The autumn of 2023 was unexpectedly good for fall colors in Door County, Wisconsin.  With the lack of rain to start off the summer, I thought that it would be a much different year.  But when October rolled around, the leaves popped!

I didn’t shoot a lot this year, but I had some photos in mind as October approached.  I wanted to photograph some of my favorite Door County locations using the drone.

Here are some of my favorites from 2023 fall colors in Door County.

I made my annual fall trip to Door County’s famous winding road.  I got the classic shot from the ground, looking down towards the curves.  You’ll see that below.   What I was really there for, however, was some aerial photos.  Now, I have attempted aerial photos of the road several times but none of the results were appealing to me.  This year, I had a new drone with a new camera setup that I had a feeling would yield more interesting photos.

I was right!  The new camera setup allowed me to capture the road in a much better way.  The new telephoto lenses allowed me to compress the image which made the photos look more compelling than the standard wide-angle lenses my older drones used.

Here are some of my favorites.

This is a photo that has always was in the back of my mind.  However, due to Wisconsin law, operating a drone from state park property is illegal.  So I never had the chance until now.  Newer drones have improved their batteries and that results in about 50% more flight time on a single charge.  So I could safely and legally fly the drone to Eagle Bluff while complying with local and federal laws.

I am pretty happy with the results!

This image doesn’t really have a story to go along with it.  Not every photo will. I was heading town the Kangaroo Lake causeway one morning and saw some breaking fog over the water.  So I set up my tripod for a quick shot of the lake, fog, and fall colors.

Last year, after a beautiful early-season snowfall, I grabbed a couple of shots with the drone of the Range Lights at the Ridges Sanctuary in Baileys Harbor.  This year, I wanted to recapture that magic, but with fall colors.