I love sleeping in. It’s one of the things that makes me most happy (behind my family, my dog and photography of course).

So on Thursday while I was at work, I thought to myself, what a great idea to wake up early and get photos of the sunrise. I’m usually a morning person anyway. I’m that over-enthusiastic coworker who annoys everyone else who is still half asleep. I embrace the role proudly. But I like to enjoy sleeping in an extra hour or two on weekends, so I thought I’d challenge myself and get moving at 4:30am.

I went to bed around 11pm Thursday night. So I was questioning whether or not I should actually get up early but I knew I’d regret it if I didn’t keep my word to myself. My alarm went off Friday morning and I forced myself out of bed. I stopped by the local Casey’s for some coffee, a breakfast sandwich and an apple. I made the 25 minute trek to Hickory Grove Park outside of Colo, Iowa.

Apparently, they are renovating the entire park, so I had to work my way around some construction, but I made it work. I parked, grabbed my photo bag and tripod and then I walked down to the water. It was a little chilly but I stuck it out. The geese were honking, the ducks were quacking, and the bass were jumping. It was a lively morning and I’m glad I got up early to see it.

I adjusted the settings on my camera and attached my remote shutter and looked for some compositions. Let me just say…sunrise photography is completely new to me!

I really didn’t know what to shoot. I think location had a lot to do with it, but I wasn’t completely impressed with my sunrise photos. They were just okay. But I didn’t want to stop there.

So after the sun came up, I drove around for a bit. Exploring the country in the early morning is awesome because I saw a Barred Owl, a doe (a deer, a female deer), and a male pheasant. You usually don’t see those animals in town. I love watching wild animals in their element. Animal Behavior was one of my favorite classes in college! Anyway, I digress.

Then I decided to drive up to Ada Hayden Park just North of Ames. The sun had already come up, but I thought I’d explore anyway because it’s something I’ve always been good at.

I shot quite a lot of photos. I saw a guy on a bike make several laps around the “lake,” and I greeted a few people taking early-morning walks. I spent a good hour at Ada Hayden and then I was ready to go home and edit (and take a nap).

So why did I get up so early on my day off? Well you might be thinking, to get photos, duh! Okay, yeah, I got up to get photos, but the bigger reason why I did it was for discipline. It’s easy to say, meh I’ll do it another time.

If you do what you say you’re going to do, you’ll be so much more ahead of yourself than if you were to just put it off. I got up early because I made a promise to myself and because I have never actually gotten up early just to take photos of the sunrise. Plus, I got to see wildlife I wouldn’t have been able to see otherwise.

I got a few keeper photos, but more importantly, I earned experience. So if you want something, don’t let the temptation of procrastination take you over!

Δ Abbi

Alright, I took the photo of the photo, but this lovely print shown here was taken by a Landscape Photographer named Doug Cummelin. He specializes in capturing the beauty of Northern Minnesota, but his art has taken him all over the country. His experience with photography started when he was very young as he remembers his dad taking the family photo every year. I had the pleasure of meeting Doug one evening while I was spending time with my brother (Casey) and his college friend.

The three of us met up and had dinner at Lucky’s 13 Pub which is connected to the mall in Burnsville, MN. After eating and socializing, Casey wanted a bottle of water, so we ventured into the mall. After walking around for a few minutes, I stumbled upon Doug’s little shop. As a photographer, it caught my eye pretty quickly, so I had to check it out. The other two left me behind.

After browsing for a couple minutes, I caught up to the others and told them about the awesome photos I had seen and how they needed to check them out too! I led them to this amazing photo of a barn in front of the Great Teton Mountains. It was captivating, especially on the large canvas. Click HERE to see it! They agreed that it was pretty extraordinary and we continued to observe more of Doug’s work.

I was flipping through the stack of photos he had for sale when Casey said, “You should buy one.” It didn’t take much convincing, so I started looking for one that I wanted. I came upon the sunset photo of Homer Lake and I knew it was the one.

I went up to the front of the store and sparked up a conversation with Doug to get an idea of how he started photography. The four of us talked not only about the technical things, but also the philosophical things involved in photography. I don’t often get to talk in-depth about photography with anyone, so it was a nice change! We wrapped up the conversation because it was getting late (and I had to work the next day). So I thanked Doug for his time and we went home.

As an artist, and small business owner, I tend to get so focused on what I’m doing. I worry that I’m not going to be successful as a photographer. Cameras are becoming cheaper and easier to use, so why would someone want to buy my photos when they could just do it themselves?

Well this is what I’ve discovered: it’s not just about the photo, it’s about how it makes you feel. When I look at the photo of Homer Lake, it reminds me that if I work hard enough, I can achieve whatever I want. I might not be where I want to be right now, but I will get there.

I think it’s so important to support local artists because you can talk about their art with them and understand why and how they created the things they did. I’m not saying getting home decor from a big store is wrong (because Hobby Lobby definitely has some cute items), but you don’t get to know who created those pieces and why.

Doug took the photo of Homer Lake on his first trip back to the Boundary Waters since his childhood. Homer Lake lies at the end of the Caribou Trail before Brule Lake. And I can relate to that, because my first and only Boundary Waters experience was on Brule Lake. If I would have purchased a similar photo from a big store, I probably wouldn’t have known those things.

I am so glad Casey needed water, otherwise I may have not discovered Doug’s photography shop! Don’t ever let your spontaneity die because you can meet some awesome people along the way!

Check out Doug’s Facebook page and Website!

Until next time!

Δ Abbi

Why I woke up at 4:30am on my day off.

I didn't take this photo!