Bloody Pond at Shiloh

The pond known as the Bloody Pond during the Battle of Shiloh in the Civil War.

According to the stories of the Battle of Shiloh, soldiers came to this pond to drink and to bathe their wounds during the fighting. And according to the stories, the fighting was so fierce that the water eventually became stained by the blood of the soldiers coming to it, which is how it got the name of the Bloody Pond.

Some doubt that the story of a blood-stained pond is actually true. But in either case, the fighting was indeed fierce at Shiloh, and the loss of life was great for both sides. A visit to the park is sometimes a sober reminder of just how serious, and uncivil, the Civil War actually was.

Because of the seriousness of the battle, I decided to go with a muted color scheme here instead of the usual bright colors that I normally use. In fact, at first I had processed this with bright blues and greens.

But the bright colors just didn’t seem right for such a serious subject.

About the shot:
A single RAW exposure, processed in Adobe Lightroom. Read more about the photo software and gear I use at the camera gear page.
Camera: Canon EOS 60D
Lens: Sigma 10-20mm