Tunnel of Trees

MichiganMoments.com photographer Bill Vriesema is displaying his photo -  Tunnel of Trees – at ArtPrize 2011 at Monroe Community Church in Grand Rapids. Bill invites everyone to come enjoy and experience his entry on display from September 21 – October 9, 2011.

Artist Statement: “The “Tunnel of Trees” is part of a Michigan highway called M-119, and is a 20 mile stretch between Harbor Springs and Cross Village in the northwest  part of Michigan’s lower peninsula . The route follows the shore of Lake Michigan and the Little Traverse Bay with many scenic views of the water. Much of the highway lacks a centerline when the road isn’t a full two lanes wide. Trees butt right up to the edge of the road, and many branches meet in the middle above the road. There are two hairpin turns along the route called “Devil’s Elbow” and “Horseshoe Bend”. The “Tunnel of Trees” has been designated as a “Scenic Heritage Route” by the Michigan Department of Transportation.

I’ve traveled this beautiful road many times and often wondered how I could capture the experience in one image. My vision for this scene was to convey the emotional sense of traveling through a beautiful green tunnel, and a static snap shot in time would not convey my vision of trees blending together as a unified whole. I realized I needed to use my motion in the car to create the illusion of movement. So I held my camera out and on top of the moon roof on my car as I drove. I experimented with exposures of 1 to 3 seconds. Since I was traveling the same speed as the car in front of me, that car remained in focus, but all the surrounding trees blurred into a green vortex of color, pattern and shape. This particular image was at 2.5 seconds.

It is my hope that this image will create a multi-dimensional visual experience where you feel like you are actually in a car driving down this beautiful stretch of highway with a wall of green surrounding you and dappled sunlight splashing across your face.”

Bill’s Venue Location is:

• Monroe Community Church
  800 Monroe Ave NW
  Suite 140
  Grand Rapids, MI 49503

• How to register to vote in ArtPrize
• To vote for Bill’s entry via text vote: 45471

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