#TravelTuesday Sand Beach Acadia National Park

At first I thought it was redundant, Sand Beach, but then I realized that this beach is the only waterfront in Acadia that is sandy. Tiny shells and ocean pounded rocks make up this soft beach. Sand is unique to this area of Mount Desert Island which lures many tourists. If you want to spend time digging your toes in the shoreline or create castles from the terrain of Acadia, you have to visit Sand Beach. Access to the ocean is easy but be prepared. Even at the height of Summer the temperature barely reaches 55 degrees.

The first morning we were there the sky was thick with clouds. Sprinkles would occasionally splatter our faces but the low lying precipitation gave me a nice opportunity to do a little long exposure work. I combined a few different images, one long exposure and one fast to give a dreamy yet defined look to this picture, and then converted the piece to black and white.

I also liked the look of the soft green seaweed draped over the rounded rocks being washed by the incoming tide.  So I clicked away trying to capture a moment in the life of a million year old shoreline.

 

The view of the beach from the Loop Road of the park shows its placement being nestled away in the recesses of Newport Cove.


Nikon D800 and various lenses  

Preview

For a photographer Autumn brings the promise of color and variation in the landscape. A few weeks ago, while visiting Acadia, I was able to glimpse a sneak peek at the approaching excitement. White trunks and dark shadows give excellent contrast to the vibrant greens, yellows, and oranges of the leaves in the picture below. Maine, being North of us here in Pennsylvania, goes through the passage to Fall before us, but our trip was still a bit premature to see the upcoming season. It was only by luck I noticed this grove, and my excitement for the approaching season blossomed. I’m ready for Autumn.

Nikon D800 Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 @ 200mm f/9 ISO 100 1/100 sec

An Overactive Imagination

What do I see in the picture below? I see a forest of trees across a marshy wetland. The trees are green and happy, dappled in sunlight. Life is grand for the distant trees. The sky's the limit for them. They breathe the fresh air. They frolic in the late Summer winds. I want to visit their playground of wonder, where nature thrives.

Then I notice the other trees, the ones at the edge of the marsh, the dead ones. Warning bells chime in my head about what toll a journey across the sprawl of grasses would take. Did those barren trees venture out too far? Is the water deadly? Is the goo under the surface strong enough to grip my legs and render me immobile? Are the winds fierce enough to peel the skin from my bones before I could reach the other side? I hesitate, gripped in the fear of unknown possibilities.

Maybe I’m watching the slow migration of the quagmire into the forest. The plants and habitat of the bog may be stealing the life giving energy away from the receding woodlands. Maybe it’s the weak trees that are being usurped by the mire as the strong trees rush away from me. Maybe...maybe...maybe I think too much.

Have a great weekend.

Nikon D800 Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 30mm f/9 ISO 100 5 image HDR

On the Road

The recent trip to Acadia yielded many hours in the car, actually many more than originally planned. As a photographer, this has benefits and drawbacks. If your journey is through beautiful countryside in good weather then picture opportunities pour in from every side. There were a few of these locations that gave our weary bodies a chance to get out of the compact Nissan Versa, stretch, breath the salty air from the ocean breeze, rejoice in a few days off, and enjoy the Maine countryside. I always look for a picture to open a trip that tells our destination. This two story crustacean was ideal.

Our route was North, along the Coastal highway.  It was Labor Day Weekend which is early for the leaves to change, even in Maine, but there were a few patches of color. There was enough to whet my appetite for the approaching Autumn.

 

Another roadside attraction can be the road itself.  The Penobscot Narrows Bridge was quite a sight along our route. The Bridge opened at the end of 2006 and appeared in Popular Science magazine as one of the 100 best innovations of the year.

 

One of the dangers of roadside photography, aside from the obvious, is increased time to destination.  It can be difficult to decide to stop if you’re running late for a reservation, wanting to catch a sunset at a specific location, or avoid a rainstorm in the distance.  

 

These are the unique but fun challenges my wife patiently endures on our vacations. She is a special woman