Structure Revealed

The rising winter sun reveals the structure of the Hennepin Canal's lock 11, the steel bridge, and even the trees. Following record cold weather, a few days of warm temperatures began to melt some of the snow, causing some minor flooding of fields, creeks, and parks. The towpath of the Hennepin Canal turned to ice after temperatures dropped once again, making it a bit hazardous to hike. After a tumble on the ice, we decided against hiking the distance between locks; instead, we opted to drive from lock to lock. The only casualty of the fall was discovered an hour later, when I decided to change lenses. As I removed the lens cap, pieces of glass fell to the ground. I immediately thought the front element of my 300mm lens was broken, rendering the lens useless. However, I discovered that only the UV filter was broken - the lens cap was driven into the filter, breaking it, but protecting the front element of the lens. This proves the inexpensive UV filters are worth their weight in gold. Make sure all of your lenses have a UV filter on them, if only to protect them against scratches and accidental breakage.