July/August 2022 Photography
July/August 2022 Photography
Phew! It’s been another couple of busy months again. Family camping and events, art shows, and also just…really hot weather. Needless to say, I didn’t get out for photography all that much these past few months, but in the times that I did, I made the most of it. As the summer is coming to a close, I’m looking forward to the change of the seasons. As things cool down in September, I hope to get back out there a little more to hopefully get a little more work in on my mosaic project. Then I’ll be refreshed for some Autumn colors in October and November! Maybe another trip to the UP or the Thumb of Michigan will be in my future, we’ll see how the spirit moves me.
But for now, here are my photography highlights from the past two months!
Little Doses of Majestic Skies
We finally had a couple storms this summer that occurred at the right time for me, and I was able to capture some great weather shots and sunsets as a result.
#hike26 &#hike27 in northern Kent County
July started out with our annual family camping week for the 4th of July. It was a great week of rest and relaxation for me after of couple busy month’s in the office recently. I didn’t do any firework photography around the 4th as the smoke around the campground resulting from the show tends to aggravate my allergies, but I made sure during the week to get out at least once for some photography. Since I was camping a ways away from home, I made the point to get a little further away than usual since the drive wouldn’t be as extensive as it would’ve from Holland. I did some research and discovered the Howard Christensen Nature Center and Long Lake on the north side of Kent County. As an added treat; I had just acquired my first mirrorless camera for my photographic endeavors, so these places made for a great trial run with my new gear. Along with this trip to the nature center, I got the chance to do a tiny bit of macro photography at the campground as well when I found a plucked blue jay feather on the ground (which was unique to me as I don’t typically see those feathers off the bird).
#hike28/#hike29 in Town
After a few weeks of a lull where I didn’t get out for any shooting, I was requested to do some family photos for some relatives of mine. Since photography was already going to be a scheduled portion of my day, I took the first half of the day to get out for a quick dose of nature before the evening’s work. I went out to Stu Visser Trail in Holland, I’ve only ever walked that trail in Winter prior to this visit, so I figured I could get some shots that are the antithesis of my first visit. I also did a hike at the Keppel Forest loop nearby, but I didn’t end up taking any photos on that trail.
At Stu Visser though, that visit turned out to be a great choice for that day. Beautiful blue skies, a bountiful growth of Purple Loosestrife along the creek, a bits of wildlife here and there. By this point, I obtained a few other accessories for my new R7 camera that allowed me to use all my lenses that at first didn’t fit the camera, and that came in handy when along the walk, I stumbled across a hummingbird. Being ready with the right lens on when it appeared, I chased that little guy around for a bit and managed to successfully capture my first hummingbird shot in 10+ years of photography.
Miscellaneous Shots throughout the Summer
Once again, my weekends ended up being spent at the campground and with family, so I didn’t end up going out to shoot all that much. At this point, I’m not focusing on that hiking challenge anymore, as nice as it would’ve been to complete it, I’ve lost interest honestly and instead would like to focus on the photography itself as opposed to a walking goal. That’s not to say that I didn’t do any shooting after Stu Visser, while we were camping I had some beautiful skies, plenty of sightings of our neighbor deer family while I was at home/going to work during the weeks, and also caught (and got attacked) by some bugs out at the campground.
Bible Verse Images for the Month
