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Category: Michigan Page 24 of 37

Fort Wilkins – Protecting the Copper Country

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On December 19, 2016

In Michigan, Project: State Parks

Fort Wilkins B&W

During our summer road trip, we spent a day at the tip of the Keewenaw Peninsula, in Copper Harbor. One notable site in Copper Harbor is historic Fort Wilkins. I’ve visited a few forts in my travels from Fort Michilmackinac in Mackinac City  and Fort Zachary Taylor in Key West to Castillo de San Marcus in St. Augustine and there was something about For Wilkins that felt different. There are no stone barricades meant to keep enemies from invading. The buildings of Fort Wilkins look like small houses. This is because this fort was not built for war, but instead to assist the law enforcement in the Keewenaw. When copper was discovered in the upper peninsula, it was anticipated to bring lawlessness and chaos like the gold rush in California, but the miners that came were well behaved. When The Mexican American War broke out, the soldiers moved down to Texas and the fort was abandoned. After the Civil War, it was reoccupied to serve as a place for soldiers to serve out the rest of their enlistment. In 1923, the fort and nearby lighthouse became a Michigan State Park.

About the Photo:
With this photo, I was trying to go for an old-timey postcard feel.  This is a single RAW exposure, edited in Lightroom. I tried a bunch of different presets and none of them really did was I was trying to do, so I converted it to black and white and then did color and contrast adjustments until I got the photo you see above.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 18-55mm kit lens, handheld

Date Taken:
June 28, 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.

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Wordless Wednesday: Fishtown Black & White

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On December 14, 2016

In Michigan

Fishtown B&W

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

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On December 12, 2016

In Michigan

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Its that time of year, Christmas music is playing on the radio, the temperature is dropping, and snow is beginning to fall. This past weekend, we got our first big snow of the year in Michigan. I love photographing the freshly fallen snow, when it sticks to the trees and transforms the whole landscape into a world of white.

About the Photo:
One of the toughest things about photographing the snow is how cold it can get. Cold air is not good for cameras (or any electronics, really), so I had to make this shoot quick. The camera doesn’t understand all the white in snowscapes, so that can make photographing snow scenes tricky. It is important to shoot in RAW so you can make nondestructive edits in Lightroom.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 19-55mm kit lens, handheld

Date Taken:
November 21, 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.

Wordless Wednesday: Memorial Falls

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On December 7, 2016

In Michigan, Wordless Wednesday

Memorial Falls Scenery

Downpour at the Falls

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On December 5, 2016

In Hiking, Michigan, Project: State Parks

Falls in the Rain

During my summer road trip series, I shared about our day of chasing waterfalls between Munising and Sault Ste. Marie. What I don’t think I mentioned was how, when we got to Tahquamenon Falls, clouds had rolled in. We climbed all the steps to the Upper Falls and it began to sprinkle. People started heading out in droves. We headed to the Lower Falls and that is when the clouds opened up. We’re not the type to be afraid of a little rain, but I was getting concerned about our gear, so we headed into the gift shop and hoped it would pass soon. Cell signal is not great up there, so I wasn’t able to view the radar. After hiding out for about 15 minutes it seemed to let off a little, so we staked out a spot by the falls and as quickly as we could, got a couple of shots then ran to the car to dry off.

About the Photo:
To be honest, this was such a quick, don’t let the rain ruin my gear, kind of shot that I didn’t put much thought to the settings. Because of the rain, the colors were very muted and not very interesting, so I converted it to black and white in Lightroom.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 55-200 kit lens, leaned on the railing

Date Taken
June 30, 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 Tahquamenon Falls (hopefully without the downpour), visit the Michigan DNR.

Wordless Wednesday: Fire

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On November 30, 2016

In Michigan

Fire

Finding Inspiration in the Changing Seasons

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On November 28, 2016

In Michigan, Photo Tips

Tiger

I don’t know about you, but this time of year, I always lose motivation. The trees are bare and the temperatures are cold. I’ve been making a point to take my camera with me when I go out and I don’t even pick it up. I have been using this lack of inspiration as an excuse to organize my lightroom catalog. I’ve been going through my old photos and making sure everything has a star rating and proper keywords. One good thing about doing this is I stumbled upon some good shots I didn’t know I had. This shot of a tiger is one of those I discovered. How have I not posted this before? Hopefully, soon I will be snapping pics of the Christmas tree and holiday festivities, but for now, rediscovered old photos is keeping me occupied.

About the Photo:
As this shot was from 2 summers ago, I really can’t tell you much about my thought process when I took it. It was a single RAW exposure with basic edits done in Lightroom.

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

Date Taken:
July 22, 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.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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On November 24, 2016

In Michigan, Wordless Wednesday

20160306-20160306-DSC_0453

Ashland

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On November 21, 2016

In Michigan

Ashland

It was Tuesday, we were supposed to be back in Michigan and at work, but our car was in the shop in Lexington. I searched TripAdvisor (if you don’t use TA when you’re traveling, you are missing out on hidden gems and real travelers opinions) for things to do in Lexington. I saw Ashland, The Henry Clay estate was highly rated, and as Clay is one of Chris’ distant relatives, we decided to check it out and take the tour.  As Clay divided his time between Kentucky and Washington, his home was built in the federalist style (think, the Capitol Building). Interestingly, after Henry Clay’s death, his son James and family rebuilt the house and made it more ornate than his father’s home. After James’ death, Ashland bounced between various family members. At one point, the home was a dorm for the University of Kentucky.

About the Photo:
I am definitely getting to the point where I am feeling my entry level gear. I took this shot with my kit lens and all the finagling I could do in Lightroom couldn’t fully correct the distortion from the lens. This was shot in RAW with basic edits and black and white conversion done in Lightroom.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 18-55 kit lens, handheld

Date Taken:
November 1, 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 Ashland, visit HenryClay.org.

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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.

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