Deering Estate

The Deering Estate at Cutler is a 444-acre preserve at the edge of Biscayne Bay south of Miami. It was the winter home of the Deering family for 70 years before the property and its historic buildings were acquired by the state and Miami-Dade County in the mid-1980s. Now open to tours and nature walks, the estate offered an opportunity to try shooting two subjects I don't often seek out: interiors and nature.

The Beaux Arts home that Charles Deering built in the early 20th century has remained largely unchanged since his death in 1927. Largely empty of furniture, the ballroom and other interior spaces all incorporate natural elements in some way. The ceilings of the ballroom and exterior passageways incorporate shells and ocean imagery, while humidity bends the light from electric lamps. Lush views of palms and pine-rockland habitat through upstairs windows fill rooms now empty of anything except artwork on the walls.

An 18mm-55mm lens gave me a wider perspective than I do with the 50mm prime lens I normally use, allowing me to capture some of the vistas unique to the estate -- specifically the water and the imperiled pine-rockland and tropical hardwood hammock, accessible only from specific paths.  

Golden orb spiders, suspended in a large web, guarded the entrance to one nature trail. They're not poisonous, but they're intimidating; the large one was roughly  the size of my palm. 

JKay