Drone, Nature, Panorama, Photography, River-scapes

A NEW PERSPECTIVE – Bay City, WI #sunrise

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A NEW PERSPECTIVE

When I arrived at my favorite sunrise location this a.m. the sky was quite clear; so clear that you could see Jupiter (bottom) and Venus (top) easily next to the silhouette of the tree.

A NEW PERSPECTIVE
D700 ISO 200 | f/7.1 | 25 seconds | 17 mm

January starts out with Venus shining above Jupiter in the morning sky, yet the month ends with Jupiter shining above Venus. Day by day, Jupiter climbs upward, away from the sunrise, while Venus sinks downward, toward the rising sun. The two will meet for a conjunction in the morning sky on January 22, 2019. ~EarthSky.org

As the morning progressed the clouds cooperated wonderfully even though a completely clear sky was in the forecast for this morning.  This morning started out like most other mornings at this particular location, but the situation changed dramatically.  The new perspective is courtesy of a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone I received for Christmas from the best wife ever.

I am pretty happy with the results given this was my third flight and first ever attempt at shooting the sunrise with a drone.  The shots are a titch grainy given ISO 400 .   The vertical panorama is my favorite drone photo of the day.  This morning without a doubt spawned an enthusiasm for drone photography that will not likely subside any time soon.

Horizontal Panorama

Drone Sunrize
Mavic 2 Pro| ISO 400 | f/9 | 1/60 seconds | 10.26 mm | 7 Frames

Vertical Panorama

Drone Sunrise

Mavic 2 Pro| ISO 400 | f/9 | 1/60 seconds | 10.26 mm | 12 Frames

Two more panoramas.

Additional Drone Single-Frame Photos

Jeff & Jay
Jeff & Jay
Jeff & Jay

Extra

A short video clip from this a.m.

Photo by Jeff Marcus
Drone in flight
Drone in flight
Photography

FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPHS OF 2018

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FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPHS OF 2018

Looking back through 2018, I’ve pulled together a few of my favorite photographs of the year.

Minnesota/Wisconsin

Germany/Austria

North Dakota

Wishing everyone a wonderful new year.  Looking forward to what 2019 has in store.

Nature, Photography

NATURE ALWAYS PROVIDES – Bay City #studyofgray

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NATURE ALWAYS PROVIDES

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.

Nature Always Provides

Nature Always Provides

EXTRA

On the drive home I ran into a herd of Wild Turkeys.

Photography

HAPPY HOLIDAYS – Looking forward to 2019

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Happy Holidays to you and yours.  Have fun and be safe.  Be sure to secure any loads during this festive season!

Photography, Time-lapse

BLUFF TOP CLOUDY SUNSET – Hager City, WI #timelapse

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BLUFF TOP CLOUDY SUNSET

I was a bit late getting home from work and was not so quick to change and load up my photo gear.  The sunset forecast for this evening was not great; however the weather was so nice  (40+ degrees on the 18th of December). I decided to venture out anyway.

I didn’t have enough time to get where I wanted to.  Alternatively I found a n area on top of a bluff along a road with an area of wide-open space.   If I wasn’t going to see an resemblance of a sunset, it could be viewed from here.

When the conditions are not necessarily what you are hoping for in a typical sunset, there are options.  Abundant clouds in motion are perfect for time-lapse.  I only wish I had gotten there sooner and had more time.  Just under and hour of shooting yielded 5 whole seconds of video.

I used the Syrp Genie Mini Camera Motion Control – Wireless to achieve the rotation.  An excellent way to introduce motion into your time-lapse sequences.

[Very] Brief Time-lapse

Destination, Nature, Photography

WINTER CLOUDLESS SUNSET – Maiden Rock, WI #colorful

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WINTER CLOUDLESS SUNSET

A landscape photographers constant wish is just the right amount of clouds to make the scene interesting.  When that happens, consider yourself fortunate.  Today was not one of those days.  The scene that can unfold can still be beautiful…if you wait for it.   The skies could not have been any more clear or bright.

Just like sunrises with the best color coming before hand, so goes sunsets with rich color happening after the set.

It took a few minutes after sunset for the color to change and pop.

Destination, Nature, Photography

PRE-SUNSRISE COLOR – Bay City, WI #presunrisecolor

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PRE-SUNRISE COLOR

There is nothing quite like the the palette of color nature displays prior to the sun rising above the horizon.  Pre-sunrise color can be quite spectacular; as was the case this morning.

Don’t forget to look all around before the sun comes up and the vivid color is gone.

pre-sunrise color
iPhone pano

Once the sun broke the horizon the pinks/reds disappeared; the blue and yellow became more defined.

Post-sunrise.

A constant stream of ducks doing flybys pre-sunrise; if you look close enough you can see them in one of the shots.  There were lots of geese honking.  A single pair a swans swam close by.  Two eagles chattered on and on in a nearby Cottonwood Tree.  What a great morning and start to the day.

 

 

Destination, Photography

NO SUNSHINE WHEN THERE IS FOG – Bay City, WI #freezingfog

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NO SUNSHINE WHEN THERE IS FOG

There was no sunshine at sunrise this a.m.  I did catch a little bit of sun two hours after sunrise when it began to filter through the heavy fog and clouds.

Nature, Photography

RIME – Vanishing Horizons, #freezingfog

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RIME

There isn’t much hope for a sunrise when the fog sets in.  When it is freezing fog, though, there is something to look forward to.  The rime it creates is beautiful; not to be confused with hoar frost.  I recently learned the difference between the two; this MPR article explains the difference.  It was a spectacular morning for rime.

 

 

Destination, Photography

COVILL PARK BAY, Red Wing, MN #exploremn

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Covill Park Bay

Situated on the southwest bank of the Mississippi River, the floodplain forest of Colvill Park is one of the most popular spots in Minnesota to watch wintering bald eagles. In the spring and fall migrating ducks such as mallards, common mergansers, and common goldeneyes can be seen feeding. White-tail deer, mink, and gray squirrels are also common sites. ~#exploremn

There were not many eagles this a.m., but the light, shadows and reflections were wonderful.

Covill Park Bay

 

DAN TRAUN – Photographer