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Travel by Any Means Necessary

Author: Ashleigh Page 77 of 94

Veteran’s Day and a Battle Field

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On November 14, 2016

In Michigan, National Parks & Places

This weekend, we decided to take a Pure Michigan trip to Monroe. We’ve wanted to visit the River Raisin National Battlefield for some time now, and we figured Veteran’s Day was as good of a time as ever to pay homage to those who died for our freedom. The River Raisin is the only National Battlefield in the country from the War of 1812.

The Battle of the River Raisin took place one morning in January 1813. British, Canadian, and Indian troops attacked the sleeping American soldiers .220 Americans were killed and 147 were captured. After the battle, “Remember the Raisin” became the battle cry that convinced more men to enlist in the Kentucky Militia and support the war efforts (NPS and Wiki).

About the Photo:
For being a photography blog, this was not a very photogenic location. Like you might imagine with a battlefield, it was quite flat and was definitely lacking foreground subjects so I left the camera in the car. But, when I realized this would be a good blog post, I pulled out the phone and took a RAW photo. Basic edits were done with Lightroom Mobile.

Camera Gear:
iPhone 7 shot in RAW with Lightroom Mobile

Date Taken:
November 12, 2016

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. To your visit to the River Raisin National Battlefield, visit The National Park Service.

Wordless Wednesday: Fall on the Natural Bridge

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On November 9, 2016

In Travel, Wordless Wednesday

On Top of The Natural Bridge

When a Short Trip Gets Extended

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On November 7, 2016

In Travel

Fall on a Mountain

Last week, I mentioned visiting Kentucky and touring Bourbon Distilleries. Well, our trip didn’t end there. After visiting Wild Turkey on Saturday, our car started making a clunking sound when the steering wheel was turned. We planned on visiting Natural Bridge State Park, but with our car in this state, we decided we would have to skip it. Luckily, our friends drove us around Lexington on Sunday when the Kia Dealer was closed. First thing Monday, we headed to Car City Kia. We waited for awhile, when finally the service manager came out and told us that our car was not drive-able and they wouldn’t have the parts to fix it until Tuesday. We were supposed to go back to work on Tuesday, so this put a bit of a wrench in our plans. Luckily, she explained, this was related to a recall that we had repaired this summer, so through Kia’s trip interruption coverage, they would cover our rental car, our hotel, and food for the night. So, we got an extra day in Lexington on Kia’s dime, they fixed the car, and we were able to make it to Natural Bridge after all!

About this Photo:
The hike to the Natural Bridge involves climbing an elevation of 420 feet. This photo was taken about a quarter of the way up on the Balanced Rock Trail (which is the steepest trail in the park and a reminder that research is important before any photography adventure) looking back over where we had come from. Even though it was the beginning of November, fall colors seemed to be at their peak this past week in Kentucky.

Camera Gear
Nikon D3100 with 18-55 Kit Lens, handheld

Date Taken
October 31, 2016

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. To plan your visit to The Natural Bridge, visit Kentucky State Parks.

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Wordless Wednesday: Butterfly on Branch

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On November 2, 2016

In Michigan, Wordless Wednesday

Butterfly on a Branch

Touring the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

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On October 31, 2016

In Travel

Bottles at Buffalo Trace

This past weekend, Chris and I decided to take a little last-minute trip down to Kentucky. Chris has been talking about going to a Bourbon distillery for quite some time, so I knew we would spend some time on the Bourbon Trail. First, we stopped at Chris’ favorite, Buffalo Trace. They offer a free tour that tells the story of Kentucky Bourbon at the longest continually operating distillery. I really enjoyed that this tour wasn’t all about Bourbon, it also gave a nice history of the area. Afterwards, we headed to Wild Turkey. For $10 per person, we rode a shuttle around the modern distillery and learned about the bourbon making process. I recommend both tours. Both of them included samples, although you do get more at Turkey Hill and the Turkey Hill Tour also included a rocks glass.

About the Photo:
This shot was actually taken with my iPhone 7 in HDR mode. I did basic edits and converted it to black and white in Lightroom Mobile. I uploaded it to Instagram and it blew up quickly. Before we even started the next tour, it had already received over 200 likes, making it my most popular picture on Instagram. It was taken in the hand bottling room at Buffalo Trace.

Camera Gear:
iPhone 7 in HDR mode. I meant to shoot in RAW but I forgot to open Lightroom ahead of time and with how fast this part of the tour was going, I was worried I’d miss my shot if I tried to open it. Apple, if you’re reading this, thank you for adding RAW photography to iOS 10. For the next step, please add RAW functionality to the native camera app. Thanks in advance!

Date Taken:
October 29, 2016

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. To plan your Kentucky Bourbon Tour, visit BourbonCountry.com.

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Wordless Wednesday: Hoppin’ Kangaroos

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On October 26, 2016

In Michigan, Wordless Wednesday

Hoppin Kangaroos

Polk Penguin Conservation Center

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On October 24, 2016

In Michigan

Penguin Friend

I’m sure by now I have expressed my love of the new Polk Penguin Conservation Center at the Detroit Zoo a lot, but every time I visit, I am blown away! I don’t know if its because this is still a relatively new habitat for the penguins, but they actually seem interested in the people they see on the other side of the glass. During this visit, a child had a stuffed penguin and the live penguin was fascinated by it. Wherever the the toy went, the real penguin followed. I don’t know how that family was ever able to leave their new penguin friend.

About the photo:
What I love most about this photo is the story it tells. Its not the most artistic picture, but it highlights what goes on between both sides of the glass. The toughest thing about this photo was framing in a way that I didn’t get the children’s faces.

Photo Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 55-200 kit lens, handheld

Date Taken:
August 11, 2016

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. To plan your trip to the Detroit Zoo, visit Detroitzoo.org.

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Wordless Wednesday: River Otter

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On October 19, 2016

In Michigan

River Otter

Kangaroos

By

On October 17, 2016

In Michigan

Kangaroo PortraitDuring a visit to the Detroit Zoo this summer, I asked one of the volunteers at the Outback Adventure when the Kangaroos are the most active because I ever time I visit in the summer, the kangaroos are all asleep in the shade. What she should’ve said was come back in the fall. We visited the zoo again this past weekend so Chris could experience the new penguin exhibit. We got to the river otter and he was swimming around and having fun. I knew this was a good sign because in the heat of the summer, I never even saw him. So, as we walked towards the back of the park, my hopes were rising that I might get some interesting kangaroo photos. I love the Kangaroo (and wallaby) exhibit, The Outback Adventure, because once you enter the exhibit, there are no cages, no big ditches separating you from the marsupials. They ask you to stay on the path, but the kangaroos can hop right up to you. Have you ever seen a kangaroo hop? I never knew their tail was involved, but it seemed like that’s where they get the power for their long hops!

About the Photo:
If you’re new to photography, a trip to the zoo is a great, low stakes, time to learn to shoot in manual. After shooting my first wedding (an outdoor ceremony with changing light conditions), I realized that I should not always be relying on Aperture Priority mode. So, I used this as a time to practice shooting in manual. I knew I would need a fast shutter speed to be able to freeze any kangaroo movement (1/320) because of that, I had my lens as wide as it would go and I still had to up my ISO to 800 even though it was the middle of the day. I kind of wish I could’ve kept those fast lenses we rented for that wedding.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 55-200 kit lens, handheld

Date Taken:
October 15, 2015

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! To see inside my camera bag, check out my Gear Page. To plan your trip to the Detroit Zoo, visit DetroitZoo.org.

Wordless Wednesday: Fall on the Farm

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On October 12, 2016

In Michigan

Fall on the Farm

Page 77 of 94

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