A return to a park off the beaten path

Eight years ago in July, I visited Southeastway Park in southeast Marion County, Ind., one of the few pockets of rural territory in all of metro Indianapolis. In July 2010, I was struck by the fields of yellow cone flowers over much of the meadows near the front of the park, and I included quite a few pictures of that scene in the post here that I did after my visit.

Until two weeks ago, I had visited the park only one other time. It was about two years ago -- a quick drive-through -- and I was disappointed to see no evidence of the cone flowers. I had to believe the cone flowers were planned because there were mowed paths of lawn, apparent paths giving visitors a way to stroll through the meadow and appreciate the flowers (see picture at right). One of my favorite shots of the cone flowers was the one below, where a couple of taller white wild flowers stood out in the fields of gold (a nod to Sting).

When I was back in Indiana in early May, thinking about where I could go to indulge some photography, I recalled my first visit to Southeastway ... and felt drawn to return. In was late morning, and there were a couple of school buses and a lot of children in the park when I arrived. I tried to steer clear of them and succeeded for the most part.

A couple things stood out from my visit, which was much shorter than the first (I didn't spend any time along Buck Creek this time around, for example). For one, there was the aforementioned lack of yellow cone flowers.

For another, the main building on the grounds had been painted a bright orange. When I was there in 2010, the building was a coral or salmon color. That's the building you see in the photo leading off the post. It's situated a short distance from the park's nature pond, which features an overlook and where ducks and geese tend to gather.

I featured the pond in several of my posts from 2010, but only from the side where the building is located. One of those photos -- a shot of a young boy with a fishing pole and a dog (right) -- has been among my favorites ever since. This time, I got the pond from both sides, and instead of a boy approaching the overlook in 2010, there was an older man gazing out at the pond from the overlook. That picture is the first one below.

And thirdly, in 2010, there was a nice flower garden alongside the main building. Of course, that was in July; this visit was two months earlier in the year. The area I remember being a nice flower garden was filled with weeds ... and nothing to behold.

As always, for view a larger, sharper version of an image, simply click on the image. That is particularly important for visitors accessing the blog from a mobile device. To view a full gallery of my 2018 shoot from Southeastway Park, simply follow the link in this sentence. If you're interested in revisiting the gallery from the 2010 shoot at Southeastway, follow the link in this sentence.

Photo geek stuff: I shot everything in this post with my Canon 6D and Tamron 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD lens equipped with a B+W circular polarizing filter. I bracketed each composition for three exposures to allow for processing each shot in Photomatix high-dynamic range (HDR) software, which I used for everything in this post. Photos from the 2010 visit to Southeastway were all single-frame images; I had not yet delved into HDR at that time.

One of the playground areas is pictured above. Look just right of center in the foreground and spot the blue seat low to the ground and the blue wheel just above it. In the spirit of pursuing a different perspective, I got the idea to lie flat on my back on the seat so that I could look up to get a shot at the wheel. It proved to be more challenging that I had anticipated -- especially balancing myself in a horizontal position on that small seat. I managed three compositions, one of which I provide below. The two others you can find in the gallery. Not sure they were worth the strain, but ... you can be the judge.

Above: A leading lines composition that struck me as I approached this sidewalk. 

The main building and pond when I first spotted them on May 9 (above), and when I placed myself directly opposite the building from the pond (below).

Above and next two below: Some of the wild life enjoying the pond. 

Above: A couple of bird feeders in the area where I remember a flower garden existed adjacent to the main building. You can see the weeds dominating the ground area.

The difference that two months can make when it comes to nature: Above, the park's main building on May 9 during my recent visit. Tree leaves were just beginning to return. Below, the building, not nearly as visible, taken from the same path but in July, when foliage had fully returned to the rows of trees.

Above: One of the few spring flowering trees I saw in the park, a composition enhanced by the presence of the two women at the picnic bench in the background.