July was named after the famous Roman general Julius Caesar. It was selected by the Roman Senate because Caesar was born during this month.

Richmond, Virginia

We took a road trip to see my son in Richmond, Virginia and we had a lot of fun exploring the area. On the first day I set out to find places in the city to shoot. Naturally I have always been attracted to anything very old and historic so that led me to the area known as Tobacco Row.

I found a well-preserved hand-painted advertising sign on the side of an old building in Richmond, Virginia.  This “ghost sign” is about 120 years old and was one of many painted on building walls throughout the country.  “Uneeda Biscuit” was one of the first products marketed this way by the National Biscuit Company, now known to us today as ‘Nabisco’. When was the last time that you could buy a package of ‘biscuits’ for only a nickle?

The image above is of the “Lucky Strike Factory” in what was called ‘Tobacco Row’. This area of the city underwent a massive redevelopment project which began in the early 1980s. The cigarette factory was purchased by a developer that converted the factory into sophisticated loft apartments. The factory was the last of the redevelopment project which was finished in 2016.

In most cities, old abandoned buildings fall into disrepair which attract criminal elements that further deteriorate the area communities. However in Richmond, many of the old historical buildings are very well preserved by repurposing the properties into living spaces or productive commercial properties.

The following is the Belle Isle and Richmond’s Canal Walk murals that cover a section of buildings by very talented artists.

Crescent Beach, Florida

On this particular evening, I drove to the beach with hopes of capturing a beautiful sunset. Unfortunately not every attempt is successful. I thought that the sky would have lit up to beautiful colors of red, orange and yellow, but on this evening it wasn’t meant to be.

Crescent Beach is the closest beach to where I live. The best part of this little community is the Matanzas River and the little draw bridge you have to cross to get there. These pictures were taken with the drone at sunset in an area to the south of County Road 206 bridge.

---

Every month there will be a post of images taken during the previous month. Some months may have only a few images while others will have a lot. The posts should be uploaded on or near the beginning of each month. Thank you for visiting my website.

Prints are available on fine-art paper or giclee canvas with the exception for the wall art. Drone images are limited on size due to the type of camera used. Contact me for requests and price

Click here to follow me on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/MichaelMellenPhotography

©2021 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED