FRIDAY, MARCH 1, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1124

"Serenity on the ice"

Here's an image from the last sunset I shot a few days ago. It was one of the quietest evenings I've ever experienced on Lake Superior. There was absolutely no wind and not a single ripple on the water to disturb the evening. The sunset didn't yield much of a display in terms of color, but the clouds and their matching reflections on the surface of the lake were a sight to behold.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 37mm
Shutter speed: 10 seconds
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1199

"First Light over Hat Point"

This was a pleasant surprise from this morning. I was on my way to my pre-planned sunrise location when I looked back across the bay and saw this beautiful softly-glowing light over Hat Point and Pete's Island. You can see a glimpse of Isle Royale National Park in between Hat Point and Pete's Island. This light was so beautiful I had to stop and make a photo of the scene. After this I headed to the spot I was originally going to and found lots of incredible plate ice floating on the lake. Stay tuned later today for another posting of the plate ice at sunrise!

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 100-400mm
Focal length: 320mm
Shutter speed: 1/160
Aperture: f/5.6
ISO: 800

FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 2012

SUPERIOR WINTER 1220

"Plate Ice Sunrise, Whitecaps Point"

As promised, here is another shot from this morning's sunrise over Lake Superior. Whitecaps Point (not an official name, just a name I came up with to reference this area) was lined with beautiful plate ice this morning. Soft swells were rolling in off the lake, and the plates of ice were rubbing against each other in the swells, making a magical "shooshing" sound. It was a gentle sound, not loud and abrasive like the sound made when the plates are piling up against the shore. I sure do love this time of year and wish it lasted longer. Spring is on its way, though, and soon I will be heading to the canyonlands of the southwest for a 3-week camping/hiking/biking adventure honeymoon with the love of my life!

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 17mm
Shutter speed: 1/40 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

SATURDAY, MARCH 9, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1282

"Wispy Sunset over Iceberg Bay"

Last night's sunset may not have had a large color palette, but the streaks of clouds and the floating icebergs sure were nice! Yesterday morning at this location there was a brisk wind and a nice swell rolling in off the lake, and there were a lot of ice plates floating around. Last night the swells were still coming in off the lake but the wind was gone and so were the plates of ice. The ice was actually still there, but it was all ground up into small chunks that were floating everywhere in between the larger "icebergs" that you see here. Without the wind the "tinkling" sound of the ice rolling around in the waves was quite loud and fascinating. This calm preceded a winter storm that we are getting today. There still isn't any wind, but snow has been falling steadily since about 9:00 this morning. We have had a few inches already and they say we may end up with 7 inches by the time it's done. One thing's for sure... it sure is a beautiful winter wonderland of white out there today!

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 21mm
Shutter speed: 1/6 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1212

"Endless Ice"

Here is a recent shot of plate ice on Lake Superior, extending out as far as the eye can see. It sure was an interesting morning to be out exploring the shoreline. There was a wind coming off the lake along with a gentle swell that made the ice fascinating to watch. As each swell rolled in to shore you could see the plates of ice gently moving up and down with each passing wave. It was a very gentle movement, and to me looked as though you could see the lake breathing. With each wave the ice would rise, then fall. It was as if each passing wave was the lake taking a breath, then exhaling. This photo was made at sunrise. I returned to this same location at sunset and all the plate ice was gone. After a full day of being ground against each other by the waves the plates of ice had been ground down to small chunks of ice that "tinkled" against each other as they rolled in the waves that were still coming in throughout the evening.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 21mm
Shutter speed: 1/13 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1264

"Clouds and Ice"

It is kind of a blustery (but mild!) day today, with some falling (but mostly blowing) snow. The blustery nature of the day has me thinking back to a few days ago when the day was absolutely calm and quiet. The photo you see here was made on this quiet day, with barely a sound to be heard along the shoreline. When this cloud drifted over the ridge of ice plates I knew I had to photograph it. The complementing blues of the ice and sky were beautiful. I sure hope we get a day like this on wednesday of next week, if we do it will be a perfect day for our wedding ceremony!

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 17mm
Shutter speed: 1/125 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1248

"Fortress of Ice"

This ice formation was photographed along the Grand Portage shoreline of Lake Superior a few days ago. It never ceases to amaze me the endless forms that ice can take along the shores of this great lake. This "fortress" of ice formed over the top of a large mound of rocks. As the rocks get pounded by the waves the water freezes and forms into ice. Every year the ice looks different, as it never freezes in the same exact shape. Often times even from one day to the next it will look different as new waves add new layers of ice, or warm days melt a layer of ice.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 17mm
Shutter speed: 1/200 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 400

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1344

"The break-up begins"

Just got in from shooting tonight's sunset and after a warm day with bright sun the shoreline ice is really starting to break up in some areas. These chunks of ice were rolling around on the rocks as they were being pummeled by the waves. As each day gets longer and the sun gets higher, it's only a matter of time before this is gone for the year.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 17mm
Shutter speed: 1/6 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 200

THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1338

"March Iceberg"

I took this picture at sunset last night, a very mild evening with a temp right around 30 degrees. I found a lot of ice chunks that had broken off from the shoreline and were floating around like icebergs. This one had the most intriguing shape out of the bunch.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 32mm
Shutter speed: 1/10
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 400

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 2013

SUPERIOR WINTER 1391

"Gray Sunset over Iceberg Bay"

Last night's sunset looked promising for good color right up until the sun went down. Just as the sun was going down the clouds moved in and cancelled the chance of any colorful sky. Still, I found a nice shoreline to photograph and had lots of fun viewing the ice and watching these icebergs roll around in the waves.

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 17mm
Shutter speed: 0.4 sec
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 400

SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 2013

SPIRIT TREE 7343

"March sunrise and ten below at the Spirit Tree"

Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon EF 17-40mm
Focal length: 17mm
Shutter speed: 1/100
Aperture: f/16
ISO: 400