107 Breaks the Ice
Lawrence of Berkley and I decided to head out to Algonac this morning in hopes of catching from ice breaking action. We arrived to see all four of the ice breakers (two U.S. and two Canadian Coast Guard ships) doing their thing in the channels. We ended up watching the
U.S. Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug 107 (Penobscot Bay) for quite some time as it cleared the North Channel around Russel Island.
Penobscot Bay
Lawrence of Berkley and I decided to head out to Algonac this morning in hopes of catching from ice breaking action. We arrived to see all four of the ice breakers (two U.S. and two Canadian Coast Guard ships) doing their thing in the channels. We ended up watching the
U.S. Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug 107 (Penobscot Bay) for quite some time as it cleared the North Channel around Russel Island.
In For the Night
We stopped by Vantage Point in Port Huron this afternoon to go through the photos and warm up with some coffee, and hopefully to see something interesting. There really wasn't so we hit the road heading back to Algonac in hopes to see the icebreakers either tieing up or heading back to dock. Three of the four working the channels just stopped in the ice upstream. The
U.S. Coast Guard Bristol Bay tied up along the boardwalk though giving us a chance to shoot some nice night images.
Bristol Bay
The
U.S. Coast Guard WTGB-102 Bristol Bay was working the furth down the North Channel so we really didn't get much of an opportunity to work with her as much. Occasionally she would come all the way back to the Algonac boardwalk and we could grab frames like this.
Layers of Ice & Their Breaker
Lawrence of Berkley and I decided to head out to Algonac this morning in hopes of catching from ice breaking action. We arrived to see all four of the ice breakers (two U.S. and two Canadian Coast Guard ships) doing their thing in the channels. We ended up watching the
U.S. Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug 107 (Penobscot Bay) for quite some time as it cleared the North Channel around Russel Island.
Penobscot Bay in the Broken Ice
The
U.S. Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug 107 (Penobscot Bay) passed by the boat ramp several times throughout the day. The result of these passes were shards of the ice piled up along the edge of the channel for an unusual landscape.
Tying Off
We stopped by Vantage Point in Port Huron this afternoon to go through the photos and warm up with some coffee, and hopefully to see something interesting. There really wasn't so we hit the road heading back to Algonac in hopes to see the icebreakers either tieing up or heading back to dock. Three of the four working the channels just stopped in the ice upstream. The
U.S. Coast Guard Bristol Bay tied up along the boardwalk though giving us a chance to shoot some nice night images.
Ice Wake
The
U.S. Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug 107 (Penobscot Bay) started creating waves of ice as she worked later in the day. It was quite the sight and sound as the waves of ice hit the sea wall.
Peche Island Rear Range Light
We happened across this oddity while chasing down some ice breaker action. According to
Wikipedia:
"The Peche Island Rear Range Light was built of cast iron in 1908 to mark the narrow passage from Lake St. Clair to the Detroit River and guarded the reef for some 75 years. It was never manned.
In 1926 the height was raised to 66 feet (20 m) and with that additional height the tower protected the passage until September 23, 1983, when it was scheduled for decommission and destruction. Learning of the plan to demolish the tower, a rescue effort was begun by Marine City, Michigan to relocate it to a site in the city's Waterworks Park. The tower's weight is 35 tons and with the height of 66 feet (20 m) and a diameter of 14 feet (4.3 m) the move took ingenuity and perseverance, but was finally successful."
Bristol Bay & Penobscot Bay
The
Bristol Bay (WTGB-102) and
Penobscot Bay (WTGB-107) meet as they clear the ice in the North Channel above Russel Island.
Cutting In
We stopped by Vantage Point in Port Huron this afternoon to go through the photos and warm up with some coffee, and hopefully to see something interesting. There really wasn't so we hit the road heading back to Algonac in hopes to see the icebreakers either tieing up or heading back to dock. Three of the four working the channels just stopped in the ice upstream. The
U.S. Coast Guard Bristol Bay tied up along the boardwalk though giving us a chance to shoot some nice night images.
That's Not A Ferry.
Lawrence of Berkley and I decided to head out to Algonac this morning in hopes of catching from ice breaking action. We arrived to see all four of the ice breakers (two U.S. and two Canadian Coast Guard ships) doing their thing in the channels. We ended up watching the
U.S. Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug 107 (Penobscot Bay) for quite some time as it cleared the North Channel around Russel Island.
Bristol Bay Pulling In
We stopped by Vantage Point in Port Huron this afternoon to go through the photos and warm up with some coffee, and hopefully to see something interesting. There really wasn't so we hit the road heading back to Algonac in hopes to see the icebreakers either tieing up or heading back to dock. Three of the four working the channels just stopped in the ice upstream. The
U.S. Coast Guard Bristol Bay tied up along the boardwalk though giving us a chance to shoot some nice night images.
Drinking it In
This butterfly was spending a long time drinking from this flower giving me time to work it a little. The problem was still a lack of light to get the depth of field I'd have liked. Even at ISO 800 (which is as far as I like to push the D700 under normal conditions) I was only shooting at 1/90 second at f/9. That still wasn't enough to get the entire head sharp this close.
Got an Itch
While more active than usual, I only got photos of the Tigers laying around at the
Detroit Zoo.
Groggy Afternoon
We stopped by the Artic Ring of Life exhibit at the
Detroit Zoo to find most of the animals sleeping, including the polar bears. Talini woke up and walk around a bit, but was pretty groggy.
Catching Some Rays
Few of the butterflies at the
Detroit Zoo's butterfly house are willing to pose in a photo friendly way, but this one was kind enough to spread out on a leaf for a little sun.
Fruit For Sale
While at the
Detroit Zoo Saturday morning we took a break at the renovated Artic consession stand. One of the cool things was a basket of apples and oranges which caught my eye. While we warmed up I grabbed the 60mm Micro from
Adalay's bag and captured this.
Tiger Lounge
The tigers were pretty active today at the
Detroit Zoo but only between spurts of lounging around.
Hummingbird & Butterfly Snack Bar
I was told this was the smallest of the North American hummingbird, which would make this the Black-chinned Hummingbird. It was incredibly tiny and very interesting to watch. He apparently doesn't usually play nice with the butterflies at the feeder though so this was a rare treat in the
Detroit Zoo's butterfly house.
Sunbittern Prepping to Call
This Sunbittern at the
Detroit Zoo's aviary kept strutting around begging to be photographed. So we did.
Whaz Dat?
The "Merkat Digs" exhibit at the
Detroit Zoo allows visitors to get right up to the small animals thanks to some thick glass between them. Unfortunately that glass and the low lighting toward the front make it tough. But I cranked up the ISO on the D700, got close, and pounded out a few frames. What I came up with was this one, very cute shot.
Grabbing Lunch
This butterfly was spending a long time drinking from this flower giving me time to work it a little. The problem was still a lack of light to get the depth of field I'd have liked. Even at ISO 800 (which is as far as I like to push the D700 under normal conditions) I was only shooting at 1/90 second at f/9.
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