Waking Up in Michigan

Lake Michigan Recreation Area Photography

I close my eyes and all I hear are the leaves being slowly pushed by the wind. This is where I am most at ease; the most myself. I enjoy it. Waking up with the trees above your head, cooking a meal over a fire, listening to the wood crackle as it burns while breathing in the fresh air. A couple of weeks ago, I drove up to the Lake Michigan Recreation Area. There was no reason in particular, I guess it just seemed like a good opportunity to get away for a day; to keep it simple, no distractions and to just be. I knew I was getting close as both window seats were filled with views of endless trees. A bumpy, dirt road gently carves it way through the forest as to leave the least impact of it ever being there. Once I opened up my door, there seemed to be a sense of relief. The air carried the soft sounds of laughter with a backdrop of the lake meeting the shore. I smiled with every step closer to the beach, and as my feet hit the sand I felt like a child again. Whenever I road trip, hike or just wander by myself, I always feel like I’m at peace, like I have the world in the palm of my hands. Maybe because I can clear my head of every thought and just live in that moment. Here are a couple of those moments that made me smile.

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See More Travel Photography:  Living Under the Stars | Pictured Rocks | A Nature Walk

    

Living the Double Life

The idea of double exposure photography has been a concept that I’ve been wanting to do for a while now. I have seen countless amount of multiple exposure work from fantastic photographers and each one has inspired me to try it. I never quite knew where or how to start so I just dove right in. The hardest part about this was the portrait. I have never really delved into portrait photography mostly due to the fact that I have no one to take a portrait of. But what better time to start than now. I mixed in scenes that I personally enjoy, images of the city, landscapes & nature. It was more of an idea of expressing what’s inside. Allowing you to see what I love about the world. In the end, the resulting images became very minimalist and natural. I was very content with how these came out but more excited to begin to get more creative with this idea. There are no limitations when it comes to double exposure photography and I can’t wait to explore this more!

A Walk on the Rocks

Crashing of the water against the rocks

I’ve recently started going through some of my older photographs and it’s like I’m viewing them in a “different light”. Although, there is a repetitive theme or characteristic that I can see hasn’t changed much within the years of my photography. The idea of capturing a moment; freezing that moment in time. The subject and composition of these photographs resemble much of that I currently see in my photography. These photographs were taken while I was traveling through San Francisco, California. It was only a couple of months after I first picked up a camera and started my journey through photography. I can already see my curiosity for landscape photography emerging. Looking back at this day, I remember this was my first time being in San Francisco, and photography was not a concern to me. I walked down to the beach and was immediately hit with a feeling of euphoria. Whether it was the footsteps in the sand or the crashing of the waves, these were moments that I couldn’t describe in words. I used my camera merely as a tool to capture these snapshots and as I look back, I’m reminded how important photography is to me. It reminds me of the footsteps it took to get to where I currently am but most importantly, it reminds me of walks like this; A walk on the rocks.

Seagulls in the Sky

Seagulls Flying over Lake Michigan in Chicago

I woke up early on a brisk Sunday morning, just so I could get a glimpse of the Chicago sunrise over Lake Michigan. As I got closer to the city, snow started to appear as if I just crossed through an invisible weather field. I park and began walking through already an inch of snow. When I got to the shore, the waves were crashing hard against the rocks. It was hard for me to keep my camera still as the wind was crashing just as hard. I began snapping as many pictures as I could because I knew the weather was not going to allow me to stay for too long. As I drove back, I hit the invisible wall again. The snow ceased to exist and the sun was shining bright. Although I didn’t get to capture the sunrise, I’ve noticed numerous amounts of shots with seagulls flying. I overlaid them all and this was the result; seagulls in the sky.

A Moment Frozen in Time

Winter on Lake Michigan in Chicago

I woke up early in the morning, grabbed a cup of coffee not only to wake me up but to keep me some sort of warm. I knew it would be quite cold on the lakefront. I was planning on catching a glimpse of the sunrise over the Chicago landscape. It was still dark when I got to the shore, so I set up my tripod and began shooting. After about a half hour or so, there was no spectacular grand appearance of the sun, rather it just illuminated the clouds. Although, this wasn’t exactly what I expected, I was quite happy. There was sense of stillness in the air that morning. The waves weren’t crashing against the rocks; there was no one around and traffic ceased to exist. Nature was at still. I felt as if I was staring at a moment frozen in time.

On the Shore

My goal with landscape photography is to capture the feeling I had when I took the photograph. The tranquility of hearing nothing but the movement of the water. The crashing of the waves upon the rocks. On the shore we look upon nothing but feel everything. What is left between the shore and the sky. This is a mini series depicting that tranquility of being on the shore.

What is left between the shore and the sky

The tranquility of being on the shore.

Crashing of the Waves

On the Rocks