A few weeks ago, Laura and I had the itch to get out there and photograph a few different areas of the beautiful state of Maine. We initially had planned on going to the Rangeley area because it’s got lots of peaks, valleys, lakes and streams. It’s always a good time in Rangeley. For some reason though, on our way up north, I suggested that we visit Carrabassett Valley and Eustis instead. I can’t even remember the reason, but I think it was a good decision. We hit a home run with some of the spots we chose to photograph.
On our way up Rt.27 in Carrabassett Valley, I pulled the car over in a scenic rest area. These rest areas up here are very quiet and they’ve got picnic areas in them. I think they’re primarily for the Canadians to use as they’re passing through. If I’m not mistaken, there are two different rest areas on Rt.27 north of Kingfield and both are very nice. Both also hug the Carrabassett River.
As we were exploring the grounds, I made my way over to the end of the parking area, where I noticed a small trail that led down to the river. We both walked down the trail and saw what was at its end. We then agreed that we should head back to the car to get all our gear. We brought a few different lenses with us as well as our tripod and things like that. Check out this scene.
I captured this with my Canon T7i. I also edited it using Adobe Camera Raw.
The one thing I forgot was my lens filters. Actually, since I was using my new Canon 24mm f/2.8 lens, I didn’t own any filters I could use. That has since been remedied, but if I had brought filters along, I would have chosen to take some long exposure shots to smooth out the water. You simply can’t get away with long exposure shots in the bright sun like this without filters.
Our next stop (and ultimate destination) was in the parking lot of a small gas station up in Eustis, which is just north of Stratton, Maine. This is an absolutely stunning area and if there is one place I’d like to retire to, it’s the Stratton area. Big mountains and beautiful lakes. You can’t ask for anything more.
We’ve been to this area before, but we’ve never been as ready to snap some photos like we were during this trip. We walked down a flight of stairs to a small dock and set up shop. This is what we saw across Flagstaff Lake. It’s the Bigelow Preserve.
Our final stop was at another rest area along Rt.27, just south of Eustis and north of Stratton. From this vantage point, we were able to see the end of the Bigelow mountain range, which looks much less imposing than the range does in the previous shot. It’s really a great view though and, you can’t see it, but Flagstaff Lake is just past the high grass and before the mountains. Take a look.
Overall, I’d say we had a great day of photography. We do much better when we bring all our gear and head out with taking photos in mind. We take it more seriously and I think our shots show it. Thanks for reading!
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