2012 in Review

Wow, 2012 is almost behind us.  So I guess this is a good time to look back at the year that was.  Will it will be the year that was in about 26 hours.

Well for the most part, I thought that 2012 was a pretty productive year for me.  I got see quite a bit of new things for me but I also felt like I was stunted in the second half of the year.  It's not that I lost focus, I had too much focus on one subject and I feel like I lost a little ground because of it.  With that, I would like 2013 to be better for me.

January found me at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.  It the first time that I'd been there in about ten years.  It was fun but not very public friendly.  Despite that, I think I'm looking forward to the 2013 Auto Show because it is going to be in the renovated Cobo Hall.

Ever since I got myself into photography seriously, I've wanted a picture of the St. Joseph Lighthouse covered in ice.  So in February I headed out there with a friend.  I didn't get the picture I was looking for but I did ask myself what the hell I was doing on an ice covered pier in a heavy wind.

March found me at Opening Day for the Soo Locks.  The Locks were opened by the Mesabi Miner.  This was pretty cool and I'm pretty sure I'll want to do this again but I think they normally open at midnight.  This year they decided to open at Noon.  I hope they do that again next year.

April found me out in Pennsylvania with my mom.  As I was checking into the hotel, I discovered a brochure that mentioned this train, so I took a ride on it.

In May, I took what is now becoming an annual train trip.  This year I headed east instead of west, so I went to Washington DC on the Capitol Limited.....

...New York City on the Northeast Regional and back to Chicago on the Lake Shore Limited.  There was alos a brief trip on the Wolverine at both ends.  My visits to both cities were fun, I just wish it were a little cooler in both cases...oh well.

June found me up at the Soo Locks again for the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the International Bridge....

....and Engineer's Day.  It looked like it was going to be bust for ships going through but my favorite ship decided to hang back a little bit to give us a treat.   She also gave us a salute and that was pretty cool.

July found me in Amish Country near Clare to get pictures of the wheat sheaves again. 

August found me at a Civil War Muster.  This was the first time I'd been to one of those in a while.  After seeing the many photography opportunities, I'll have to catch some more.

September found me down on the Detroit River for Navy Week.  The crews of the USS DeWert, USS Hurricane and the brig Niagara were all very gracious hosts and I hope that the US Navy doesn't remain a stranger to the Lakes.

September also found me taking Eastern Michigan pictures again.

October found me up at the Mackinac Bridge to catch a shot I've wanted for as long as I've been following the Roger Blough.

November found me back in California.  I was able to visit the USS Iowa and caught a couple of other ships.  It was pretty cool setting foot on a battleship.

December found me getting my groove again.  I hope to continue series like this in 2013.  There are plenty of tales to tell in Detroit.

As always, thanks for visiting my blog.  I hope that you will continue to do so through the next year.