Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

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smulnik
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Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by smulnik »

Hi All,
Today, 3 July, is the grand opening for the new renovations at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. So I thought I'd share some photos from past and present.

Earlier this Spring, I was on the job hunt and ran across a Summer job vacancy at the Arch. Even though it was only a temp job and a bit outside of my profession, I thought it would be really cool to get to work at the Arch, especially with the new museum opening up, so I took it. It's been a busy couple of months getting things ready for the grand opening. Time has been flying by. For the first few weeks I was working the 5:00 am to 1:30 pm shift which involved taking care of the visitor area at the top of the Arch, along with the Arch trams and transport area. Now I'm on the late evening shift, taking care of the new entrance and museum. Yes, I can now actually tell people that I work nights at the museum. :)

Sig

Reporting for work at the new entrance at 4:30 am.
The Arch crews do more before 6:30 am than most Marines do all day. (Sorry guys. :D )
RX100M4, 9mm, F 1.8, 1/50, ISO 3200
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View of the Old Court House from inside the new Arch entrance, at about 8:00 pm.
Cell phone camera
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View of the new entrance and Old Court House from the top of the Arch, 6:30 am.
Cell phone camera
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Last edited by smulnik on Tue Jul 03, 2018 5:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by smulnik »

View of the Arch and the old entrances at the bottom of the legs. FYI: The doorways at the legs are now "exit only".
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sury
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by sury »

Fantastic sets Sig. Loved both of them. Seeing the perspective of a photog working on site (no pun intended)
is very interesting at the least. Thank you.
In the first photo, is the Arch without cladding?

Sury
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ValeryD
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by ValeryD »

Nice!
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by David Kilpatrick »

Fascinating. We used a photo taken by Richard Kilpatrick when he visited in the 1990s, remember it was a 645 transparency from Fuji 645SW - the one with the fixed 45mm wide-angle lens. Had no idea it was something you could go inside, thought it was just a sculpture installation!

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aster
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by aster »

This is just beautifully shot, Sig. :)

So, it's possible to get inside and to the top too...the arch has such a small section in some segments that visually it makes it hard to believe that.
Your photography approach in all shots are excellent though. All very pleasing ...

Thank you for sharing,
Yildiz
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by smulnik »

Thanks for the comments, everybody! :)
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by smulnik »

sury wrote: In the first photo, is the Arch without cladding?
The cladding is there. The Arch was built in block sections (like Legos) with its stainless steel skin already applied to each piece. The appearance of the stainless steel skin varies depending on the weather, angle of the sun, and time of day. On cloudy days it can have a matted grey color. On crystal clear days it can look like a mirror and reflect the blue color of the sky. But at night it almost always looks like it's covered in shiney tin foil, due to the reflected lights of the city.

Sig
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

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David Kilpatrick wrote:Fascinating. We used a photo taken by Richard Kilpatrick when he visited in the 1990s...
I hope he enjoyed his visit. There's a lot to see in the St. Louis area but it all seems to be at/or just beyond the perimeter of the city, which means a person has to hunt for all of it.
David Kilpatrick wrote: ...remember it was a 645 transparency from Fuji 645SW - the one with the fixed 45mm wide-angle lens.
I must admit that I'm not that knowledgeable about the vast array of cameras out there. :? I had to look up the 645. It seems that it would be very effective for photographing something like the Arch.
David Kilpatrick wrote: Had no idea it was something you could go inside, thought it was just a sculpture installation!
Most people are surprised that you can go inside and take a ride to the top. It can be a thrill for some people, but for others... just the thought of going up is terrifying. There's usually a wait to get on the trams to go up, but the museum keeps everyone entertained as they wait. Personally, I prefer visiting the museum over going the top.
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

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aster wrote: So, it's possible to get inside and to the top too...the arch has such a small section in some segments that visually it makes it hard to believe that.
I agree that it's hard to believe! However, the Arch is much bigger than it appears to be in the photos. The top of the Arch can easily fit 40 people (about one full tram load). It's estimated that the top can hold up to 160 visitors. I've never been up there with that many people. I would think that would be a little snug, so I don't think that they would allow more than that.
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

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Close up of the observation windows at the top of the Arch. Someone is using their cell phone to take a photo through one of them.
A99, 500mm Mirror Reflex, F8, 1/2500, ISO 1250.
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The visitor/observation area at the top of the Arch at 6:30 am before opening to the public. The white panels on the wall indicate the topmost section of the Arch.
Cell phone camera
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A display of an actual tram car used to transport visitors to the top of the Arch. Each tram (one at each Arch leg) consists of 8 cars.
A99, 24-70 ZA, F4.5, 1/200, ISO 6400.
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by smulnik »

The tram cars parked in the maintenance area just below the leg and just above the visitor boarding station. I lost about 10 pounds of weight from spending 4 weeks of running up and down those stairs every morning. :)
Cell phone camera (It's rather dark in this area, and the camera couldn't cope. :( Wished I had my RX100M4 with me.)
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One of the tram boarding stations which are about 40 feet beneath the Arch legs.
Cell phone camera
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A view of the horizion from the top of the Arch.
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aster
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by aster »

Hi Sig; :)

Thanks for these explanations and photos that clarify how it actually is possible to be at the top of the arch. Feels a little adventurous the whole cars-going-up the arch tram journey. :)

You did a good thing getting this summer job, in my humble opinion; how else would we see your beautiful shots and hear of the structural and visitors' side of the facts?

Thank you.

Yildiz
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sury
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by sury »

Agree with Yildiz. We are the beneficiaries of your summer stint. Thank you for those detailed shots and explanations.
Thank you also for the explanation.

Sury
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smulnik
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Re: Gateway Arch - Saint Louis

Unread post by smulnik »

Some black and blue shots from a few years back, using the A100 with the 16-80 ZA DT.
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