By Vicki Priest
Seriously now, who wouldn’t agree that mixing Peeps in with our local history just isn’t the best thing since sticky buns? We want you, YOU (or your older kids), to have fun taking a photo of those squishy or stuffed peeps with an old building or structure. Photos may be “photo-shopped” or filtered, they can be of a scanned old post card with peeps inserted digitally (for example), they can be a close-up of a peep next to a really nice detail (inside or outside) of a historic building or structure, they can have props, etc. Get your creative juices flowing!
The conditions of the contest are that the historic subject must be at least 50 years old and be from Port Huron, Port Huron Township, Marysville, or Fort Gratiot Township. Also, one entry per person. The deadline is April 13th. The entries will be posted at phahpa.org and open for comments for a week before judging; winners will be announced on April 20th. Prizes are from local establishments, and the Port Huron Area History & Preservation Association is super grateful for their donations (please support local businesses that donate in support of local history and preservation!): Enter Stage Right, Kate’s Downtown, and State Perceptory. Go to phahpa.org for details (specifically, https://phahpa.org/2019/03/03/peeps-in-local-history-contest/).
Below are some examples (one is a “don’t”). We have a lot of fun and creative things in mind, but don’t want to spoil someone’s idea by posting all of them prior to the contest.
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Here is a simple one that highlights the small details of a 1932 building, specifically the entryway of the “Single Keeper’s Dwelling” on the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse grounds. But, it’s hard to see those details. If I had access to the building, a more fun and more educational approach would be to have the peep looking out the window (from the inside), and taking the photo of both the upper door area and the details above the door. That probably could’ve been taken from the stoop, and so closer to the desired details. Just something to think about when taking your photos.
Below is an image that was not photo-shopped, but filtered. The peeps and other figure were placed in front of an enlarged old photo (of the west Military Street area south of the bridge, about 1905 or so). The photo was black & white, and the peeps colorful. To make it all look old and blended, I used an “old photo” filter,
A very different looking example of a filtered photo, even though the original was similar to the one above. Midnight Peeps:
Two photo-shopped examples are below. The “wanted” poster is a fun thing from ipiccy.com, with the image inserted into the center.
And finally, an example of what wouldn’t be the best kind of entry. While we may have a hard time not focusing our attention on the special people in our lives, the historic structures are what is important here. In this image, only a very small part of the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse can be seen. The peep is good, the man is handsome, the filter is fun, but the focus needs to be on local history and historic architecture. Have fun!
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Vicki is founder and president of the Port Huron Area History & Preservation Association, a newer nonprofit dedicated to researching and sharing the regional history of Port Huron, Port Huron Township, Fort Gratiot Township, and Marysville, and assisting with the preservation of properties and neighborhoods for the good of all area residents. She holds the degrees of Master of History and Bachelor of Anthropology, and worked in the related fields of archaeological and historical resources management while in California. She also found gratification working as a Victim Specialist, assisting persons who suffered domestic violence, for some years. Having a son, she became acquainted with video games and plays certain story- and action-driven franchises when she wants to forget about daily concerns; Vicki is known to fall into giggle fits, or wield a crossbow or gauss rifle equally deftly, in the immersive stories. She has published poetry and pieces on history, Christianity, and video games.
