two motel rooms, and one sweet bed and breakfast that I highly recommend in Sheridan, Wyoming, called Residence Hill. Wrapping up the six-day road trip is the abandoned Burnham Schoolhouse, also referred to as the Havre Schoolhouse, located in northern Montana.
Being that this historic one-room schoolhouse was only 11 miles from Havre, Montana, where I was staying, made it easy to get there compared to the other locations. Having met the owners and getting permission to photograph this beautiful schoolhouse throughout the week made it even easier and put my mind at rest while capturing the stunning Montana sunrises in the morning and the star-filled night skies after dark. As you can see, there were some frigid mornings, as indicated by the frost forming on my bubble level while setting up the camera and waiting for the sun to rise.
Throughout the week, as I would make my way back to the motel, I would stop by the abandoned Burnham Schoolhouse to see what the Montana night sky was doing. This also gave me a chance to experiment with long exposure photography using an LED lantern to illuminate the schoolhouse interior. While LED lanterns are safe and produce no heat, their cool color temperature wasn’t ideal for the warm glow I wanted. To fix this, I placed a brown paper bag over the lantern to soften and warm up the light. Tying a string to it allowed me to safely lower it through the broken windows and retrieve it afterward, creating an eerie yet inviting effect that made the Burnham Schoolhouse stand out beautifully against the dark sky.
Comments
Crystal
Aside from how awesome this project turned out, I have to say that I LOVE the tip with the paper bag. I struggle with LED lighting too because it’s too cool for my liking, what a great idea! Thanks Steve 🙂
Lorie Blake Case
Wow, I love the pics! I’m not sure how my nephew found you and these pics, but this schoolhouse sits on my grandma’s homestead. Her name at that time was Mamie Reed. I have a copy of her deed hanging by my front door. It was signed by president Woodrow Wilson on August 14, 1917. Her mom, dad, brothers and sisters all had their own little piece of land. Grandma’s homestead was 160 acres. The pic with the sun coming through has her land in the background (along HWY 2). My 80 year old mom still owns the property…. Now to order some pics from you!!