Life: Through the Lens

We are so fortunate to have a group of friends who share our love of photography, and sense of adventure.  This fall we have had two weekends to explore our beautiful state, reconnecting with old friends and stretching our skills.  Here is a recap of our first weekend away this October. Day 1 - Mackinaw City First stop - the Icebreaker Mackinaw.  We loved touring the ship and seeing and hearing the history of this important part of the Great Lakes story.  The last stop on the tour was the gift shop, of course, and we were delighted to see Tyler Benson's series about Onyx, the Coastguard dog.  Such a great series of books for kids. We do not tire of visiting the beach and lighthouse, getting that familiar view of the bridge. Attempts at night photography met with mixed results, but it was so much fun watching the sunset, and seeing the stars appear in the crisp night air. I captured the big dipper, though it wasn't dar...

Hurray!  I was able to access the photos on my new point-and-shoot so can continue my comparison between iPhone photography, point-and-shoot, and a digital SLR camera.  Let the fun continue! I will admit to having purchased a higher end point-and-shoot - a Canon G7x.  So far I am loving it! First I want to know I can get strong colors.  In the photo of the Grand Hotel, above, I think it handled the colors very well - the yellow is true, as well as the color of the flags.  The flowers show up well, as well, and the white is not overly bright. In the photos below, the top one is not the "best" photo,  as the leaves were moving a bit, but it handled the contrast between the red and green well.  I do think the leaves are a bit washed out, but it cold have been a lighting issue.  Just keep shooting and see. The red on the side of the barn, below,  is very true and bright.  The sun was late in the day, so the light was quite good...

I have this lovely new point-and-shoot, but can't get the photos off of it!  Apparently wireless is the way to go now, so I have to figure out how to follow the directions that make no sense in order for that to happen.  This being said, I can't do my updated "comparison" post yet, so decided to focus on one of my favorites subjects - critters. The title of this post is Paying Attention, and that is what you really have a to do to find the little creatures who live amongst us.  You also have to be cautious, and quiet, and patient...and like to get up early.  Does this describe you?  I can be any of those characteristics, but it is so hard to do it all at once! There was a morning a couple of weeks ago where I said to my husband, "That's it!  I am getting up and going to take photos.  You are on dog duty.  Okay?"  I jumped (6:15) grabbed my camera with the close-up lens, tripod, a sweatshirt...and headed out to the field out ba...

A beautiful weekend.  Perhaps not as colorful as we have had in the past, but time in nature is time well spent.  Time with those you love, doing what you love, is a breath of fresh air in a far too busy life. Each October we try to take a photo adventure of some sort, searching out the color and beauty of our  wonderful state.  Usually it is our anniversary weekend, and this year we were just a couple of weeks early.  But we celebrate our time together whether it is on a specific date, or not. One thing we have noticed since we got the pup is that our photography has had to evolve.  No longer can we each take our time to set up shots, look for that perfect angle and have both hands free.  If we have Kaycee with us, she either has to wait in the car for us, or be part of the photo shoot!  The other option we also exercise, is one of us takes photos while the other walks the dog.  Or be her talent agent - as she draws so much attention...