I chose this one for a Photo Friday challenge with the topic of Patterns. I hard a had time deciding so I actually uploaded two, the next photo has leaf patterns too.

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This was shot at ISO 100, f/14 and set for a 1 second exposure, the long expose is part of why the water looks so smooth (see the difference in this cropped ⅓ second exposure photo I took just seconds before. I shot this in RAW with no editing after. I normally don’t shoot in raw (the images are too huge) but I plan to explore more with some post production but didn’t with this photo.

Please leave a comment or trackback about Belle Isle Bridge early in the morning, click the tags and categories below for related photos or visit GHotos (Gary's pHotos) for more photos and posts.

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I shot this with my iPhone 4 standing as tall as I could while in front of the monument.

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This was a 13 second exposure at f/14 with my 18-55mm lens at 18mm.

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This was my causeway view of the April 2011 launch of STS-131. It was very exciting! The causeway is the best view you can publicly purchase* tickets to watch a launch from, you can actually see the shuttle while it’s on the launch pad. From the Visitor’s Center you can’t actually see the launch because the trees are in the way, you can see it seconds after it clears the tree line. We couldn’t see the shuttle until a bus took us to the causeway and as you stepped off the bus people were gasping when they could see the shuttle on the launch pad! It was (very) far away, but it was beautiful!!!

This was one of the last few launches and it was amazing, I really wished I’d made it down there to more launches. It was a great experience. I’m so glad that I went on that trip!

* After you got in the lottery via e-mail you get to be in the “virtual waiting room” for ticket purchase day, you then had to win another lottery get actually get picked out of that room. FYI, they didn’t charge more for tickets on launch day, they were just harder to get (you did pay more for the causeway, but that’s because you had to get on a separate chartered bus to get out to that location). Private tour groups had some tickets but they charged more and it seemed a little more complicated getting around.

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Diamond Jack has great boat trips on the Detroit River. I think they run from Memorial Day to Labor Day on Thursdays to Sunday. The ones from downtown Detroit start at Rivard Plaza right by the carousel and the ones from Wyandotte start at the Bishop park. I think they do two a day at each location; the Detroit ones are the same, the Wyandotte has a north tour and a south tour.

Click for some of my blog posts and photos about Detroit, Michigan..

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