Detroit

Going to Windsor the other day inspired me for my next class project. Our topic is 'night photography' and I decided to head across the river to get Detroit at night. I called Ken we headed across to Canada one step ahead of the storm that was approaching.

The first shot I took. A bit over exposed.

I changed it up a bit and let a little less light in.

Looking at the RenCen.

Pulled back a bit.

These pics aren't the greatest, but I think for a first attempt they turned out pretty well.  We would have liked to try other vantage points and different things, but it was cold and rainy. 

Detroit and Windsor

Ken called on Sunday. He'd just gotten his passport and wanted to go to Windsor.  Since I don't have any pictures of Windsor or Detroit from Canada I agreed to go along even though I had a bunch of other stuff to do.

The Canadian end of the Ambassador Bridge.

Looking towards America.

The train station stands out. 

There were a couple of sculptures of dinosaurs in the park along the river.

Another view of the Ambassador Bridge.

The other dinosaur

A dancing bear.

A U.S. flag.  There was a Canadian flag just the the left of this one.

Detroit.

Just a tighter shot.

A war memorial.

I'm not usually a fan of sculptures, but for some reason, I really like this one.  Probably just because of the simplicity.

The RenCen.

Another shot of Detroit.  I probably shot more of this than necessary because I'm not used seeing it.

We stopped at Milliken State Park.  I saw that there was a ship upbound and debated about telling Ken about it.  He was ready to go back to the car and I knew if I told him about it I'd be stuck chasing ships.  Still, I knew he'd like it so I decided to bite the bullet and told him.  The ship coming was the Victoriaborg.  She's a salty. 

Ken then saw that Atlantic Huron was leaving the fueling dock and wanted a picture of it.  It was just going a short distance to unload.  It wasn't a great place to get a pic and this was the best that I could get.

Chelsea and Dexter

A little while back Ken decided to visit Chelsea for some pictures and I went along figuring I could get some pictures too.

This is the train station that serviced Chelsea.

The building across the tracks.  I believe this was an old stove company.  It has nice character and is a nice change from modern architecture.

Another view of the train station.  There were two waiting rooms, one on each end of the station.  One was for the men, the other for the women.  Imagine that today.

Flowers outside one of the downtown stores.

Finally some color after months of browns, grays and whites.

New life.

As I walked out of a gallery I was browsing, Ken asked me what the 'black thing' was.  Turns out it was a new Jeep Cherokee.  Chelsea is home to the Chrysler proving grounds so it isn't unusual to see pre-production cars out and about.

The Cherokee should hit the roads later this year.

One of the churches in Chelsea.

Next we headed to Dexter.  I've seen work on the river walk for awhile now but haven't stopped to scope it out.  We wandered down it a bit.  I didn't take a lot of pictures, but here is one of the river.  The bridge over the river is casting the shadow.

Huron Camera.  This is one of the last brick and mortar stores camera stores around.  If you need something camera or photography related, I cannot recommend them enough.  The small building on the right houses a BBQ joint.  It smelled wonderful and I would have eaten some if I hadn't eaten a big lunch earlier.

Heading back to the car I saw this on the side of a building. 

Detroit

My latest assignment was 'Urban.'  My goal was to head to Detroit so I talked to Ken who took the day off work and we headed downtown early.  I was hoping to get shots of people, but it was pretty cold and there weren't many people out and about.

We parked at Greektown Casino and hotel.  I think this is a pretty nice looking building.

We headed towards the RenCen. 

I was struck by contrast of the old water tower against the modern construction of the Renaissance Center.

I liked the pattern in the construction of this building.

We made it to the Renaissance Center and headed inside.  It was nice and warm after the cold.  I'd only been inside once before when I had dinner there about 14 years ago.  That was in the evening and I really don't remember much about it except the view.  This glass walkway circles the center tower and provides easy access to the four surrounding towers.

From inside the Winter Garden on the river side.

Another view from the Winter Garden.  The bottom floor holds a bunch of tables and there is a food court in the area.

The Detroit River Princess.  She does cruises of the Detroit River in the summer.  I'm not sure when she'll start sailing this year.

The RenCen from Hart Plaza.  I don't recall ever being there before.  It was nice and I'd like to see it some day when it isn't so cold out.

The inside of the Guardian Building.  This is amazing.

Another shot of the interior.   They certainly don't make them like this anymore.  I wonder how many treasures like this have been lost with decay of Detroit.

Just walking around.  I'm not sure what this building is.

I liked the angles here.

We headed back to the RenCen for the free tour.  The big draw to this was the trip to the top of the center tower.  Looking north to Belle Isle and Lake Saint Clair.

Looking south.  The Detroit River Princess is docked in the foreground and the Ambassador Bridge connects Detroit to Windsor on the left.

I like the high crosswalk, but it doesn't seem to mesh well with the Guardian Building.

This church is across the street from Greektown Casino.  It is a beautiful building, but it is hard to get a good shot of it because of the buildings around it.

The front of the church.

A shot of the side of the chuch, though it is a bit distorted.

This is the only building left from a shipbuilder.  I don't recall what the company was, but just off the image to the right is a slip where ships were constructed.  I think steam engines were built here before being transferred across the street and installed in the hull.

A view back to Detroit.

Shot a little differently.

And a view from the street.


Which brings us to my final three images.  I haven't just sipped the post processing Kool-Aid, I've drunk the entire pitcher.  These have been edited somewhat.  I haven't done a lot of work with them, but I think they are superior to the images as they came out of the camera.  I'm still learning, but I really like the results. 

The Detroit skyline.

The Renaissance Center.

Perhaps my favorite shot of the day.