Go See Do Explore

Ashland

On November 21, 2016

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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Wordless Wednesday: Ashland Rose

By Ashleigh

On November 16, 2016

In Flowers, Travel

Veteran’s Day and a Battle Field

By Ashleigh

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

By Ashleigh

On November 9, 2016

In Travel, Wordless Wednesday

When a Short Trip Gets Extended

By Ashleigh

On November 7, 2016

In Travel

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

By Ashleigh

On November 2, 2016

In Michigan, Wordless Wednesday

Touring the Kentucky Bourbon Trail

By Ashleigh

On October 31, 2016

In Travel

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

By Ashleigh

On October 26, 2016

In Michigan, Wordless Wednesday

Polk Penguin Conservation Center

By Ashleigh

On October 24, 2016

In Michigan

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

By Ashleigh

On October 19, 2016

In Michigan