Hey, gang-

Nicki and I have been trying to find new places to explore and take pics of near us- either in Hernando (see Flashback Friday: Being Local Tourists pt1 – Hernando Skates) or Memphis (see Flashback Friday: Being Local Tourists pt2 – Downtown Discoveries). We’ve found a few spots for photography, but haven’t had a chance for decent sunset ones around our house/neighborhood.

Last week Nicki and I went to go get our COVID booster shots in Southaven. When we got back to Hernando we stopped to get some coffee at Coffee Central. As we left we saw saw some color in the sunset and went exploring around Hernando to see if we could find some spots that might work for sunset pics.

Unfortunately since we were on our way back from getting our shots and didn’t have either big camera with us- just an iPhone each. Oh, and there wasn’t many places to pull over as we drove. Apparently our area doesn’t believe in shoulders along the roadside.

I snapped a few pics out the side window and windshield as Nicki piloted her new Hyundai hybrid. Did see a few deer here and there in fields. We were trying to keep an eye out for them- didn’t need a new hood ornament for Nicki’s new car.

Nicki remembered that Hernando Point wasn’t too far away. She punched in the coordinates into her onboard computer and got directions to it. Turns out it’s only a few miles away from us, and we were there in just a couple minutes. I saw a few other spots that we might be able to stop (or at least slow down more) for future trips.

I was shocked at how long the color lasted in the sky. Normally if I see any sunsets from our backyard or when we’re out the color tends to fade rather quickly. Fortunately for us we had good color the whole way there.

When we got to Hernando Point I got out of the car and walked towards Arkabutla Lake for some shots off the boat ramp.

The temp was low, as was the water level in the lake. We saw a person down by the shore who looked to be fishing. We stayed on the boat ramp so we didn’t encroach on their space.

The color was still vibrant and I motioned for Nicki to come down and check it out. We definitely had found a great spot for future sunset pics!

I rolled down my window and took this shot just before we left. There was no real color looking back this way, but I dug the tree, and was shocked the shot turned out exposed correctly and in focus! I’ve got a canvas print of this ordered- hoping it looks as good as I hope.

So, a few days later I noticed some great color on my way back home from dropping off some art in Memphis. I called Nicki up to give her a heads up. Since she had just logged off from work I stopped by the house to pick her up for another shot at some sunsets. We grabbed the camera bags and switched cars before heading out for a second quick trip down to Hernando Point.

While heading to Hernando Point we saw one deer cross the road ahead of us, and another standing not too far away from the side of the road. We needed to get down there in a hurry, but still had to be vigilant!

Again the color stuck around for quite awhile and was seriously intense!

Once we got there I snapped a couple pics at the top of the hill. Since nobody else was around I walked along the shoreline while Nicki shot with her new mirror-less Sony a7iii from the boat ramp. I saw a few deer tracks, driftwood, and sadly a lot of trash that had washed up.

Had seen a crane fly off as we pulled up, and did see/hear a few ducks as I took pics along the shore.

I had to be careful not to step on anything, or get stuck in the wet sand and lose my shoes! It was definitely “quicksandish”, and felt kind of weird to be the only two folks around.

These photos were all shot with my iPhone (I took some with Nicki’s Nikon D5100 digital SLR– Nicki is going to adjust them in Lightroom for me). Still kicking myself for us not taking a tripod! Definitely gonna have to keep the monopod and flexible iPhone tripod in the car. May look at buying a tripod to keep in the car that’ll fit under the seat or in the back hatch.

Also need to remember to keep the batteries charged and to double check that a memory card is in the camera. We had taken a few pics after a snow storm on Sunday (post to come) and lost a few minutes having Nicki find a card because I didn’t check before getting out of the car. Lessons learned…

There was a really bright streetlight that came on behind us on the boat ramp, so that’s my shadow in many of the shots. Since I didn’t have a tripod I tried steadying the iPhone and camera on a log, which worked okay but wasn’t a perfect stand-in for a good tripod. Hey, sometimes you just have to make the best of the situation.

And of course I had the camera shut down just as the moon and Venus started to shine through the clouds. Luckily I did have my iPhone with me to at least get these pics.

Before we left I took a panoramic photo from the bottom of the boat ramp. Heard more ducks off in the distance as I turned from left to right taking the shot. As the sun went down, so did the temperature! The wind kicked up more which made trying to take pics even more difficult, so it was time to head home for some hot chocolate.

I look forward to heading back for a chance to take more pics here- hopefully we can get down and set up a bit earlier, and be better prepared. Also looking forward to exploring the area for more places to shoot from.

I’ll try and do a post later of my favorite edited shots once Nicki’s had time to play with them in Lightroom. Still have some zoo pics I haven’t posted, too.

Lin