These two photographs are of the lovely covered bridge on Pierce Stocking Drive located in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lake Shore. They were both made in early autumn when most of the trees were still full with green foliage. You’ll notice just a few with a bit of color change.
Whenever I’m in the Traverse City area of Michigan, I always head out to Sleeping Bear Dunes, and to Pierce Stocking Drive. It’s always beautiful no matter the time of year!
These two images are at slightly different angle from each other, and one is processed to give it a bit more of a magical feel!
Do you like one better than the other? Is it the angle, the processing, or both? I’d love to hear your thoughts! 🙂
“Through the Covered Bridge” The same beautiful covered bridge but with a bit of a magical air to it!
Well, another year is nearly over and a new adventure about to begin! As is customary as the year comes to a close, I usually bring out ten of my best images of 2014, or actually my favorite images from the year. These are not in any particular order, but as you look through them you might see a familiar theme within almost all of the images! That theme involves water.
This first image is one taken in early autumn at Miner’s Falls in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. I had tried to time my fall foliage trips to coincide with peak color. Well that didn’t always go as planned. Fall was a bit difficult to chase this year LOL!
“Miner’s Falls in October”
In this next image you’ll notice a very turbulent looking Lake Michigan. What a beautiful day that was! Forty-Fifty mile an hour winds with wild and dramatic clouds swirling by!
“As the World Turns”
During the spring I had the opportunity to go to one of my favorite locations in Pennsylvania, The Laurel Highlands. These next two images are from there. First is an area called Meadow Run. A beautiful fast running stream, that at times looks more like a river, and also like rapids.
“Meadow Run” 2
This next image is of Cucumber Falls also in the same area of PA. I really love these falls. I’ve seen them many times, during drought, moderate rain, and during periods of good rain. I think this was during a good time with a strong flow of water. Cucumber Falls is a popular place to go, but if you get there when no one else is there, it’s pure Magic!
“Dreamy Cucumber Falls”
In keeping with this theme of water, and of my search for fall color during this autumn, I made it up to Tahquamenon Falls in Paradise Michigan in the Upper Peninsula. I was rewarded with some pretty good color at the time. It wasn’t at peak, but it was beautiful!
“Tahquamenon Falls Autumn”
As you’ll see here, these are really not in chronological order at all. Below you’ll find beautiful Miner’s Castle, located in Pictured Rocks National Lake Shore. It might look like it was photographed at some point during the winter, but this was actually in late May. The Great Lakes, especially Lake Superior were still having quite a bit of ice coverage even in late spring!
“Miner’s Castle on Ice”
While in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia in early summer I had the chance to not only photograph the mountains and valleys, but also the wildflowers. This one here made a big impression on me, and as it turns out is one of the endangered wildflowers around the Blue Ridge Parkway area of Virginia.
“Gray’s Lily”
A beautiful day in the Blue Ridge Mountains, which you might say is not unusual, but on this particular trip it happened to be. I didn’t find very cooperative weather for most of the two times I was there this year. I really enjoyed the beautiful weather when I had it though!
“Blue Ridge by Daylight”
As many of you know, I usually go up to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula pretty often. If you haven’t been there, you must cross the Mackinac Bridge to get from the lower part of MI. to the UP. This beautiful bridge is a five mile long suspension bridge which crosses over the straits of Mackinac. I often photograph the bridge in the daylight, but not often at night. This image was one of many night images taken on this particular trip.
“Mackinac Reflections”
Here you’ll find a study in minimalism. A wonderful sunrise over Lake Huron. The hues were gorgeous, the color lasted for quite a long time, and gave me a time to not only spend time photographing it, but just enjoying the peaceful moment.
“Soothing”
On that note I would like to thank you all for stopping by not only for this post, but for others all through these past years!
I wish everyone much peace, blessings, and many happy moments not only behind the camera, but in all aspects of your lives!
While in the middle of processing images from last autumn, I came across many from the Sculpture Garden I visited in Minneapolis MN. appropriately called The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden! It is an 11 acre site and contains more than 40 works of art as well as a conservatory, flower gardens, and more.
This beautiful bridge is part of that garden. A sculpture or work of art in itself, and also crosses over the 16 lanes of highway and streets below. It is used as a pedestrian bridge. For which I was truly grateful!
It is called “The Irene Hixon Whitney Bridge”. The artist is a local Twin Cities based man by the name of Siah Armajani. The bridge was finished in 1988. Mr. Armajani used three types of bridge structure here. Beam, Arch, and suspension. He also commissioned a renowned American poet by the name of John Ashbery to write a poem to be a part of the structure. A meditation on movement, place, order, and crossing. The words can be seen across the upper side beams in both directions, running the full length of the structure!
On this particular early autumn day, after a quick look see at some of the sculptures, I spotted this bridge. I climbed the stairs and just stood there in awe of this structure! The geometry involved was wonderful in detail, and with the late morning sun hitting it just right, the shadows were intensely beautiful!
Thankfully there weren’t too many people there at the time, so I didn’t have to wait very long to get a nice empty bridge for this beautiful view!
This image just called out to me saying “Monochrome”. So I ended up processing it both in color and of course mono. I really love how the shadows crisscross each other in lovely geometric patterns. They really stand out! Somehow it also gives a dizzing feel when you stare down the middle!
I hope you enjoy this image. I may be bringing you more from this wonderful location!
Believe it or not. For some reason, until this year. I had never taken the time to visit Niagara Falls. I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. For sure you can see that the Canadian side is much more built up, and has a myriad of opportunities for activity, nightlife, dining, hotels etc.
What surprised me though was the raw natural beauty and the hidden gem of what used to be, but has somehow become forgotten on the american side. Although I did see some renovations going on, and some areas that looked newly renovated!
There were people there from all over the country, and the world in general. There were also a lot of Canadians coming across to get a look at the U.S. side, and to see their side from our point of view.
The image here is of the Rainbow Bridge to Canada. It was viewed from a tall platform above the Niagara River. You can get a sense of the beauty of the river, the bridge, and the activities on the Canadian side.
What you don’t see here is the immense beauty of the actual falls, and the other nature surrounding them on the U.S. side.
I’ll be giving you a taste of that sometime in the future.
During the day today, I spent many hours, as a lot of you have, watching the news about the tragedy that happened at the Boston Marathon. Following the news events on twitter which come out even faster, and watching in horror as more and more images, and information of this sad day evolved!
I want to send out my thoughts and prayers to all those people, their families, and their friends that have been affected by this days horrific events! I want to send you my best wishes, hope for better days to come, and healing to begin!
I thought I’d also take the time to express some other thoughts that I have in my mind. The way I see it, all of us on this big beautiful planet are brothers and sisters of each other. We are here to take care of each other, and to take care of this amazing planet earth and everything on it, that has been given to us as a trust.
Today’s tragic event in Boston is another one in a long line of so many injustices that have happened or are happening in cities and towns around this nation, and also around the entire world.
There have been so many recent horrific events in our own country that have happened to totally innocent people, like what happened today in Boston. This is a very sad fact!
What many people don’t realize or even think much about though, is that there are so many people around the world in other countries that are suffering beyond anything we can possibly imagine. They are being tortured and killed by their own governments. People in countries that are completely oppressed by outside forces. Whole nations of human beings that are held hostage by the raving madness of one man in charge, or by their own countries government officials.
My wish for all of us here in this country and for everyone in the entire world is to bridge the gaps we have between each other. Join together for the sake of humanity. Be brothers and sisters to each other. No matter the continent, the nation, the language, the religion, nor the color of our skin.
Extend our hands out to each other, cross the bridges and come together as human beings to help overcome the injustices that abound both here in this country, and around the world.
I see this image below of a bridge across a river as the bridge we can use to cross and join forces with each other, for the good of all mankind!
I see the reflections in the water as the reflections of life. Reflections of different people’s lives from all around the world.
The colors of the foliage in the many trees represents the colors of skin, the different religions, the beauty of the worlds languages, and all other differences you can think of.
We are the world. We are beautiful! We can work together to help solve the problems of humanity, even if it be as little as one leaf at a time. One word of comfort, one hug, one beautiful photo, one kindness.
We are not lost, it is not too late! With each adversity we have the ability to become stronger and closer, but we have to also try to bridge the gap of ignorance that exists, and embrace the beauty of the people and countries in this wonderful world around us!
I extend my hand, my heart, my prayers and my thoughts to all those who are suffering both here, and around the world tonight, and in the future!
This image is called “Bridging the Huron”, but for tonight I think it shall be called “Bridging the Gap”
