Break Time Is Over!

For the last month I have taken a break from blogging and tended to other business. I also squeezed in a week long trip to south Texas near Corpus Christi. However, during the last month, my cameras were not gathering dust.

We’ve had a very cold winter here in northern Minnesota which has allowed Lake Superior to freeze. The western end of the lake by Duluth has ice thick enough to walk on, which is being used by skaters, ice anglers and anyone wanting to take advantage of this rare opportunity to walk on the “Big Lake.”

Because the lake is never totally still, the ice sheet is always in motion to some degree. This creates cracks and fissures in the ice. During the full moon in February I ventured to the lake to view the moon rise and capture it along with a bit of abstract art created by the cracked ice.

Day and Night

Every year in Duluth the city creates a lighting spectacle in Bayfront Park on the harbor.  Bentleyville draws thousands of visitors from all over to witness this event and it was recently featured on The Great Christmas Light Fight!
The December full moon was on the 11th and I hoped to capture an image of the moon, Bentleyville and the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge.  After first using Photopills to scout possible vantage points to shoot from, I settled on a spot along the Superior Hiking Trail that offered a view of all three.  I went out earlier in the day to inspect the site, felt it would work well.  In the light, it seemed like it had everything I was looking for.

However, come night, it did not live up to my expectations.  It had too much foreground, the moon was higher than I had hoped for and overall, seemed to be lacking something.

Sadly, the weather the next day would be snowy and cloudy so no re-shoot was possible.  I did take one of the images and crop to a panorama that, again, not great, but fun and colorful to look at.

Lack of Preparation

In my last post I spoke of being prepared and using technology to achieve a goal.  Well, if you use your tech correctly, you probably have a better chance of succeeding.  I made the mistake of not taking in to account the height of the trees up river from where I was shooting from.  That meant I needed to be on site at least thirty or forty minutes earlier than I actually arrived.  Therefore, I did not get the shot I had planned for, but the evening was not a total loss, I did happen to be there to see the full moon rising over the river.  Sadly, I was not properly prepared for that shot, I did not have my tripod with me, I had left it in the car.  I did have my monopod though and did the best I could by bracing it against whatever I was near.  I will try again if weather permits, but at this time our forecast does not look favorable until early next week.

Serenity in the Moonlight

Location: Whitewater Lake, Fisherman’s Point Campground, Hoyt Lakes, MN.

Canon 5D Mark IV, Tamron 28-75mm, ISO 50, 28mm, f/9.0, 5min 3sec., Post in Adobe Lightroom.

Lights Everywhere

The annual Bentleyville “Tour of Lights” is in full swing in Duluth right now through December 26th.  This popular attraction draws thousands to the area and every year.  This past week the warmer than usual temperatures have made for even larger crowds.

Awareness

On September 16th and 17th, the Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth was lit in blue for Ovarian Cancer Awareness.  The full moon also got in to the act, rising up over Lake Superior and adding it’s warm glow to the surface of the lake.  And, for good measure, you have to have a ship coming under the bridge.