Upper Michigan in Early Spring (Winter) Part III

Munising Falls. This falls is the first falls you encounter when you enter Pictured Rocks National Park. It is a long drive to get this far north in the UP but well worth it. I visited this particular falls late last summer and it was pretty dry. You can actually walk behind these falls. When I arrived to photograph the falls this time, most of it was frozen in place, with some parts active. The photograph below shows the most active part of the falls.

The second photograph shows the falls frozen in place and the portion you can walk behind. I was wearing Yaktraks for grip. Trust me you need them to walk on the solid ice.

After Munising Falls, I headed south and stopped by a roadside falls named Alger Falls. This is one of the taller roadside falls and it does have a nice pine forest surrounding it.

Next up in Part IV, Wagner Falls including video of location I shot it from.

Earth Day Promotion

(C) NASA

Normally after my Part II entry of Upper Michigan Spring (Winter) suggesting a Part III, you would think that would be the next post, but I wanted to mention a promotion I have going on this week for Earth Day. All nature prints are 20% off through 4/27/13. Coupon Code: EARTHDAY. Click on the text that follows: Matthew J. Kirsch Photography Nature Collection

And don't worry Part III is coming soon!

Upper Michigan In Early Spring (Winter) Part II

Warner Falls. Relatively easy to find if you know where to look. If you don't you will drive right by it. It was reaching twilight as I approached these falls and the temps were in the low 30's. I was in my groove so I didn't notice the temp until I checked my phone after taking the images. It showed 32. I was only wearing a sweatshirt. In order to get a decent angle the falls you must go down a very steep hill. Remember this is the UP (Upper Michigan), so snow base was two to three feet in depth. After hiking (sliding) down the hill I was in front of the falls. It is a smaller falls in terms of relative size, but one of beauty. If you notice at the bottom of the frame it spills out into the grassland below and makes a series of small rapids in the process.

As I mentioned in Part I of this entry, The UP gets its share of snow. I was actually stranded for a day up in Marquette due to a snowstorm. No images were taken that day. The next day I headed east toward Munising to capture the waterfalls in and near the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. On my way I stopped by a falls named Scott Falls that is right across from Lake Superior. It is small falls, but has some character nonetheless.

Next up Munsing Falls, frozen in place...

Upper Michigan In Early Spring (Winter) Part I

If any of you are in the Midwest you know spring can be very volatile. From 70's and 80's last year to 30's and 40's with lots of rain and some snow (Flurries as I write this). While I was in Upper Michigan (UP) at my midway stop of Marquette, I actually was caught in a snowstorm with about 5 inches of snow. Prior to arriving in Marquette, I did stop at a few locations in between. My first stop was in northeastern Wisconsin at a waterfall site, Long Slide Falls. The road leading out to the falls was not plowed. I don't own a 4X4 and even that would have been a challenge considering the condition of that part of the road. Instead of capturing the falls I captured the forest leading to the falls. As you can tell the sky was quite blue that day. The last day of my trip it would be that blue.

After that forest my next stop was over the Wisconsin-Michigan border in Norway, Michigan to check out Pier's Gorge. Pier's Gorge was quite active that day with temps hitting about 45 and lots of active snow melt from warm weather earlier that week. Additionally, Piers Gorge is usually more active due to the river feeding it narrowing at the point of the gorge. You can see the energy in the rapid closeup shown below.

Next stop Warner Falls...

Capturing More by Moving in Closer

The above image is obviously of a peacock, but not a peacock in its entirety. That was done intentionally as moving in closer to a subject produces dramatically different results. It also gets rid of distractions and lets you focus on details that you probably never realized were there. So next time move in a little closer. Promise the results will be rewarding.

Venturing Away from Civilization

It may be an opinion or a fact, but the notion that farther you venture away from civilization and the hustle and bustle, the subject matter for photography is that much greater. Could it be that when away from civilization things are more untouched? Could it be the accompaniment of serenity that sparks that creative edge? What about the journey to the destination, and that you have come so far you are more motivated to find something captivating. Once the weather breaks in my neck of the woods, I plan on examining all of this while heading out with only my camera and a backpack on my back. More to come...

Finding Nature Looking From the Inside Out

Lets face it, Wisconsin winters are rarely sunny so most of the time the lighting on the landscape can be pretty drab. So what is one to do? Find other creative places nature shows up and make the best of it. Since buying our house last summer my wife and I have not replaced the windows. That being said that creates photographic opportunities if you look for them. I found nature; I found frost.

All you have to do is look.