From the shores of Lake Michigan: Lake Shore Grass at Sunrise

Tree at DawnNorth Dunes Nature Preserve You find yourself on the western shore of Lake Michigan. What do you do? You go catch yourself a sunrise! Living in Buffalo, NY provides for beautiful sunsets over Lake Erie. However, no sun rising from the wet bed of a Great Lake.

And I am very partial to sunrises over sunsets. While I am sure I have more reasons for that than I can think of right now, I believe it is mostly due to the quiet solitude a sunrise can offer. Sunsets just can't match that. Sunsets at beautiful locations are heavily attended and heavily photographed, which for me takes some of the magic away.

Getting up early in the morning during the spring, summer, and fall months is not something too many people are willing to do. And that buys an advantage to those that do, and that is perfectly fine with me.

And so it was this morning. Alarm clock set for 5:45 a.m., which actually was not bad at all compliments of the late September. The sky was still pitch black and the ground was wet indicating it recently stopped raining. Not the best confidence builder. As I drove north the sky started to brighten up ever so slightly in the east. And when it showed enough light to actually illuminate the sky it was covered with a heavy cloud layer instilling even more doubts, and hope. That dual feeling that clouds before sunrise and sunset brings. Without clouds the events can easily lose most of their magic. With clouds, the sky can be on fire with a one of a kind show. With too many clouds, there may be no sunset or sunrise.

Saluting the SunriseNorth Dunes Nature Preserve

Saluting the Sunrise, North Dunes Nature Preserve, Lake Michigan, Zion - Chicago, IL

At this point there was no more decision making though. My decision was made when the alarm went off and I got up. At this point it was just a matter of what I'd witness and whether or not I'd be able to capture some natural magic in photographs.

Western Glow of SunriseNorth Dunes Nature Preserve Another thing I was wondering was whether I'd even make it to my location of choice. North Dunes Nature Preserve is open sunrise to sunset. Would the gate be open? Or would I be stuck finding a risky parking spot and walking further than planned possibly running out of time for being in the right place at the right time?

As I headed east on the final leg of my approach I had first one reason to smile, and a few minutes later a second one. The clouds on the horizon parted and the sky started showing some beautiful subtle glow. And yes, the gate was open! Not by much but it was open. The ranger was just a little past the   gate at the first parking lot working on opening the whole preserve. 

After parking, I set up my tripod by a little marsh pond and worked on the intended shot. Once I ran out of compositional ideas I looked around and as often happens to me when I keep my eyes open, several photographs presented themselves. I really liked the trees of the preserve standing tall against the colorful dawn sky!

Couple of them stood as stark silhouettes agains the eastern sky and I tried to find the best angle to do their beauty justice. Then, I turned around to see what the sun was up to in the other direction. And look, there were those beautiful pastel colors in the sky and another tree calling my name. The colors were more subtle and the tree was not a silhouette as I stood where the light was coming from. I did my tripod dance and settled on what you see in the last photo here, a low perspective, with the grass also reaching for the sky. As a final tweak of the scene I played with the aperture always keeping the tree in a sharp focus but varying the depth of field rendering the grass more or less out of focus.

And there you have it, a photographic trio of trees from a gorgeous morning on Lake Michigan. A memorable morning undisturbed by others, moments I had to myself. Another photographer showed up shortly after sunrise and and another moments later but that did not matter to me. For the magic moments of the daybreak it was me with my thoughts and the nature putting on a show. Thank you!

Enjoy the beauty that surrounds you! (#etbtsy)

Do you enjoy reading my photography blog? Would you like to see more landscape photographs from places beyond Western New York? Visit my Travel Photography gallery and enjoy! Please, let me know if you have any questions about any photo products offered, or not offered, I will be happy to help! For a quick reference to all photo galleries and collections as well as all photo products currently offered through my site, please, visit the Products page.

Do you like my free content but are not ready to buy a photograph for your walls yet? Using my links to do your shopping helps me share more photographs and write the stories behind them. And it costs you nothing. You just need to start your shopping by clicking on an advertised product or use the Amazon search box in bottom left. It does not matter what you eventually buy as long as you start here. I truly appreciate each purchase, no matter how small. Thank you!

Local Train in Moravian WildernessThe Brno - Uhersky Brod route near the village of Nemotice Previously from the Czech Republic: Of Trains & Stations, A Stroll through Moravian Countryside, Sunset Stroll through Southern Moravian Countryside, Rolling Hills and Poppy Fields, There are as many pubs as there are poppy seeds ..., More Travel Treasures, Drying Garlic, Treasures of Travels, The Power of Simplicity (of the iPhone), Take Me Home, Country Road ..., Sound of Music Induced Moment of Nostalgia, Travel in Space & Time, Of Trains & Stations, Rock Cities, Mills, History, and More, All About the Rolling Hills, An Irresistible Urge to Stop, Czech Countryside, Trains through the Moravian Countryside

Transportation makes for interesting photo subjects for me, whether it comes to planes, ships, or trains. And trains are the subject of today's post. This particular day, there were several benefits to the train chasing. I had an opportunity to spend time with my dad on a really long walk, we both had a chance to enjoy the rolling hills of the Southern Moravian countryside, and yes, we both tried to catch a train or two in our photographs.

Entering the S-CurveThe Brno - Uhersky Brod route near the village of Nemotice Banking through the TurnThe Brno - Uhersky Brod route near the village of Nemotice

Enjoy the beauty that surrounds you! (#etbtsy)

Do you enjoy reading my photography blog? Would you like to see more landscape photographs from places beyond Western New York? Visit my Travel Photography gallery and enjoy! Please, let me know if you have any questions about any photo products offered, or not offered, I will be happy to help! For a quick reference to all photo galleries and collections as well as all photo products currently offered through my site, please, visit the Products page.

Do you like my free content but are not ready to buy a photograph for your walls yet? Using my links to do your shopping helps me share more photographs and write the stories behind them. And it costs you nothing. You just need to start your shopping by clicking on an advertised product or use the Amazon search box in bottom left. It does not matter what you eventually buy as long as you start here. I truly appreciate each purchase, no matter how small. Thank you!

Lensless 4"x5" by CargillBehind the Scenes Previously on pinhole photography: A New Chapter, a New Book - Pinhole Photography, Film Pinhole Photography, Seaside Pinhole Photography, Lake Erie Lakeshore on Pinhole, Erie Basin Marina on Pinhole, Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day 2017, The Final Six, Large Format Pinhole, Large Format Pinhole by Cargill Pool Grain Elevator

I wanted to squeeze another test in before updating my technique. And what better place to take the new large format pinhole camera to than the iconic Cargill Pool Grain Elevator on Buffalo's outer harbor?

Despite shooting black and white I timed my visit for sunset. I did not intend to include the sunset itself in the photo but wanted to take advantage of the beautiful intense light  the grain elevator is bathed in by the setting sun. I wow, did the sun put on a show!

The pair of images here is also a great study of the angle of view of different devices. As you can see, the iPhone struggled fitting the scene in and I would have had to back up from my selected spot to make sure the elevator roof fit it. The 24mm lens on my DSLR fit things in nicely, and you can see the effect of the super wide angle of the 4"x5" pinhole (its focal length is equal to a 50mm lens on a large format 4"x5" camera, equivalent to about 14mm on the 35mm / full frame format).

Cargill on Lensless 4"x5"Gallagher Beach, Buffalo, NY

Cargill Pool Grain Elevator on Lensless 4"x5" Pinhole Camera, Gallagher Beach, Buffalo, NY

For this photo, I scanned it in, inverted from the paper negative, and had to use a bit of rotation to correct the tilted horizon as I was not careful enough and kicked the tripod just as I was opening the shutter.

Enjoy the Beauty that Surrounds You! (#etbtsy)

Would you like to see more pinhole photographs from Buffalo and Western New York? Visit my pinhole gallery on timelessbuffalo.com and enjoy! Come back often as that gallery will grow over time. Please, let me know if you have any questions about any photo products offered, or not offered, I will be happy to help! For a quick reference to all photo galleries and collections as well as all photo products currently offered through my site, please, visit the Products page.

Do you like my free content but are not ready to buy a photograph for your walls yet? Using my links to do your shopping helps me share more photographs and write the stories behind them. And it costs you nothing. You just need to start your shopping by clicking on an advertised product or use the Amazon search box in bottom left. It does not matter what you eventually buy as long as you start here. I truly appreciate each purchase, no matter how small. Thank you!