Look Up – a photo challenge

Friday night's moon
Friday night’s moon

Each morning begins with a new perspective. It’s never the same in the morning.

I’ve been sipping coffee and enjoying the morning view for years by the lake. I miss grandma, who was often up before me sitting in her chair sipping coffee. I’d refill her coffee or brew a fresh pot and join her. She’s gone, now, and now I sit in the chair, sip coffee, Ivy curls up on the footstool and we begin the day looking out over the lake.

Some mornings the lake is calm and others, like this morning, the wind is up and the water is rippled and choppy. Some mornings it’s foggy and in the winter the lake freezes and is solid white. No matter the day, the way the lake appears is never the same. It’s fresh and new.

Yesterday was stormy in upper Lower Michigan, but most of the heavy thunderstorms went south or north of the lake. We could hear the boom of thunder and we’d get an occasional sprinkle and that was all. Later in the afternoon, a band of rain crossed the lake bringing a good downpour, then it stopped.

When B and I came home from dinner and I pulled into the driveway, I looked up scanning the skies. The skies were clear and the moon and stars, and few planets were beginning to shine brightly. I enjoy looking up at the night sky by the lake up north. The stars appear much brighter than at home – less light pollution. I grabbed my camera and went out to the dock and snapped off a few photos trying to capture what I could see. This morning when I checked the camera, I found these images, and the one above.

the moon over the lake and the dot, that's Jupiter. Friday evening sunset
the moon over the lake and the dot, that’s Jupiter. Friday evening sunset

I need to look up more often. I need to bring a tripod to get better images and I need to be more patient, maybe even read the camera manual, but I need to look up and keep looking up.

Today is gonna be a great day. I know it and I can feel it.

Making the Days Count, one day at a time, looking up for inspiration.

What do you see when you look up?

Today’s post is inspired by last week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Look up. For this week’s challenge, take a moment to look up. Whether it’s the fan above your head at work, your bedroom ceiling, or the night sky, what do you see? Is it familiar? Or does it show you a new perspective on your surroundings? Looking forward to the peeks into your worlds!

11 thoughts on “Look Up – a photo challenge

    1. Indeed – I traded my lake view for my home backyard and trees. This morning the squirrels were chirping at me, really my dog, and i saw a skunk run along the fence. Fortunately, my dog missed the skunk. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week.

  1. That was one of the things I loved about growing up on a lake. Every day, and multiple times during the day, the view changed. Water was always different, moment to moment.

    I haven’t done my ‘look up’ photo challenge yet. I have an idea but I have to get up out of my chair and go do it. I enjoyed your lake and moon photos. Night photography is another thing on my bucket list. Have done a little bit, so much more to learn!

    1. thank you – I am home now and my ‘night view’ is bounded by trees. I always enjoy the time by the lake because of the night views…among other reasons. I’ve enjoyed several of the ‘Look Up’ posts I’ve seen. It was a good reminder to me to look up, I’d been spending too much time looking down, today is gonna be a great day. I know it and I can feel it. Have a great one Dawn!

  2. Wow – what great photos! My efforts at night time photography never seem to work even though I follow the settings exactly as my owners guide suggests. Oh well. Practice makes perfect they say so I’ll keep trying.

    Enjoy the lake.

    Patricia Rickrode
    w/a Jansen Schmidt

    1. Thank you. I was surprised by the moon image, too. At the end of the year the 8th grade science curriculum cover astronomy, or covered, this coming year it changes but I digress. I’ve always been amazed looking at the sky – especially by the lake where there is LESS light pollution. In the early southern evening sky you can see three planets beginning in the west 30 degrees above the horizon Jupiter, then Mars, then Saturn. They are the brightest objects in the sky in the hour after the sun sets. Need to keep practicing. Have a wonderful week.

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