Rediscovering Photography

There are 66 parks & 6 recreation areas in the Minnesota State Park system.


(This photo was taken at Lake Carlos State Park near Alexandria, MN.)


I’ve been to most of them and we’ll (hopefully) be getting to them all over time. They say not to tell people what you are planning on doing with a blog, just do it! But, I had these links on a page in the site and I wanted to move them off the page for now, but still have the links available. If you see this a few months from now and I haven’t done anything with it, feel free to leave a comment and chastise me (severely).


Listing of Minnesota State Parks:


1. Afton State Park (MN DNR Link)
2. Banning State Park (MN DNR Link)
3. Bear Head Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
4. Beaver Creek Valley State Park (MN DNR Link)
5. Big Bog State Recreation Area (MN DNR Link)
6. Big Stone Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
7. Blue Mounds State Park (MN DNR Link)
8. Buffalo River State Park (MN DNR Link)
9. Camden State Park (MN DNR Link)
10. Carley State Park (MN DNR Link)
11. Cascade River State Park (MN DNR Link)
12. Charles A. Lindbergh State Park (MN DNR Link)
13. Crow Wing State Park (MN DNR Link)
14. Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area (MN DNR Link)
15. Father Hennepin State Park (MN DNR Link)
16. Flandrau State Park (MN DNR Link)
17. Forestville Mystery Cave State Park (MN DNR Link)
18. Fort Ridgely State Park (MN DNR Link)
19. Fort Snelling State Park (MN DNR Link)
20. Franz Jevne State Park (MN DNR Link)
21. Frontenac State Park (MN DNR Link)
22. Garden Island State Recreation Area (MN DNR Link)
23. George H. Crosby Manitou State Park (MN DNR Link)
24. Glacial Lakes State Park (MN DNR Link)
25. Glendalough State Park (MN DNR Link)
26. Gooseberry Falls State Park (MN DNR Link)
27. Grand Portage State Park (MN DNR Link)
28. Great River Bluffs State Park (MN DNR Link)
29. Hayes Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
30. Hill-Annex Mine State Park (MN DNR Link)
31. Interstate Park (MN DNR Link)
32. Itasca State Park (MN DNR Link)
33. Jay Cooke State Park (MN DNR Link)
34. John A. Latsch State Park (MN DNR Link)
35. Judge C. R. Magney State Park (MN DNR Link)
36. Kilen Woods State Park (MN DNR Link)
37. Lac qui Parle State Park (MN DNR Link)
38. Lake Bemidji State Park (MN DNR Link)
39. Lake Bronson State Park (MN DNR Link)
40. Lake Carlos State Park (MN DNR Link)
41. Lake Louise State Park (MN DNR Link)
42. Lake Maria State Park (MN DNR Link)
43. Lake Shetek State Park (MN DNR Link)
44. Maplewood State Park (MN DNR Link)
45. McCarthy Beach State Park (MN DNR Link)
46. Mille Lacs Kathio State Park (MN DNR Link)
47. Minneopa State Park (MN DNR Link)
48. Minnesota Valley State Recreation Area (MN DNR Link)
49. Monson Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
50. Moose Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
51. Myre-Big Island State Park (MN DNR Link)
52. Mystery Cave State Park (MN DNR Link)
53. Nerstrand-Big Woods State Park (MN DNR Link)
54. Old Mill State Park (MN DNR Link)
55. Red River State Recreation Area (MN DNR Link)
56. Rice Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
57. Saint Croix State Park (MN DNR Link)
58. Sakatah Lake State Park (MN DNR Link)
59. Savanna Portage State Park (MN DNR Link)
60. Scenic State Park (MN DNR Link)
61. Schoolcraft State Park (MN DNR Link)
62. Sibley State Park (MN DNR Link)
63. Soudan Underground Mine State Park (MN DNR Link)
64. Split Rock Creek State Park (MN DNR Link)
65. Split Rock Lighthouse State Park (MN DNR Link)
66. Temperance River State Park (MN DNR Link)
67. Tettegouche State Park (MN DNR Link)
68. Upper Sioux Agency State Park (MN DNR Link)
69. Whitewater State Park (MN DNR Link)
70. Wild River State Park (MN DNR Link)
71. William O’Brien State Park (MN DNR Link)
72. Zippel Bay State Park (MN DNR Link)

Our wonderful economy sure has taken us all for a lovely ride, hasn’t it? The past couple of years have been very trying for most people and much worse than that for others. My heart goes out to those who have suffered financially through no fault of their own.

And when times are tough, it’s harder to find the time and money for recreation and hobbies.

But our digital cameras give us an almost ‘free’ way of getting some instant karma and some of our good feelings back. If you remember the days of film cameras, remember all the costs and extra time that used to be involved in taking photos? Now we don’t have to pay for film or processing. Or wait to see our results.

So grab your camera. Here are some ideas that not only will assure you of some good pictures, but will definitely help your mood.

• Take your camera for a walk. Get outside for even a 10 or 15 minute walk. Then really look at what you see. You’ll find something that will make a great photo. Maybe it will be a close-up of something with a striking design, or the way the light and shadows play on the street or sidewalk, or something with colors that you miss on ordinary days. See what you can find within a block or two of your house. You might surprise yourself. And if not, your camera will thank you for the chance to get out!
• Find your children. It doesn’t matter what they’re doing. Use your skills to take some great shots of them in their current normal day to day activities. In the future candid shots like this will tell more of a story than the typical birthday and holiday photos. And when you look back on them in the future, you’ll be glad you did this.
• Do you cook? (If you don’t you’ll have to stop by the store for this one.) Whip up a favorite treat for your someone you haven’t seen for a while. Maybe it’s your Mother or another family member. Or one of your friends who could use a boost. Take it to them and record the event with your camera. You’ve got the skills to create a memorable shot. You’ll feel better, they’ll feel better, and the best of all will be the memories because you used your camera.
• Grab your camera bag and gear and give it a good cleaning and sorting through. Get the accumulated dust and grime off everything. Sort through your gear and get it reorganized so you’re ready the next time you think of grabbing the camera. (And maybe now your would use that polarizing filter because you’ll know where to find it.) I know this sounds like work, but if you would spend 15 or 20 minutes doing this now I guarantee you’d be a lot happier. And you can be proud of yourself!
• Pick a hobby or project that a family member or friend is involved in and is proud of. Is someone growing a garden, or flowers? Is your buddy rebuilding a car, or your friend making a quilt? Use your camera to take some great shots. Process them and send by email so they will be able to share the photos with their friends and family. (And if you’ve got a few extra bucks, print an 8X10 and put it in an inexpensive frame and give them a copy of your best shot.) Do this and you might be amazed at how much better you feel.

Like a leaf floating down the river, we go on day by day repeating our same routines over and over. Bust out of that routine, if even for a few minutes, and you will be glad you did.

Then, never let yourself be a leaf again.

I’ve told myself over and over that if a person wants to take some good photos, you have to go take pictures! I think we all forget this from time to time.

If you have a half hour to spare on a nice day, grab a sandwich and your camera and head to the nearest park. You might be surprised what you might be able to capture.

Even a goofy chipmunk makes a good picture after a few days off from the camera habit.

It was interesting to see what appeared after sitting for just 15 minutes or so.

I put my telephoto lens on and set the shutter speed to 1/1000 of a second. When something moved I shot it <grin>. Nice bright sunny days make this easy.

It was nice sitting out in the sun. And in the Zen spirit, on a nice spring day, it’s good for the soul to spend a little time contemplating nature and letting a little bit of stress go. I did have to walk about ten steps to take the shot of the Mallard. But I managed that feat of exercise without a sweat.

Don’t waste the nice days. A half hour break with your camera in your hand beats an hour of sitting at your desk eating your sandwich and looking at all the emails in your inbox.

So bust loose and do it. The emails will not mind waiting.