Red Wing Photography Club September meeting was at Covill Park in Red Wing, MN this evening. Perfect weather – mid 70s. Hazy skies no doubt from the massive amounts of forest fires out West.
I shot several series of frames from the Mavic Mini drone for panorama and HDR compositions as well as a few single frame images.
Single Frame Images
Towboat with barge downriverDog Poo Bag, an aerial perspective
HDR Images
The dynamic range on the Mavic Mini is not great; bracketing does the trick to make up for its shortcomings.
Covill BayCovill Bay | River Valley Marina
Panorama Images
Covill Bay | River Valley MarinaLooking out over barges towards Wisconsin
Towboat with barge downriver
Covill Park, River Valley Marina and Covill Bay Sunset
There was some beautiful light this morning in Bay City before, during and after sunrise. It was very cloudy early this a.m., but Mother Nature cooperated nicely.
It’s been awhile since I’ve captured this location. March 8th 2019 was the last sunrise attempt I made.
Lake Pepin occupies a valley carved by the waters of Glacial River Warren, which drained Lake Agassiz in a catastrophic flood at the end of the last Ice Age, and to a lesser extent from Lake Duluth, a smaller glacial lake which drained through the present valley of the St. Croix River. When the continental glacier’s meltwaters found other outlets to the sea, River Warren was succeeded by the more modest Upper Mississippi, which drains a much smaller basin, and the St. Croix spillway became the present river. Over a long period of time, the deep valley was partially filled with sediments, forming a broad floodplain. In this plain Lake Pepin formed behind a delta comprising sediments deposited into the ancient lake bed by the Chippewa River near the present community of Wabasha at the southern end of the lake. The lake backed up behind this sediment dam as far north as the location of Saint Paul. In the 10,000 years since the lake’s creation, ongoing sedimentation into Lake Pepin has caused its upper end to migrate downstream some 50 miles to its present location east (river direction south) of Red Wing, Minnesota. ~wikipedia
We all have one, or many; at least I hope so. I have a happy place. It is one of many.
Hay Creek is a small trout stream in southeastern Minnesota. It has its headwaters west of Goodhue and empties into the Mississippi River just to the north of Red Wing. It runs 25.1 miles (40.4 km), over half of which is a Minnesota designated trout stream. Like the Vermillion River, Hay Creek receives extensive fishing pressure due to its proximity to Minneapolis–St. Paul.
Hay Creek was named for the hay meadows near its banks. A railroad once ran along Hay Creek from the clay banks near Goodhue to the pottery and stoneware factories in Red Wing, which also made use of the water from the creek. The railroad was torn up in 1937, but traces such as trestle pilings remain.
The red dot [on the map above] on the western end of 320th Avenue is one of my happy places. Minnesota Trout Unlimited has done a tremendous amount of work on this stream over the years. It is truly a gem and a pleasure to fish.
The valley is so peaceful; a beautiful display of nature. This morning was exceptionally beautiful with the fog settled in the spring creek valley.
A vertical panorama looking upstream from the bridge on 320th Avenue.
Another finally Friday; the work week is done. I look forward to the weekends and photography sunrise/sunset. However, the forecast for this weekend looks like total crap. Freezing rain, snow, high winds – blizzard warning oh my. A recipe for a Netflix binge no doubt. I took advantage of the nice weather Friday afternoon before the storms come. It was nice to get out and fly.
First Stop
I didn’t venture too far; just across the Mississippi River from Red Wing into Wisconsin. My first stop was Pucketville right next to the Harbor Bar. There is a nice view of Red Wing from there and the Jamaican Jerk cuisine is fantastic.
Red Wing Riverfront
Red Wing Riverfront
Red Wing Bridge Construction
Harbor Bar 360 Sphere
Red Wing Boat Houses
Second Stop
I wanted to get a shot of the Trimbelle River tail waters, but wasn’t able to get a close enough. It is a bit difficult to see, but it is out in the distance about center frame. You can see the bridge over the Trimbelle River on Hwy 35 or the right side of the frame. I will have to dress appropriately next time and go for a hike. The patches of evergreens are interesting. A few hundred feet up sure offers a different perspective.
Trimbelle River Tail Waters
Third Stop
I drove around a bit more until I found myself near the gravel pit on Cty Rd VV. This area looked pretty interesting while hovering over the bluff tops. The exposed rock from the gravel pit, the road through the valley and if you look closely, you’ll see the little town of Hager City, WI in the middle of the frame.
K Gravel Pit
K Gravel Pit 360 Sphere
I really love the bluff country where I live. I look forward to photographing it from the air in all seasons.
Having had so much fun this a.m. shooting sunrise, I decided to head out this afternoon and see what I could do with the afternoon golden hour. I brought the best wife ever along so she could see how much fun this is. Here she is standing next to me for a selfie.
Mavic 2 Pro| ISO 100 | f/8 | 1/20 seconds | 10.26 mm
The light was wonderful. The limestone faces of the bluffs on the Wisconsin side of Lake Pepin glowed orange as the sun went down.
Mavic 2 Pro| ISO 100 | f/8 | 1/50 seconds | 10.26 mm
Panoramas
The practice continues on drone panorama photography. It’s all completely manual at this point as I have not delved into the automated features of the Mavic 2 Pro.
The wayside rest next to Hansen’s Harbor between Frontenac and Lake City was an interesting location. I was a nice wide open expanse to practice flying around. The ice on the lake was very interesting, colorful and full of texture.
Mavic 2 Pro| ISO 100 | f/8 | 1/50 seconds | 10.26 mm | 9 FramesMavic 2 Pro| ISO 100 | f/8 | 1/50 seconds | 10.26 mm | 11 FramesMavic 2 Pro| ISO 100 | f/8 | 1/50 seconds | 10.26 mm | 9 Frames
I am finding that even though I am not experiencing ideal conditions for sunrise, nature always provides a beautiful canvas. When the pre-sunrise color isn’t there, the subtly of the clouds provides a focal point. The waning crescent moon was also shining bright this morning and added a nice touch to the frame.
EXTRA
On the drive home I ran into a herd of Wild Turkeys.
![ake Pepin occupies a valley carved by the waters of Glacial River Warren, which drained Lake Agassiz in a catastrophic flood at the end of the last Ice Age, and to a lesser extent from Lake Duluth, a smaller glacial lake which drained through the present valley of the St. Croix River. When the continental glacier's meltwaters found other outlets to the sea, River Warren was succeeded by the more modest Upper Mississippi, which drains a much smaller basin, and the St. Croix spillway became the present river. Over a long period of time, the deep valley was partially filled with sediments, forming a broad floodplain. In this plain Lake Pepin formed behind a delta comprising sediments deposited into the ancient lake bed by the Chippewa River near the present community of Wabasha at the southern end of the lake. The lake backed up behind this sediment dam as far north as the location of Saint Paul. In the 10,000 years since the lake's creation, ongoing sedimentation into Lake Pepin has caused its upper end to migrate downstream some 80km (50mi) to its present location east (river direction south) of Red Wing, Minnesota.[5]](https://i0.wp.com/traun-photo.com/dan/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/2019-09-19-DF068-Around-the-Lake-0001-7-Edit-2.jpg)
