For a few days this month I was able to get back north to my home state of Minnesota. As you all know, I praise Minnesota for a lot of things. But, aside from beautiful winters, most of all I praise it for its dark skies in the northern part of the state. These dark skies are some of the darkest in the nation and should be treasured for their awe-inspiring and humbling views of our star-studded skies of our planet and our galaxy. On the night of my arrival, I spent the vast majority of the night photographing the sky in Superior National Forest with fellow photographer friend Justin Vrba (whom I highly recommend you check out his work). Below you will find some of my favorite Milky Way images from the trip, a handful of images from sunrise to sunset on Lake Superior’s North Shore, and also a few of some of the Great Lakes’ greatest treasures, the freighters.
As I’m doing as I write this, I’d throw some Bob Dylan or Ian Tamblyn on the turntable and enjoy the visuals.
—Jake
Fujifilm XT2, Samyang 12mm—for this shot I utilized a small 100 lumen lantern hanging from my Yakima Skyrise roof tent. The lantern lit up just enough of the foreground to provide some depth to the image without washing out the Milky Way and night sky.Fujifilm XT2, Samyang 12mmFujifilm XT2, Samyang 12mm—foreground illuminated with headlamp.Fujifilm XT2, XF35mm—a prime lens and longer focal length can change the perspective of the image greatly. A 35mm lens enlarges the Milky Way against the silhouetted foreground of trees.Morning views along the Langley River, Toimi, MNChester Park, Duluth, MN—a great spot to relax.The McCarthy Jr departing the port of Duluth, as seen from Duluth’s north pier.Stoney Point Sunset, Knife River, MNStoney Point Sunset, Knife River, MNStoney Point Sunrise, Knife River, MNStoney Point Sunrise, Knife River, MNStoney Point Sunrise, Knife River, MN
The McCarthy Jr departs the port of Duluth in the semi-stormy seas of Lake Superior.
