Locations in the Miami area

[Hassle Vlad]

I am travelling to Miami next week and will have a day to take pictures. Does anyone have ideas or recommendations for what to seek out, given this limited time? To narrow things down, my main interests are old neighborhoods and their vernacular architecture, in B&W. Ideally I would like to get into some good pre-WW2 neighborhoods or commercial areas. My ignorance of Miami is as total as my ignorance of Spanish. (I searched this site and the only information about Miami concerned Clyde Butcher and the cypress swamps.)

Thanks very much.

[Doug Dolde]

I'd try South Beach myself. It's a small area and easy to expore in a day.

[darr]

" Ideally I would like to get into some good pre-WW2 neighborhoods or commercial areas. My ignorance of Miami is as total as my ignorance of Spanish. (I searched this site and the only information about Miami concerned Clyde Butcher and the cypress swamps.)"

That's about all there was here pre WWII, cyprus swamps that is, Clyde moved here later I think in the 80's. Seriously with only one day in tow and shooting LF, Miami can be a difficult place to shoot and feel safe if you do not know the area. There are a lot of non English speaking illegals without work lurking around. I live south of Miami in the agricultural area called Redland at the tip of the Everglades. The Everglades Park is currently re-opening some of the better areas since the hurricanes. There are areas full of hurricane debris that has not been picked up yet that would not make good looking photos. I was in Miami Beach a few weeks ago and what a mess! They are in the middle of re-building some of the hotels that got hit and not only did it look like a mess, but getting through some of the streets was about impossible. At the moment a good percentage of the structures here are under blue tarps. If architecture is what you are after with only one day available, I would take the day and visit South Beach as already mentioned. Besides that, I would say the Everglades National Park would be a better choice, but without the architecture of course.

[Ed Richards]

I will also be in the area in May, with time to spend in the Everglades and the Keys - can you give me some additional info on what is happening with the Everglades park? Anything exciting to shoot in the Keys?

[jeff_5604]

Check out Coral Gables and maybe parts of Coconut Grove. These are old neighborhoods that are relatively safe and still have a lot of the old architecture. Keep in mind that before WWII, homes did not have air conditioning, so the older areas were all built near the water to catch a decent breeze. Stay away from South Beach, its cheesy, overbuilt and a pain in the ass. Head north to Miami Beach, Bal Harbour, Venetian Causway area, you'll still find some older buildings that have escaped the wrecking balls. If you have the time, venture up to Ft Lauderdale and the Palm Beaches as well.

Also go to your local bookstore and browse the photography books, there have been many books published on old Florida.

Jeff

[Michael Ervolina]

In addition to South Beach and the Everglades, there are many neat places in Miami for photography.

For an outstanding architecture experience, I recommend Vizcaya, http://www.vizcayamuseum.org/. It is a beautiful home build from 1916-1925. It is a park, so with large format you may have to inquire about photography. I went there a few years ago with my Hasselblad and no one said a word.

From there go to Coral Gables, a nice pre-WW2 area of Miami with beautiful homes http://www.coralgables.com/ and my favorite hotel, the Biltmore http://www.biltmorehotel.com/, built in 1926.

Good luck and good shooting.

[Joseph O'Neil]

Drive to the Keys man, drive to the Keys. a million shooting opportunites down there.
joe

[Ed Richards]

Tell me more about the Keys - I will be on Key Largo for several days as a base for exploring the rest of the keys.

[Wayne Crider]

Besides Viscaya there is the Ancient Spanish Monastery: http://www.spanishmonastery.com/

Things were much prettier before the Hurricane. More grown foliage and tree's. For a single day I'd go to Viscaya $12, and maybe cruise around the Coconut Grove neighborhoods. There is also on second thought the Chihuly show at the Fairchild Tropical Gardens. http://www.fairchildgarden.org/

[Hassle Vlad]

Thanks so much for the thoughtful suggestions, especially regarding the hurricane damage.

[Donald Brewster]

See if you can rustle up Al Kaplan on the Leica Forum on photo.net. He have some good ideas for you. As mentioned above, the South Beach area is pretty compact and it has been gussied up quite a bit. Gets crowded, but you'd probably have the mornings in relative peace -- it is a late to bed late to rise kind of place.