South Manitou Lighthouse, a photo from Michigan, Midwest

Photographer's Note

This lighthouse is situated on South Manitou Island, which is now part of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore on Lake Michigan. One can take a ferry over to the island for a day trip or you can camp overnight. This island encompases 5260 acres, mostly wooded area.

The island is the southernmost island of a group of islands just off of the Michigan mainland, and mark the Manitou passage. This lighthouse is actually the third lighthouse at this point. The previous lighthouse remains and is attached by a walkway (it can be seen peeking out from the trees to the right of the tower). The tower was built 1872 and was discontinued in 1958. It stands 100 feet above the lake. Visitors are now able to take a tour into the lighthouse and view the island from the top observation deck.

We visited the island on a rather rainy morning; luckily the rain subsided, but a little fog remained. In Photoshop, the image was cropped, ran through AutoLevels, sharpened, and framed.

Most of the info from the National Park Service site: http://www.nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/smilighthouse.htm

stego, danarees, DownUnder, gunbud has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

stego (24132) 2006-10-09 17:55

That extreme softness of the sea and sky gives an efect of floating that it's beautiful. Maybe more sharpness is dispensable here, but a little more detail and brighter shadows would be nice.

mphotographies (1976) 2006-10-09 22:08

Hey Amber,
Despite the weather, you manage to capture a lovely image! Nice POV, well placed elements, even if the image is quite on the softer side the whole composition worked very well. A perfect place for relaxing, watching the calm waters and simply viewing the 'century-old' lighthouse from your point is a joy itself!
Regards,
Jom

danarees (2502) 2006-10-10 0:31

Amber, this is a stunning image. It feels more like a watercolor painting than it does a photograph. The composition is very strong. Thank you!
Dana

DownUnder (1177) 2006-10-12 22:30

I've always like light houses, this seems to be at a very nice lacation too.. overcast weather made the conditions a bit hard but managed well.. tfs Amber

Alaettin

gunbud (34066) 2006-12-04 17:51

Hi Amber,
I love how the lighthouse is located on a sand beach, I'm used to the rock coast of Maine Lighthouses. This looks very relaxing.
Regards, Tom

mile27 (256) 2006-12-27 0:32

Very nice shot of the lighthouse, Amber. The scene is well framed and the colours are good. The water reflections are an added bonus. Good job....