Travel by Any Means Necessary

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Wordless Wednesday: Walkway at Sunset

Walkway at Sunset

Chris Corner #4: The Verrazano Narrows

Verrazano Narrows Bridge in Morning Fog by Christopher Mowers on 500px.com

Last summer, Ashleigh and I had the joy of taking a cruise on the Norwegian Gem out of New York.

Not only was cruising out of New York great because it is a relatively short drive  for us compared to Florida, but it was incredible to sail from a pier in Manhattan. These views were unbelievable.

Most of the pictures we got in New York Harbor were from our departure. The weather was outstanding. The thing that was really difficult though was that everyone else was also outside trying to get pictures. We decided we would get up early on our arrival day and try to get pictures with fewer people on deck.

One problem- the weather didn’t think this was such a great idea. Seriously, we didn’t get much. I don’t know how on earth I managed to capture this image, but I’m glad that I did.

 

About the Photo:
I took this photo at 55 mm, f/4.5, ISO 200, from the Promenade deck of the Norwegian Gem. I captured this photo the day that we drove home from New York, and on that car ride home, listening to the Improve Photography Podcast, heard all about the new dehaze slider in the lastest Lightroom release. I used that same dehaze slider on this photo with excellent results.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 55-200mm f/4-5.6 lens.

Date Taken:
June 21, 2015

Thank you for reading. You can see my best work on 500px and can also find pictures of the “trying my hardest to be good at this” type on Flickr or Pixoto.

Also, be sure to like the Go See Do Facebook Page, and follow Ashleigh on Instagram and Flickr! Check out our Gear page to see inside our camera bag!

Chris Corner #2: Door to Cotswold Cottage

Door Knocker by Christopher Mowers on 500px.com

 

Today’s picture is the door handle on the Cotswold Cottage. The Cotswold Cottage is a building which now resides at Greenfield Village, part of The Henry Ford, a history attraction in Dearborn, MI.

The following regarding this cottage was taken from http://www.thehenryford.org/

The families who lived in this home had a variety of jobs. From the early 1700s to the mid-1800s, several generations of the Sley/Robins/Smith family worked as farmers and stone masons. Being a stone mason was a good job for the family because most of the homes in the area were made from stone.

About the Photo:
I took this photo right after I bought our 50mm 1.8 prime lens and I was getting used to the incredibly shallow depth of field made possible by the wide aperature. I focused on the interesting textures in the metal and just let it blur out on the edges. I also did some relatively minimal editing in lightroom including some color correction and a white vignette.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 50mm 1.8 lens handheld

Date Taken:
September 26, 2015

Thank you for reading. You can see my best work on 500px and can also find pictures of the “trying my hardest to be good at this” type on Flickr or Pixoto.

Also, be sure to like the Go See Do Facebook Page, and follow Ashleigh on Instagram and Flickr! Check out our Gear page to see inside our camera bag!

Belle Isle Conservatory

Belle Isle Conservatory

Today I’m continuing my recount of my recent wintery voyage to Belle Isle, Michigan’s 102nd state park. The conservatory may have been the part of the park I was most excited to check out! One thing I was not prepared for was the stark contrast between the cold outside and the humid warmth in the conservatory. The abrupt change wreaked havoc on both my camera and my glasses! It felt like forever before I could see again! So, tip for photographers and glasses-wearers alike, put a cap on your lens or glasses in your pocket before you walk in, especially in colder months.

The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory opened along with the Belle Isle Aquarium in 1094. The Conservatory, remodeled in 1980, is the oldest, continually operating conservatory in the United States. The building has five different areas, each houses a different climate from cacti to the soaring palms pictured to the left. Fun fact: 50 years after the greenhouse opened Anna Scipps Whitcomb (daughter of James E. Whicomb, founder of the Detroit News) donated her collection of 600 orchids to the conservatory. This gave Detroit the largest municipally owned orchid collection in the country. Many of these plants were saved from Britain during Word War II. (Historic Detroit)

About the Photo:
There’s not much to say about this photo. It was a single exposure with basic edit done in Lightroom. Although, I think I was annoying another photographer who was trying to take engagement photos. I was standing directly in front of the bench she wanted the couple to sit on . Other photographer, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 18.0-55.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 lens handheld

Date Taken:
January, 2016

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr!

Belle Isle Aquarium

Belle Isle Aquarium

I have wanted to visit Belle Isle in Detroit for some time now, so when we had a warm(ish) winter weekend, I made my way east. I had driven through Belle Isle once before, but it was before the park service took it over and was in a deserted, dilapidated state. It was good to see the historic buildings being restored and people walking around, enjoying the beautiful weather.

While its still being renovated, I fell in love with the Belle Isle Aquarium. Before it closed in 2005, it was the oldest, continually operating aquarium in North America. It reopened in 2012 and now seeks to inform the public about invasive species that are taking over the great lakes. The aquarium first opened in 1904 and was designed by famed architect Albert Kahn. The stone facade atop the doorway depicts two spitting fish and the emblem of Detroit. (Belle Isle Conservancy)

About the Photo:
For this trip, I stuck mostly with my 18-55mm kit lens. It is the widest lens I currently have and it was a sunny day so I wasn’t worrying about speed. This shot was a tough one to get as people were coming and going from the aquarium and I was kind of standing in the way. I decided to shoot up high and get less of the doorway to avoid having people in my shot. This was cropped down a bit and a basic edit from RAW done in Lightroom.

Camera Gear:
Nikon D3100 with 18.0-55.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 lens handheld

Date Taken:
January, 2016

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr!

Duke Chapel

Duke Chapel

Durham, North Carolina is home to Duke University. The one thing that sticks in my mind about Duke is how stunningly beautiful the campus is. From the gorgeous architecture in Duke Chapel to the natural beauty of the Sara P. Duke Gardens, Duke’s campus stands out in its beauty. When I visited the chapel, the choir was practicing which really adds a haunting element to the architectural beauty.

About the Photo:
This photo has been one of my favorites for a while. I love how the light comes down by the steeple; it adds an angelic nature to the shot. This photo was taken with my first digital point & shoot camera and edited with Google’s free photo editing software, Picassa. I’m not saying that my photography hasn’t improved with a DSLR, the ability to shoot in RAW, and Adobe editing software, but I strongly believe you can take a quality image without all of those things, especially when you have a beautiful subject.

Camera Gear:
Kodak EasyShare CX7300 point & shoot

Date Taken:
March 2008

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr! Check out my new Gear page to see inside my camera bag!

Michigan State Architecture

Marshall-Adams HallIn honor of the Spartan’s miraculous win on Saturday, here’s another favorite photo from East Lansing. If you’ve never seen Michigan State’s campus, it seems to be having an identity crisis, architecture-wise. On the northern end of campus, you have beautiful, classic brick & ivy buildings, such as Marshall-Adams hall here. Heck the MSU alma mater even has the line, “o’re ivy covered halls”. But, if you travel out of the old part of campus in any direction, you notice the architectural styles change. Not too far from Marshall-Adams is the Broad Art Museum which is strikingly modern and I often describe as having sharp edges. Across the street from the Broad Museum is the Student Services Building which is depressingly 60s and just looks sad and outdated (which is my fear for Broad in the years to come). On the eastern edge of campus is the 12 story Hubbard Hall (and my home my freshman year) which really seems to poke out from around the surrounding areas where no other building surpasses maybe 6 floors at most.

During my time at MSU, I loved walking through the old part of campus at the end of the day. One hour before and after sunrise and sunset is considered the magic hour (AKA blue or golden hour) and is the ideal lighting for photography. No, this doesn’t mean that you should never shoot outside of these times (a lot of the photos I post here were taken outside of magic hour), but the lighting is more pleasing and you are more likely to get stunning shots during these times.

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr!

And in case you didn’t catch the Michigan-Michigan State game this weekend, here’s the only clip you need to see:

Go Green!

The Colors of Key West

Key West Colors *Explored*

The first time I visited Key West it was the first port on a Caribbean cruise and honestly, I fell in love and just could not wait to go back! So, a year and a half later I took another trip to the Keys with the intent to see more of the islands. One of the things I did on that trip was climb to the top of the Key West Lighthouse. As a Michigander, I’ve climbed to the top of several Great Lakes Lighthouses and the view from the KWL was totally different! It gave you a bird’s eye view of the island and really highlighted the colorful architecture that makes up the Southernmost Isle.

I highly encourage photographers (and travelers too) to look for a different vantage point, especially in highly photographed areas. Climb lighthouses, stairs, mountains, you never know what you’ll see when you reach the top.

Thanks for stopping by! If you like my photos be sure to “like” my Facebook Page, follow me on Instagram, and Flickr!

Wordless Wednesday: Dolphin the Sky

Dolphin in the Sky

Wordless Wednesday: Hill’s Pipes

Hill's Pipes 1/100

Page 3 of 4

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