Photography Tips Archives - Lost In Michigan

The Last Photo

Posted on August 18, 2022 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Lighthouses, Photography Tips .

Here is the last photo my old camera will ever take. I was at the Grand Travers Lighthouse at the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula and I saw the sunlight reflecting off of the glass. I took a couple pics then readjusted my lens hit the shutter and “tink” then it made some strange shutter sounds and the photos were black. I think the shutter or mirror broke.

I had my camera ( canon 5d mark II if you are wondering ) since 2009. I am sure that I have taken more than half a million photos with it and possibly over a million. I took all my photos with it for Lost In Michigan, Lost In The States, Pure Saginaw along with, weddings, senior portraits, tons of sports photos and family memories. It’s kinda like loosing a friend. I think of all the photos that I took and it has gone with me on many adventures. Time for a new camera I guess. I can’t complain the old one lasted a long time and I probably take more photos than most photographers. It may have been my camera’s last photo but I have many more I want to take and hope I am around for a long time to take them.

P.S. I could get my old camera repaired but I will probably cost more to repair it than its worth. I already had it fixed about 5 years ago.

7 Tips for Capturing Autumn Colors in Michigan

Posted on September 23, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in autumn, Photography Tips .

Once again, that magical time of year is here, yes I am talking about Autumn in Michigan. From pics of Tahquamenon Falls or the Lake of the Clouds surrounded by the glorious reds and yellows of autumn trees, to farm fields in Central Michigan or historic downtown areas, I have learned that you can get beautiful pics anywhere in Michigan. Here are some of the tips I have learned over the years.

an old barn in the sunshine near Vanderbilt

Take photos any time of day

I know you’re supposed to go out in the morning and evening in the “golden hour” but the leaves are at peak for only a short time, so don’t be afraid to take photos all day long, I found its best to have the sun behind you when you take photos, don’t shoot into the sun or the trees and barns will be in shadow.

Seven Bridges recreation area Kalkaska

Go out in all kinds of Weather

You know what they say” if you don’t like the weather in Michigan wait 15 minutes, it will change”. If it’s sunny and we have a nice sky then I will have a lot of sky in the photo such as farm fields or lakes. If it’s raining, then I find a location in a forest or a park with a canopy of leaves to cover the gray sky. Rainy days are also a good day to get photos of waterfalls in Michigan.

Downtown Stockbridge

You don’t have to travel far.

I have finally learned to just go with the flow and take photos of fall colors whenever and wherever I see them. I don’t care if I am near my house or in downtown, or halfway across the state, I am going to take the photo that presents itself, To get the most time to photograph foliage, I start north and work my way to the south following the flow of the color as it canvases the state.

Don’t force a photo that isn’t there
maybe you have your favorite spot in Michigan, and you want a photo of it, but the color is not right, the sun is at the wrong angle and you take a photo and it just looks blah, then don’t spend a lot of time trying to make it happen and go down the road and try somewhere else, and come back to your favorite spot later, remember the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, maybe a different time of day will work better or even a cloudy day.

Take a tripod, but you don’t have to use it

I always have my tripod with me but I don’t always have to use it, if it’s bright and sunny then click away, if it’s gray and dark out, then yes it’s best if you drag out that annoying thing out and use it. At least take it with you and you will have it if you need it. And remember sometimes you can set your camera on a stump or railing and that may work to stabilize your camera for a few shots so you don’t have to spend time setting up a tripod.

Keep your camera with you at all times.
you should have a camera with you so when you do see a scene you like you can capture it, and it should not be that hard to have a camera with you, most cell phones have a pretty good camera in them and I have gotten some good shots with mine, you never know you might see something you like on the way to work in the morning, stop and get a pic.

Mount Hope Church

Take lots of Photos
you have a digital camera right? Take lots of photos, yeah some will be better than others but only show and share your best, and learn from the ones you don’t like, is the sun behind you, was it raining, or cloudy, I found by taking lots of pics that I like the ones I got on rainy days and how to take them.

You may have noticed from my list, you don’t need lots of fancy gear and know all your camera settings, you just need to go out and take lots of photos with whatever camera you have. Go out and just enjoy your time getting Lost In Michigan.

Lost In Michigan Books are a great way to find interesting places to see and photograph on an Autumn trip. I hope you will take a look at them HERE

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Michigan Landscape Photographers You Should Be Following

Posted on March 14, 2016 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Photography Tips .

There are several facebook pages and Instagram accounts that share photos from Michigan Photographers, probably the most famous is Pure Michigan. One thing I have noticed, is when a photo is featured, people never seem to click on the link to the photographers social media pages. So I am asking you a kindness. When you see a photo you like check out the photographer that took the photo and visit their galleries.

here are some of my favorite Michigan landscape Photographers, I hope you will click on the links and check out their work, I think they create truly spectacular photos, better than the photos I take. On their websites you will find links to facebook and instagram, I am sure they would love it if you followed them.

Michigan Nut Photgraphy – John McCormick

Neil Weaver Photography

Michigan Nature Photos – Greg Kretovic

22 North Photography – Brian Edward

Todd and Brad Reed

Craig Sterken Photograhy

Gary R. Ennis Photos

C & C Fritz Photogaphy – Curt Fritz

Beek Brothers Photography – Michael and Lee Beek

Daniel Frei Photography

Snap Happy Gal Photography –

Lake Superior Photo

Pure Saginaw this is a shameless plug for my other website, if your from Saginaw, I hope you will check it out

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How and What to Photograph in all kinds of Weather

Posted on May 8, 2014 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Photography Tips .

You know what they say in Michigan. “If you don’t like the weather, wait 15 minutes and it will change”. I thought I would do a post on how I deal with the weather when taking photos. Not so much as camera settings and weather proofing, but what and where to photograph when Mother nature gives less than Ideal conditions.

the Davenport House in Saline, the sun was directly behind the house when I took this photo. It would have been nice to take this pic in early morning or late evening but It was what it was when I was there. It was to beautiful of house not to stop and take a photo

When it’s nice and sunny, I like to photograph big open spaces that show a lot of sky, such as farm fields or the shoreline of a lake. The best time is sunrise or sunset, but I still like to take pics all day long. The mid-day sun is harsh and most photogs will tell you to stop taking photos but I don’t want to stop taking pics just because its not perfect, what in life is perfect. In bright sunlight It’s best to have the sun at your back so you are taking photos of buildings so if the sun is in the east then take pics of buildings facing west. If I find someplace I really like I will take a pic of it no matter what and then remember to go back and get a pic when conditions are better.

When it’s cloudy, I like to photograph downtown areas, that way I don’t have to worry about shadows on buildings. On a sunny day you could have half a building in sunlight, and the other in shade. I will make for a difficult situation when photographing. I also like to convert the cloudy day photos into black and white since the color captured on a cloudy day tends to be a little blah.

Seven Bridges in Kalkaska on a rainy day. I used to dispise the rain, I would only get one weekend to get pics of the the fall colors and it would rain. I have gotten some of my best photos on rainy days and I wish for them when I am doing waterfall photos.

When it’s raining out I like to photograph trails and streams in forest and parks. Leaves and grass are nice and saturated when they are wet, and since the sky is nothing but gray, it’s hidden by the trees. Rainy days are the perfect day to get photos of waterfalls if you are near one. If you have a tripod rainy days are the perfect day to use it.

The Strand in Lansing. I like taking photos of downtown areas on cloudy days to avoid harsh shadows. I also like converting the pics to black and white on cloudy days.

I love taking photos in northern Michigan, but since I can only make it up there a few times a year Mother Nature likes to challenge me with not so perfect weather, but I still photograph anyways. I have learned that you can still get some beautiful photos, even if they are not of sunny skies and sunsets, you just have to go with what you are given and not “force” a photo that’s not there. Check out my blog post HERE if you want to know how I find the places I photograph

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How to Find Interesting Places and Things to photograph.

Posted on March 6, 2014 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Photography Tips .

The Richard C Burtis house in Watrouseville, also known as “The Wedding Cake House”

When I go out on a whirlwind tour someplace I am not familiar with to get photos, I think of it as similar to fishing. I make some plans, but I never know what I am going to get. I usually start my trips with a little research, and have a destination in mind, that way if I am going to drive an hour or two, I know I will have some photos I like. I usually plan on visiting well known landmarks, like a lighthouse or waterfall, I also check and see if there are some historical markers I can take pics at. I try to drive one route on the way there, and a different route on the way back to see as much as I can and get the most out of my trip since gas is so expensive.

I try to take back roads that go thru towns, instead of the interstate, sure the interstate is faster, but it’s kinda boring. I try to take back roads also from town to town, sometimes there is an obvious road that will take you to the next town, it was probably a wagon trail before there were cars, but the highway system made it obsolete. It’s usually along these roads I find old cemeteries, churches and schools. As long as we are on the subject of cemeteries, I have found that around old cemeteries, I see some of the most interesting things, like old houses and buildings. Most likely, the people buried in the cemetery, lived and worked in the places I find. I also like to travel down roads that run along rivers, besides the scenery of the river, most early settlers in Michigan built along the rivers, probably as lumber towns to float logs to the mill.

Old General Store in Kilmanagh

Since I live in Saginaw, and it’s hard to make it up to the U.P. and other well known natural Michigan landmarks, I photograph in central Michigan a lot. Central Michigan can be a real challenge in winter, ponds and rivers are frozen and snow covered and when I photograph them, they just look like snow covered fields. The towns have snow piled up on the sides of the roads, and are not attractive, that’s why I tend to photograph old houses and barns in the countryside. I take all my photos from public roads and sidewalks and do not trespass. As the snow melts and spring approaches I will start taking more pics of downtown areas. I want to get some pics of Detroit and other large cities this spring.

I hope that gives you a little insight as to how I find the places in my photos. Some of it’s planning and sometimes it’s just plain old luck, but as they say “Chance favors the prepared” and I always have my camera with me.

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Old Michigan Bean Elevator in Henderson