As I’m processing the photos I took on my Kentucky research trip, I’m realizing an important aspect of research-trip planning that I hadn’t taken into account: the time of day I visit cemeteries.
On my June 2019 trip, I visited two cemeteries I’d seen in October 2014. I took pictures in both cemeteries on both trips–there was more to discover on my second trip, since I knew more about my family tree. One thing I noticed is that my 2014 photos taken at noon at the Sacramento Cumberland Presbyterian Church are so much better than the ones I took at 6 pm in my June 2019 trip to that cemetery. (The I visited the other cemetery, Poplar Grove Cemetery, at the same both trips, about 2 pm.)
Taken 16 Sep 2014, 12:07 pm
Taken 24 June 2019, 6:04 pm
I understand there are all sorts of variables that can go into getting a great shot, but you can see that the first photo, taken on a partly cloudy day at noon, is much better than the second photo, taken on sunny June day at 6 pm. It doesn’t help that the grave marker faces east! (Since I knew I had a great shot of that grave marker, I didn’t worry much about the quality of that second photo.)
Here’s another example, of the marker for my second great uncle, Ellsworth McEuen, in the same cemetery:
Taken 16 Sep 2014, 12:35 pm
Taken 24 June 2019, 6:03 pm
On my next research trip that includes cemeteries, I will do my best to visit them when the sun is high to avoid these challenges!