Buck

I can’t wait to see how big this buck in my backyard gets in the next few months. It always amazes me how close the deer in my yard allow me to get to them.

I was leaving my brother Paul’s house when I saw this small buck in the corn field across the road. I laughed when I checked the back of my camera and saw that he was sticking his tongue out!

I must be dreaming. A massive buck, its antlers in velvet, pauses in the perfect spot on a Ludington Pumped Storage Plant hillside covered with sweet pea. This looks too good to be true, especially when an old family friend, Dr. John Ramsey, who practiced medicine in Ludington many years ago, sounds out a doe bleat and the deer turns to look our way. F4.0 at 1/400, ISO 800, 500 mm lens at 500 mm

A young buck stands at attention above the railroad tracks near the Manistee Industrial Park. When I first spotted him and his brother, they were standing right on the train tracks. Lucky for me, they moved onto the flower-covered ridge and I was able to use the tall grasses as my foreground element. F2.8 at 1/320, ISO 400, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

It always amazes me how many big bucks I see around town in Ludington. They know they are safe, I guess! I saw this big guy on my way to Brad’s this evening in his neighborhood.

I love making story-telling images with my camera. I felt like this scene in my front yard tonight told the story of growing older, bigger, and stronger. I purposely put that large tree in the very center of the image to help cut the image in half and help tell the story better.

Legends Ranch is my happy place. While walking to one of the blinds tonight to photograph some of the giant whitetail bucks, I came face to face with this gorgeous typical. Without using an actual deer call, I grunted at him and got him to come even closer to me.

I am hunting this evening for the two big bucks I photographed in July at the Ludington Pumped Storage Plant when their antlers were in velvet. I think these big guys might be the same ones. F8.0 at 1/15, ISO 1250, 500 mm lens with 2X extender at 1000 mm

Rachel and I and several other hunters were enjoying a five-course meal today at Legends Ranch when this guy came walking by the lodge. I photographed him with my iPhone through the window as the buck walked by in the rain.

Rachel had the opportunity to harvest her first ever whitetail buck tonight, and she made the most of it. She and I, along with her guide, Corey Ford, sat in Island Blind, and anxiously awaited the right moment. This gorgeous typical buck presented a shot, and Rachel followed her training, and made a great shot.

Todd and Brad have explored Legends Ranch with their cameras more times than they can count. This year was the first time that I joined along. Brad and I were working at capturing different lake views on their grounds when I noticed a huge buck resting near the water’s edge. Quietly, I worked on my composition before he moved.

Hunting with a camera can be exciting. I have been stalking this big buck for weeks and here he finally is in front of my camera within 30 yards. I like this moment when he is on the trail of a doe that came through a few minutes earlier. F4.0 at 1/250, ISO 800, 500 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 750 mm

As I drive by the W.C. Cornwell Ranch north of Clare, Michigan, I get a quick look at a nice young buck trotting through one of the many pastures of the big centennial farm. From the looks of this deer, the eating is good at Cornwell Ranch. F10 at 1/800, ISO 800, 300mm lens at 300mm

Being an avid whitetail deer hunter, I have had many daydreams about seeing a buck this large while hunting. With opening day of firearm deer season only two days away, I am hoping my dream will come true this year. If only this buck lived near our hunting property. F4 at 1/1250, ISO 3200, 600mm lens at 600mm

An impressively large whitetail buck is in full rut as he chases his girlfriend. I watched this chase go on for several minutes before the buck finally caught up to her. F4 at 1/1250, ISO 3200, 600mm lens at 600mm

For several minutes I watched this 12-point whitetail buck chase this doe all over the woods. She finally stopped and he caught up to her. F4 at 1/2000, ISO 3200, 600mm lens at 600mm

A mature buck eats a blade of grass while staring me down this morning along the shores of Lake Michigan. I never tire of photographing big bucks. F2.8 at 1/640, ISO 100, 300mm lens at 300mm