Hell's Demon Rat

This giant demon rat is part of the Halloween decorations at Hell's Kitchen on Granby Street in downtown Norfolk Virginia. I just couldn't resist taking his picture. I'm sure some followers of this blog will be happy after October 31st has come and gone. I have gotten a little carried away with the theme this month.

Canon G11, 1/6 sec sec @ f/4.5, ISO 800 handheld. Converted to black and white with a little focal color left in the eyes using Google's Picasa.

Billiard Boy

Twelve ball in the corner pocket. My grandson Robert loves the Billiard tables at Tortilla West in Norfolk Virginia. He hasn't graduated to the using a cue stick yet but that time will come shortly if my supply of quarters holds out. Canon G11, 1/10 sec @ f/3.2, ISO 800.

Cat House

Even the Lambert's Point feral cat colony house is getting in on Skull Week action. Fully decorated for Halloween and proudly displaying the skull and crossbones with the "Enter If You Dare!" message. The decorations went up a couple of weeks ago and initially included some fake crows. Unfortunately the residents didn't take too kindly to the black birds hanging around and finished 'em off pretty quickly.

Canon ELPH 110HS, 1/60 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 640 with a little fillin flash.

Here Lyeth

This 17th century grave marker bears the skull and crossbones and is located at St. Pauls Church in Norfolk Virginia. On July 1, 1875 the stone was brought to Norfolk from Weyanoke on the James River. It was found amid the ruins of an old colonia church. Today the stone is attached to the south wall of the old church.

Did you notice the year of William Harris' death is noted as 1687/8? So what's up with that? Were they not sure what year he actually died in? No, according the the USGen Web project "the practice of double dating resulted from the switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. Not all countries and people accepted the new calendar at the same time. England and the American colonies didn't officially accept it until 1752. Before that date, the government observed March 25 as the first of the year, but most of the population observed January 1 as the start of the year. For this reason, many people wrote dates falling between January 1 and March 25 with both years." Now you know.

iPhone 5, 1/144 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 50, Camera+ app using the Clarity adjustment and Pinhole FX Effect.

Glow PEZ Skull

This is a glow in the dark PEZ Skull dispenser. It's a long exposure in a totally dark room. Michael saved the day with a last minute suggestion for this photo. Skull week continues. Canon 7D, 3.2 sec @ f/11.0, ISO 200, 100mm macro lens.

Hallowskull

Captured this skull at Target's Halloween display. There must have been a dozen different skulls to choose from, light up skulls, screaming skulls and plain creepy skulls. iPhone 5, 1/20 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 125, Camera+ app.

Death's Head

This creepy skull is on an old garvestome at St. Paul's Church in Norfolk Virginia. The inscriptions are long since worn away but the skull remains. The marker most likely dates from the late 1600's to the early 1700's. The death's head, often with wings and/or crossed bones, was a stylized skull. Some have speculated that winged skulls were intended to symbolize a combination of physical death and spiritual regeneration. iPhone 5, 1/20 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 50, Camera+ app.