Autumn | Moore Images Photography

I went back home for the weekend and decided to see the fall colors of Northern Michigan. To plan my trip, I visited the Michigan web site to discover the best spots near Detroit. I looked for a location that provided beautiful overlooks without hiking. I wanted to get out the car, capture the images, and keep it rolling. I discovered the River Road National Scenic Byway, a 22-mile drive, containing multiple overlooks. There was one problem. The destination is nearly a four-hour drive from Detroit, in addition to the eight hours required of me to get into the city.

I didn’t want to travel solo this time and my Mom discovered her inner-explorer every since she visited me in Europe. Now my roadside companion, she said she would ride with me to Oscoda where the road begins–or ends depending on your direction. We traveled during the afternoon and spent the night at a nearby hotel. We began shortly after sunrise, the next morning, to begin our journey.

Photographer’s Note: The long shadows and the reddish tint on our faces was caused by the sun’s low placement along the horizon. This time is often called “The Golden Hour“.

Early in our trip we stopped at the Foote Dam Fishing Access and encounter several fly fishermen. The sun was relatively low in the horizon. Therefore, some trees were in the shade and others were frontally lit. We traveled to several overlooks and parking areas to view the colors (Foote Pond, Lumberman’s Monument Visitor’s Center, and some additional sites as well).

As we headed to another overlook, the dense forest provided another photo opportunity. I wanted to capture the light filtering through the trees. I stopped down the aperture to achieve the sunburst effect.

The overlooks were truly impressive. The sweeping vistas made composing the shots easy. I used my circular polarizer (CP) and it helps filter reflections. This provides richer colors in the trees and deeper blues from the water. Some post-processing from Lightroom 3 didn’t hurt either.

We stopped at a parking lot to view the scenery. That’s when I saw this fiery red tree bursting with color beckoning me to take its picture. It appears as if the tree moved in front of the larger green pine just for this photo op.

I did not take any solitary or macro photos of leaves. I did capture the leaves of one tree that had beautiful dark colors. With the rich blue sky serving as a background, I captured this tree and the polarizer again provided a color boost.

As the sun approached the summit, the cloudless day provided amazingly and unusual warm weather for this time of year. Also, the sun began to wash out the colors. Therefore, we headed home after spending over three hours on that route.

I’ve visited quite a few states. However, I have not seen many places in Michigan. I was glad we seized the opportunity to enjoy one of the many traits that makes autumn in my state special and forever my home.

-Roger

It’s been a while since my last posting and although I continue to take many photographs, I felt I didn’t have anything compelling to share. I was spoiled by my recent trips to Paris and London. Therefore, I overlooked the daily beauty I see. However, we could find many amazing images right outside our doorstep if we take the time to look. The river that surrounds our community hosts many swans, ducks, one, two, and even four-man row teams. We, periodically, see cows grazing the fields on the other side. We’ve even captured a plane performing aerial stunts above our neighborhood as well as a hot-air balloon flying overhead. Nevertheless, more gradual events happen also. As the seasons change, I take a shot once a month of the back and front of our house to document it.

The trees in the neighborhood continue to strip their leaves in preparation for the oncoming winter. The ones remaining transform into beautiful shades of red, gold and orange. During the late evening sunlight, the warm light further accents the leaves and produces beautiful images. In addition, the sky has a pastel color that further accents the autumn image.

Unfortunately, when I take photo, the various amounts of light are too much for the camera to handle. There is the bright sky overhead contrasting with the dark river and shades within the trees. The human eye has no problem seeing the dynamic range in light. However, a camera is unable to capture all this information in one image. That is why when we take a picture of the sky everything in the foreground is dark. Yet, if we take a picture of the ground, the sky turns white with no cloud detail. There are techniques to combat this problem. One technique is to use a Graduated Neutral Density (GND) filter. However, that requires using additional equipment. The second technique is to take multiple images of the scene and combine them to accurately reflect what you see.

I won’t bore you with the details of how it works. Instead, I’ll show you some images I took with the camera and then the final image that combines them.

The first image I exposed the camera to capture the trees, water and fence. However, the sky is overexposed and there are no clouds to see.

The second image I exposed for the sky. However, everything else is underexposed.

The final image is a result of five exposures I made of the backyard. This is possible using HDR which combines various images with different exposures to create one properly exposed photo. Lastly, it is highly recommended that one uses a tripod to make certain there are no shifts in capturing the multiple images. Take the time to admire and appreciate the beauty around you. It’s more abundant than you realize. Then, go out and capture some more images!

-Roger

Tag: Autumn

A Trip on the Byway

HDR in My Neighborhood