Anatomy of a Composition - something of scale

In some corners this is heresy. I grew up in the shadow of a lighthouse just 70 miles north of this one, and while I have photographed that particular lighthouse many times in the past few years, this is a lighthouse that I didn’t get to visit until I had moved away.

In 2016 Andrew and Tanner were each able to sneak away for a week with me at the end of June. We hastily headed across the country, but realized on the morning of the second day that we had enough time in the day to do some extra exploring. It was the summer solstice that day so we decided to head into Chicago as this hadn’t been a part of our yearly trips before.

We found a great spot for a lunch, a brewery called Half-Acre, and decided that this should become part of our routine. Needless to say with Tanner now living in Chicago, we’ve made it back to Half-Acre on just a few occasions. After to good experience that we had in Chicago, we decided to seek out other breweries in Northern Michigan, and just by chance my parents had set up to camp not far from the town of Frankfort where this lighthouse is located, and where the boys and I would find of the real gems in Michigan’s brewery scene. Andrew and Tanner and I would go on to enjoy our week together “up north” and while the three of us haven’t been able to make a dedicated return trip, we each have in part been able to explore a little bit more.

While on that trip I was able to capture a few of my favorite photographs to date. One is of Tanner standing on the end of the pier with the slap of the rolling waves bursting in a huge shower over his head. The other image was a low angle image of the light with the water and rocks in the foreground. These will always be some of my favorites, but more importantly they were part of the catalyst that led me to where I am today with photography. While these images are perfect, and stand solidly on their own, I’ve always wanted to return to shoot the lighthouse and surrounding lakefront more extensively.

So on this trip I did just that. I was able to enjoy the lighthouse and pier through the cotton candy light of this late June sunset. The real benefit to adventuring at this point is it has been so long since I’ve seen most of these sites that in essence they are brand new again. Sites like this, which I’ve only recently been able to take in, will offer years of wonder and opportunity, with their inspiration, and now a desire to capture them in their different states and through the different seasons. Something as simple as representing scale, and negative space, much less the moody and tumultuous Lake Michigan will keep me returning for many years to come.

something of scale - ISO 100 | FE/1.8 | 1/400 sec at 135MM - Sony a7riv w/ Sony FE 135GM