As the rivers begin to thaw, photographers across Minnesota will jump at the chance to shoot some of the state's incredible bridges and the currents coursing beneath them.
Although bridges make an easy subject for photography, Donovan says the challenge is coming up with unique angles and photographic treatments that haven't already been done. His favorite subject is the Wabasha Bridge in St. Paul, but he has also shot the Lowry Bridge, the Mendota Bridge, the Stone Arch Bridge, and the Third Avenue Bridge in Minneapolis, to name a few.
When he started shooting photos three years ago, Donovan was mainly interested in High Dynamic Range, or HDR photography. He would usually take three exposures, combining them to get the best lighting of an architectural shot.
"In HDR, the shadows are strong and the highlights are strong," he says. "That gives the picture tremendous depth." Donovan has since moved away from HDR, but he still captures the lesser seen side of bridges in stunning detail.
Matt Silverness, a photographer in Duluth, has altogether different bridges to choose from. He has been shooting since he was 16, and this year, about 15 years later, he had a photo go viral on Facebook..
The Aerial Lift Bridge, the John A. Blatnik Bridge, and the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge all make great subjects.
Silverness shoots with a smaller aperture, allowing a smaller amount of light to enter the camera. Often, he uses a neutral density filter to soften the light, and he focuses on getting depth of field in an image. But he says long-exposure photography is what drew him into photography.
Silverness accomplished this transporting effect in a big way with a photo he took earlier this year. On January 11, he looked at the weather forecast in Duluth, and seeing the potential for stunning atmospheric conditions, he went out to photograph the Aerial Lift Bridge on the spur of the moment.
As with any photo, Silverness says a good bridge shot often comes down to being in the right place at the right time. He has captured extraordinarily calm water in the bay near Duluth, when Lake Superior was still enough to create perfect reflections. He once stood on a gigantic snow bank to get the angle he wanted.
The other aspect he enjoys about photography is the quality of natural light.