The Newburgh Illuminated Festival is drawing near! Tom Knieser’s exhibit, Light the Night we be available for viewing at the Historical Society’s Captian David Crawford House. The festival will run June 21-23. Below Mr. Knieser explains his exhibit in depth:

“Magic begins when the sun goes down and the lights turn on. Things that you are familiar with suddenly change and you see them again for the first time. Sometimes after a concert on the waterfront we would drive up Broadway in Newburgh and notice how beautiful it was under the lights.  It wasn’t just Newburgh;  it was in all the cities we traveled through.

• We could party late into the night.
• Dine by dimed light
• Go shopping at midnight
• Ride the lighted carnival light high into the sky.

With the perfection of the digital camera, I could capture that magic using the available glow from street lights.  It was easy:

• Mount the camera on a tripod
• Select the night exposure setting.
• Aim and push the button—the camera did he rest.

With a little help from PhotoShop the magic was enhanced.  This exhibit was inspired by the Thomas Alva Edison celebration scheduled for the 2013 summer solstice.  It was Edison who gave light to the night when he perfected the light bulb and built generating stations like the one in Newburgh to supply the current.His team of rivals (including George Westinghouse and Nikola Tesla) helped develop the electrical system we now enjoy.  In our area, Central Hudson supplies the power to illuminate the night.

Thank you all—this exhibition is for you.

Tom Knieser”