Photography at the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
A little over a week ago, my parents flew to Minnesota to see my wife in a ballet performance. I took the Friday before the show off work; and on the recommendation of a friend, took my parents to the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.
The Arboretum was recently named the top botanical garden in the United States. It’s an expansive landscape of gardens and trees from around the world, and visiting near peak autumn color added to the experience.
I brought my Nikon camera and shot exclusively with my basic Nikon 18‑55mm f/3.5‑5.6G lens. I had a lot of fun experimenting with motion and different vantage points throughout the day, and I’m pretty happy with how the photos turned out.
There were some beautiful water fixtures at the Arboretum. I shot this at f/22 with 1.6s of exposure and ISO100.The Halloween decorations were on point. The wind made it hard for this pumpkin to sit still, but I finally caught it. Shot at f/4 with 1/1600 shutter speed and ISO200.Here’s my mom in a tree. My dad decided that each growth on this tree represented one of the four Beatles. The branch jutting out to the left is Yoko. Shot at f/4 with 1/500 shutter speed and ISO200.The Peony Pavilion in the Chinese Garden. I tried a flash at first, but ultimately decided to enhance the colors in Lightroom instead. Shot at f/3.5 with 1/4000 shutter speed and ISO800.The Berens Cabin History Center, along the Arboretum’s 3-mile drive, looked a little haunting, which I tried to capture in this photo. Shot at f/3.5 with 1/80 shutter speed and ISO200.
Time is running out in 2017 for enjoyable visits to the Arboretum. So if you don’t make it this year, add it to your 2018 list. It’s a great place for anyone, but especially for photographers.
The Arboretum is intensely colorful. Shot at f/3.5 with 1/1600 shutter speed and ISO200.
Timothy Pate 
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