Every summer for the last few years, I add to my collection of portraits. This isn’t the normal variety of smiling people, however. They are portraits of the buoys that folks in Northern Michigan use to warn boaters of shallow waters. Because the water is so clear, and the shallow spots go out so far into the lake, sometimes it’s difficult to tell. Most of the residents along the water anchor some type of buoy directly out front of their property and it’s fun to take my stand up paddle board along the edge and notice the floating ornamentation.

I’ve been doing it for awhile and I’m always curious about how the various changes in weather and light impact my pictures. The same subject can look so different depending on the day.

The star buoys are pretty popular, but they’re not the only ones out on the water. Some buoys are shiny and new and others have withstood the test of time.

Regardless of the condition, I’m always fascinated to see what the current conditions look like through my lens. If the lake is calm and I’m just paddling around, I secure my phone into my pocket or the top of my swimsuit to grab a few pictures.

But in one instance, I had a specific picture in mind, so I wrapped up my big camera in a towel and set out in a kayak to try to grab the shot. I wanted the lake to be calm, at sunset and for the pinks of the sky to be seen reflected in the water along with the buoy. It *only* took me 4 separate evenings (ha!) to get the shot that I wanted. Between the ripples from my paddle and the buoy changing directions and my kayak floating too far away, I finally got the shot I was hoping for:

I printed it big, on shiny metal and now it hangs in my house as an everyday reminder of our good memories at the lake.

I find joy in photographing these simple objects and I hope you can find something to routinely point your camera at too. Always noticing – Angie