Luke Greer Heritage & Conservation Photography

07/06/2023

Honored to have taken the "before" photos of the Eliza House for Sharon Virts when she purchased the property for restoration.
It is one of Leesburg's most storied homes and much like Selma it found the right person to not only preserve the property, and structure, but keep the history intact as well. I love how the house looks now that it's finished and can't wait to see more of the "after" images on Selma Mansion Rebirth

I am fascinated by the 19th century, not only in my writing but also in the projects I take on. As many of you know, my first book, Masque of Honor was inspired by Selma, the historic property my husband and I restored (and our home today). Two years ago, I bought the Eliza House, another old home in dire need of restoration. I renamed the house after Eliza Thompson, the courageous woman that lived there during and after the Civil War. Recently I discovered that JW Foster, one of the heroes in my upcoming book Veil of Doubt, lived right across the street from Eliza Thompson during the time of my story. (More on that and other coincidences later!)

Over the next several months, I'll share some before & after photos of the restoration and provide some details on the process and why we made certain decisions. One of the first changes we made after buying the house was to repaint the exterior a lighter, more uplifting color. We repaired the shutters and painted them a shade lighter than the body of the house. We installed a new roof, rebuilt leaning chimneys, replaced the gutters and downspouts, and repointed the stone foundation. Rotten wood was removed and basement windows repaired. Haint blue was added to the porch ceiling and the decorative Victorian details were accentuated with pops of contrasting color. The original porch lights and beautiful wooden front door were restored as well. Overgrown shrubbery was trimmed and some of the out-of-control bushes were removed altogether and replaced with plants that would not overwhelm the house (and the sidewalk!). At some point, the lovely arched windows had been retrofitted for storm windows and the original front door trim covered with framing for a screen door. That trim was removed to allow the original architectural features of the house to shine.

I will do my best to post these Before and After collages on Thursdays (reminiscent to my Throw Back Thursday posts on my Selma Mansion Rebirth page)

[Credit for "before" photography goes to Luke Greer Heritage & Conservation Photography. All "after" photography credit belongs to Rick Martin]

02/14/2022

Honored that one of my favorite history groups here on Facebook Explorers of the Old West is currently using my Meriwether Lewis inspired photo as their cover.

A contest was held for member photos and mine was chosen.

If you like history of the old west, old photos, Native American culture, Buffalo Soldiers, and Gunfighter stories this group can be interesting and a lot of fun!

04/05/2021

Many of you know the story of Selma Mansion, both the abandonment and miraculous rebirth project which brought one of Virginia’s most exquisite historic homes back to life.
I was of course overjoyed to get a call from Sharon Virts to photograph one of Leesburg’s most well known ghost story locations- The Eliza House - on King Street.
I love that another home of Loudoun legend has ended up in the hands of owners who will not just conduct the restoration in the finest way, but who also hear and respect the stories the house tells as well.

After last minute negotiations with the owners, yesterday we purchased this 1811 beauty located in downtown Leesburg, Virginia. Formerly known as the Lynch House, we are renaming the property the Eliza House after Eliza Thompson, the woman who bravely fought a 13 year court battle for her ownership of the home after her husband was killed in the Civil War. She is also rumored to still roam the halls. And while we don’t believe in haunted houses, we do believe that the spirits of former residents often remain behind in the homes they loved. But I digress...

When I toured this house over a year ago, I knew that when the time was right, I would purchase it. After the contract was executed a few weeks ago, Scott asked me, “Why are you doing this?”

I answered him honestly. “Because I’m bored.”

While I love writing novels and enjoy my time in the studio painting, there is little that has brought me greater joy than the Selma project. And while the barn still remains to be restored, it is not the same as restoring a house. By no means is the Eliza House in the dire condition of Selma, but it suffers from years of neglect, which often happens when residents become elderly and must vacate the home they loved.

As I begin this journey, I will document the daily progress on my Selma Mansion Rebirth site. It starts today when Alex Orellano, our masonry subcontractor, visits us this afternoon to assess the work required to rebuild the chimneys and stabilize the foundation. And we’ll be talking to our friend Doug at Vanguard Contracting about replacing that roof. Carlos will be on-site daily (he was getting fat, so we need to get him healthy again, lol!). All of our restoration work will be coordinated with the town officials and in consideration of our neighbors. And while I am not at liberty to disclose our plans for the Eliza House at this time, I can assure you that our intent is not to “fix-and-flip” the house. We believe in restoring a house with the highest quality methods, materials and finishes and will be using the same care and preservation mindfulness as we used to rebuild Selma. We also believe these old homes should be restored with a sustainable long-term purpose in mind. Our hope is that our efforts will encourage others to do the same—to consider purchasing these old gems in need of a little (and often times a lot) of TLC and restore them for their own purposes instead of buying “new”. I can assure you that it’s a journey worth taking!

07/23/2020

When the designers at RosettaBooks were putting together various cover options for Masque of Honor, they initially considered using a photograph for the background. So I contacted heritage photographer Luke Greer to help them out. Unfortunately, the rules of design are such that photography and painted portraits don't mix well on book covers. But it doesn't mean I don't love Luke's photography any less.

This is my favorite - and the one that would have been used on the cover if we had gone that way. Who knows...if Masque of Honor is really popular and my publisher decides on a second edition, I might get to use this photograph after all!

If you are interested in Luke's photography, you can contact him directly at Luke Greer Heritage & Conservation Photography

Have you preordered your copy of Masque of Honor yet? https://hubs.ly/H0sS0hG0

12/17/2019

When I would photograph Selma during the final years of abandonment I would stand in these rooms, filled with a profound sense of reverence and loss for both the history and the home. As I photographed a Christmas event in the same rooms yesterday it was hard not to feel like I had stepped into the last act of "A Christmas Carol" when everything works out in the end. It's amazing how much can change for people and places when they are in the right hands.

10/28/2019

We had a great time yesterday, I enjoyed leading the nature walk and speaking about the fundamentals of nature photography at the Chapman DeMary Trail. Thank you to Purcellville Parks and Recreation, The Town of Purcellville and Amie Coxon Ware for inviting me and making it possible - also thank you to everyone who joined us for the event. The weather really cooperated and the day could not have been nicer!
Photo Credit : Amie Ware

10/17/2019

We thought we’d share a photograph taken two weeks ago by Luke Greer who’s been doing some fabulous work for us recently. Luke specializes in conservation and preservation photography. You’ll be seeing more of his artistry in the weeks ahead.

10/14/2019

"Burial Ground Drummer"
Belmont Cemetery for the Enslaved
5th Annual Freedom Celebration & Belmont Wreath-Laying Ceremony
© Luke Greer Heritage & Conservation Photography

10/03/2019

This weekend I had the honor of returning to Selma Mansion to shoot an event hosted by the Thomas Balch Library which included a presentation about the Selma Mansion Rebirth
and a reading by Sharon Virts - Author from her upcoming historical fiction novel "Masque of Honor" - both the transformation of Selma and the event were absolutely beautiful.

05/25/2019

"Sometimes waking up in the strangest of places is exactly where you need to be." This morning I found myself in the Dolly Sods of the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia. This area contains the highest plateau east of the Mississippi River.
I had not planned on taking a trip until about 20 minutes before leaving so it was the perfect way to meet a new perspective without expectations. In 1886 Local historian Hu Maxwell described this unique landscape in the Wheeling Intelligencer :
"The top of the mountain is flat, except here and there rugged ridges and huge promontories of rocks rising above the level of the plains, and giving the scene an appearance of distance and mystery that must be witnessed before it can be understood".