Michigan 2019 by John Kennington In January 2019 I had a great trip to Michigan. I first hit Chicago, then many of the light houses on the eastern shore of Lake Michagan. Unfortunately, I was a few weeks too early for the famous "ice lights" which appeared a few weeks lat- er due to the Polar Vortex! Next up were railroad shoots in Owosso and Flint, and finally a Rosie the Riveter shoot at the Yankee Air Museum near Ann Arbor. In January 2019 I had a great trip to Michigan. I first hit Chicago, then many of the light houses on the eastern shore of Lake Michagan. Unfortunately, I was a few weeks too early for the famous "ice lights" which appears a few weeks later due to the Polar Vortex! Next up were railroad shoots in Owosso and Flint, and finally a Rosie the Riveter shoot near Ann Arbor. Dawn at Chicago's North Avenue Beach I was planning on a sunrise shot in Chicago, and it just happened to be the Sunday of the Bears' playoff game. My first choice of location, near Soldier Field, was closed off for security, even at 5:00 a.m. But North Avenue Beach turned out okay! The Bears losing after the "double doinks" were karma for them keeping me away! Sunrise From Chicago's North Avenue Pier I next walked out the North Avenue Pier at sunrise, and had about 3 minutes of the sun hitting the buildings, then it was gone behind the clouds for rest of the day. Japanese Garden, Chicago Botanic Garden I spent an afternoon at the Chicago Botanic Garden. It's a nice place, though a bit barren this time of year. But the Japa- nese Gardens look good any time of year. 18th Avenue Bridge Railyard, Chicago, Illinois Old Seminary Building, Univ of Chicago Did you know Hogwarts is in Chicago?!? This lobby at the Old Seminary Building (now housing the school of economics) at the University of Chicago certainly reminds me of Hogwarts!! St. Joseph North Pier Light My first Michigan Lighthouse was the St. Joseph North Pier Light. I arrived late afternoon to very overcast skies, high winds and rain. Then suddenly the sun peeked out, but I was on the wrong side for a good sunset. So I quickly drive to the north side just in the nick of time for a gorgeous sunset. Evening Light, St Joseph North Pier Lighthouse, Michigan Since this is Michigan in January I was expecting lots of ice on the lighthouses, but it was in the low 40s, so no ice (though the wind chill was in the teens!). I hung around after sunset while there was still a glow in the sky and since it was safe I walked out on the pier for my favorite shot of the day. Stormy Night at South Haven Light, South Haven, Michigan I arrived in South Haven, Michigan after dark, and went to check out shooting locations for sunrise and found that it was fairly well lit. So, despite the cold, gale force winds I hauled out the camera and got a nice shot. Sunrise at South Haven Lighthouse, Michigan Spent the morning at South Haven Light. The skies were heavily overcast so none of that golden sunrise or pre-sunrise light. My first choice is always dramatic clouds, but overcast is the worst. I took some rather boring shots, then walked out on the pier and right when I was in the perfect spot the sun peeked out for about 3 minutes. Sunset at Holland Harbor Light, Michigan After 3 minutes of the sun peeking out at sunrise at South Haven I headed to Big Red Lighthouse in Holland. It was overcast and snowing all day, but I waited there about three hours until sunset, just in case. This time the sun popped out for maybe 2 minutes, but it was enough time to get the shot. Lights on at Holland Harbor Light, Michigan After the nice sunset pic at Big Red Lighthouse in Holland I hung around for the blue hour, that hour or so after sunset with often really nice light, to get a shot with the windows lit. I'm happy with this pic, but wanted to stay around even longer. The winds all day were really strong (there was a gale force winds warning) but at this point they got even stronger and were picking up sand from the beach and essentially sandblasting everything. It was hurting my face, but it would have also ruined my camera lens, so I had to leave. Snow Storm at Grand Haven Light, Michigan Was at Grand Haven Light on Wednesday, but those gale force winds brought in a storm. So no sunrise, and I was shooting through some heavy snow. Everything was iced up so it was too dangerous to get very close. My timing was both good and bad. They just finished multi-year repairs to the pier in August. But the iconic catwalk, which has now been refurbished, will not be reinstalled until later in 2019, so I'm missing that in my pic. Little Sable Light, Michigan I next went further north to Little Sable Light. This lighthouse is surrounded by sand dunes, and the winter storm was continuing. That is snow on the sand, not salt! Ludington Light, Michigan My next Michigan Lighthouse was in Ludington. The wintry weather was continuing, so it was too dangerous to walk out on the pier. I got a nice shot of the rough surf and a little bit of ice build up. More ice would be coming soon! Winter at Manistee North Pierhead Lighthouse, Michigan On my last day on the Lake Michigan coast it was still snowing, cold and very windy, so no sunrise or sunset pics. But clouds and rough seas make for good pics too. My first stop of the day was the Manistee North Pier Head Lighthouse. I finally found some significant ice! Point Betsie Lighthouse, Michigan My last Lake Michigan Lighthouse was Point Betsie, and it was the by far the iciest! I had Yaktrax cleats on my boots, but I really needed full on crampons. So I crawled the last 20 feet to get in position for this shot. Detroit Skyline at Dawn I next crossed the state for one night in Detroit. Of course I went for a pre-sunrise shot of the skyline. Milliken Park Lighthouse, Detroit And Detroit has some lighthouses! This is the Milliken Park Lighthouse, Detroit, Michigan The other purpose of my Michigan trip was to do some train photography. Pere Marquette 1225 with 1951 Chevy No 1, Bannister, Michigan First up is a 1951 Chevy waiting at a grade crossing in Bannister, Michigan as the Pere Marquette #1225 steam locomo- tive passes by. Pere Marquette 1225 Passing Carland Elevator, Carland, Michigan Next up, the Pere Marquette #1225 steam locomotive passing the Carland Elevator in Carland, Michigan. We also re- turned to this spot for a night shot. Pere Marquette 1225 Passing Carland Elevator at Night, Carland, Michigan Pere Marquette 1225 Before Dawn, Owosso, Michigan Taking train photos makes for very long days, leaving the station well before sunrise, and then often out on the line after dark taking night shots, like the last one I posted. This one of the Pere Marquette #1225 Steam Locomotive was taken about an hour before sunrise, during the "blue hour" (with temps in the low 20s!) Following are some other shots of the Pere Marquette #1225 in the countryside around Owosso, Michigan. Pere Marquette 1225 Passing Farm House, Owosso, Michigan Pere Marquette 1225 No 2, Michigan Waiting for the Pere Marquette #1225 to Pass Pere Marquette 1225 with 1951 Chevy No 2 Bannister, Michigan Pere Marquette 1225 on the Turntable, Owosso, Michigan On our second evening we had a night shoot at the railyard in Owosso, Michigan. Here is the Pere Marquette #1225 looking particularly moody on the turntable. The Pere Marquette #1225 spent most of the 1960s on static display outside the Michigan State University football sta- dium. It is the actual inspiration for the Polar Express. The author of the book went to every home game and spent many an hour climbing on it as a child. And if you did not notice, the engine's number is "1225", Christmas! Here is the crew posing in front of their engine after a long two days and nights on the rails. We had a group of “Rosie the Riveters” join us for the night shoot to recreate scenes working on the Pere Marquette #1225 steam Engine in Owosso, Michigan rail yard. Most are volunteers at the Yankee Air Museum and are called the Willow Run Tribute Rosie volunteers. They honor women in the defense industry in WWII – Rosie the Riveter – that were essential to the American war effort. Rosies made up close to 40% of the workforce at the Willow Run B-24 Bomber Plant, assembling over 8,600 B-24 Liberator bombers. They make many appearances throughout Michigan and around the country, helping raise awareness for the Yankee Air Museum. Photos of them at work at Willow Run are below. One of our Rosies stoking the boiler on the Pere Marquette #1225. Some more of our Rosies working on the Pere Marquette #1225 in Michigan. Our Rosies taking a break from working on the Pere Marquette #1225 at the yard in Owosso, Michigan. Our Rosie the Riveters recreating a famous pose. Next up is a series of images of our Rosies working at the Willow Run Bomber Plant in Ann Arbor, Michigan.