RED BARNS OF WASHTENAW COUNTY - January 26, 2023
Snow came upon us in January, which inspired me to drive to Washtenaw County to capture some red barns that are prevalent along Clinton Road. This adventure was a first for me, photographing the barns in snow, as I am not a big fan of winter (I usually look like the Michelin Man bundled up to the nines). But, my desire to capture the red pop of color with the white snow gave me the proper motivation to make the trek.
One thing I did not take into account when driving these rural roads...where do I park my car? There isn't always enough road to pull off to take a photo, and that is doubly so in the snow. There were a few barns where I found a side road to pull off, but a couple of barns I had to forego because of nowhere to park. And I wasn't about to get myself stuck in a snow drift by myself in the middle of nowhere!
This first barn I came across was down a side road, so it made it easy to pull over and photograph it. Because of the line of pine trees, I wasn't able to get a clear shot of the barn. After further contemplation I realized I do like the framing of the trees with the barn. The sign on the barn reads, "R. Yannone and Sons". There is a date but it was obscured by a tree branch.
I saw this barn from my car after capturing the Yannone barn, so I took out my 300mm and captured it (I liked the diamond-shaped windows). No way was I hiking over there to photograph it lol! This is where a telephoto lens shines.
I saw this barn as I was driving down the road, and had JUST enough room to pull over on the side of the road (and the snow wasn't too deep). I had to hike through a few trees to be able to come out to an open area to photograph it.
As I continued down the road, the next barn I came to belonged to Wegner Farms. This was the only farm/barn I saw that had a white fence, which I think adds to the scene.
The most noticeable feature of this barn is the white horse on the front of it. I photographed this barn from several angles, but this was my favorite, as I liked the tree on the left framing the barn.
At this point, I saw all the barns I could see with the amount of time I had, so I headed back towards I-94. I was traveling back roads for several miles when I came across this barn (as I like to call a "surprise" barn!). I really loved the line of trees with snow on the branches. But, to get the shot I wanted, I would have had to walk on private property, which I don't like to do without permission (it's much different in rural vs the city). But, with a drone, no problem! This was a 9-image panorama. I liked how it turned out and was happy I was able to capture what I saw in my mind's eye.
Here is the barn taken from the road with my Canon 24-105mm lens.
This was the last barn I saw. Now, this barn/shed combo is not red. But, what is lacks in bright, popping color, it made up for in uniqueness. I was trying to figure out what that metal structure was, any ideas?
I'm hoping we will get another good snow day with the trees gently covered in powdery goodness. With Michigan, we never do know! But I would like to add a few more barns to my collection. Thank you for looking!
The images in this photo story and others can be purchased in my Barn collection.
Rick Lipski