This sign has since been fixed, but as I stopped near the Trolley Bridge on my motorcycle a while ago I noticed it and thought it was slightly funny. Opinions may vary. It looks like the sign is indicating a Faceplant Zone, newly paved for your comfort!
What happens in Mandan stays in Mandan…
Folks are known to faceplant in Mandan, after all…why not have a zone just for them? The only problem is the traffic. Maybe that’s why they reconsidered and fixed the sign. 🙂
I’ve been meaning to get a shot of this old car for quite some time. It sits on my friend’s land, gazing over the prairie. It looks like some bushes have taken root and called it home. I’ve often wished it was facing north so I could do some sort of drive-in theater looking shot when the Northern Lights appear, but a sunset this weekend showed me that it’s in a perfect spot already.
One other good thing about this photo: no ticks, despite wading through the tall grass!
I took my kiddos to Bismarck’s 144th Birthday celebration at the Heritage Center’s State Museum last weekend. One our way out it occurred to me that I hadn’t really done any photography in the Northern Lights Atrium. This was my chance. After all, nearly every other time I’ve been there I’ve seen wedding parties getting ready for their photos. In fact, there were a few such people there when we first arrived.
I like geometry, so of course I snapped a couple of shots and looked around. This space is so busy with portrait photography that they had to start taking appointments and setting forth some common sense rules.
For some reason I really expected this to actually…do something. But if you’ve driven by at night, you can see the disappointingly faint glow of someone’s homage to Northern Lights. I’m not looking for a Pink Floyd concert, but some lights that moved or changed in some way would have been nice…and a far better tribute to the real thing.
Again…it’s all about the angles. The beautiful skies last Saturday helped a lot.
If you’re looking to use the atrium for photography, here is a link to the finalized rules of conduct you should adhere to in order to help keep the building an enjoyable place for everyone as you share the space.
As I hinted a while back, I got to go out chasing auroras last weekend. While I was a zombie Sunday afternoon between church services, I was glad I went. Without a concrete advance plan I defaulted to Double Ditch, which was also because a friend of mine was already there. We started off by hiking down to the river with the aid of abundant LED light. In fact, I was astonished at how much light I was carrying.
We took some time to venture out to, and even into (in my friend’s case). We caught a waft of skunk smell, so going back up top started to seem like a pretty decent idea.
We hiked out to the little stone hut, an attraction to which one used to be able to drive. There we camped out for a while as we worked various angles of the structure and the lights came and went. They started to settle down and we both started thinking about our responsibilities in church in a few short hours, so it was time to pack it in. I’m pleased to say we each got some pretty decent shots for our effort.
Before I process and share the photos of Saturday night’s blazing auroras, I have to share this little guy. We had the kids at a park in Mandan for an afternoon with their cousins, and my youngest came up to tell me he was able to pet a little squirrel. He wanted my help to climb the tree where the little buggers were (apparently there were two) so he could get another look at them. Well, I found the tree and one of the squirrels. I was astonished to find a hole in the tree and a tiny little baby squirrel daring into it.
Well, that’s all it took. I got my camera gear out of the truck and set out to capture the little guy. The family day was wrapping up anyway, so I set up shop under the tree and decided to wait until the baby squirrel(s) decided to make an appearance. All the din of the boys and girls had settled, and after a while one of the babies popped up for a visit.
Isn’t this cuuuuuuuuuute? Peek-a-boo! Thankfully I didn’t appear to be too big a threat, as I actually had a much longer time with my subject than I anticipated. I had the tripod all set up in position so I wouldn’t have to waste time framing, I had my focus point set, I had weighted down the tripod with my bag to avoid wind issues, and I had the remote handy so I wouldn’t have to get any closer to take my shots. Preparation paid off.
I didn’t see any evidence of my own to corroborate the existence of two baby squirrels here, but rather than wait around to find out I chose to pack up and work my way home…after checking out a place for a sunset shot. That shot didn’t happen, as my fuel pump in my truck decided to flake out on me…but from a photographic standpoint I was satisfied with my day. Just not from an automotive point of view.
One thing North Dakota does have is some of the best skies anywhere. That’s most evident at sunrise, sunset, during thunderstorms, and when the clouds do really cool, wispy things in the vibrant blue sky. This old combine gets to take it all in, sitting in a nice little meadow enjoying its retirement.
A couple of tidbits about this photo: first, it’s got company. There’s a bird perched atop its chute. Second, someone was performing a controlled burn to the east, as you can see by light smoke over the hill on the left side of the photo.
I recently took my boys to the memorial monument on the east side of the Liberty Memorial bridge. They read the plaques an wandered around, appreciating both the monument and the nice weather (finally) after so many rainy and/or windy days. I, of course, wanted to do some photo work as I’ve been bouncing off the walls lately.
Here’s the view upward as my camera looks straight up the middle with a wide-angle lens. A little fill, a little circular polarizer, and I have a satisfying bit if white geometry on a vivid blue backdrop, with a trio of flags thrown in for good measure.
My favorite angle. Not only does this show the center “aurora” looking spires, but it also looks like something out of a Picasso painting of an eyeball.
I’ve been trying to revisit some familiar photo sites lately, as well as branch out for some new ones…but this is a b usy time of year for me. Thankfully I still have a few places in mind that aren’t far out of town. Then I get to post them here and share!
Favicon Plugin made by Alesis