Fall

Today was the most difficult day so far this year for me to find a photograph that I was proud of. After driving around frantically for over an hour, I found this leaf on my friend Gary Ferguson's property. What a re-leaf. F8.0 at 6.0, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Hay bales turn to gold in the early morning autumn light in one of Laverne Soberalski's farm fields along South Victory Drive. The Hansens' neighboring Cherry Hill Farm stands out in the distance. F22.0 at 0.25, ISO 200, 80-200 mm lens at 175 mm

The good thing about sporting events, besides enjoying watching your kids, is traveling to and from when you live in a picturesque state like Michigan. The meet today was in Pine River. I was early, so when I passed Howe Lake, I had to turn around and find the right place to stop and shoot. To get the view I wanted, I had to climb on my van roof.

Does this tree look familiar? It is the same tree that I photographed on Day 9 of the 365 Project. I love photographing the same objects or places different times of the year or in different lighting situations. This particular tree is beautiful every day of the year. F11.0 at 1/15, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 40 mm

Eagle Eye Golf Club near Lansing, Michigan is best known for its island green on hole 17. This par three took a few of my golf balls this morning because I was too stubborn to take a drop. It reminded me of a scene from a famous Kevin Costner movie.

Using my 60-600mm lens tonight at 600mm, I was able to isolate the colorful, pretty parts of the sky in the camera. Most of the sky was boring and flat looking, but right around the sun it was an intense orange color. We teach our workshop students that you need to learn to see like your camera sees.

I have never seen so many milkweeds. In this amazing growing season, some Michigan fields have so much milkweed silk catching the sunlight that they look like cotton fields. The autumn winds scatter the seed-laden milkweed silk near and far. F3.2 at 1/500, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

Today we headed from my mom's house near Fort Campbell, Kentucky to Paducah, Kentucky for my aunt's surprise birthday party. The sunset over Interstate 24 was gorgeous as it reflected off the hood of my truck. My mom's Honda CRV is the car in front of us. F2.8 at 1/8000, ISO 800, 18-50 mm lens at 30 mm

Waves, clouds and trees turning color give Epworth Heights an autumn look. It is a quieter but beautiful time of year at the historic resort. North Point Cottage stands out on the Lake Michigan shoreline just south of the Lincoln River outlet. F13.0 at 1/500, ISO 400, 80-200 mm lens at 105 mm

I am watching the last Badger show of the year. I am one of many Ludington residents watching as the Lake Michigan Carferry sails into the Ludington harbor at the end of its final voyage of the 2010 sailing season. F2.8 at 1/2000, ISO 400, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

I love the feeling of the last few days of summer. Those days before it officially feels like fall. The late summer glow, with flowers still in bloom, and warm sunshine on your face

I spot a bald eagle on a favorite morning fishing perch overlooking Lake Michigan along South Lakeshore Drive. I set up nearby and wait about 20 minutes to capture its takeoff. F4 at 1/1250, ISO 100, 500 mm lens at 500 mm

Not far from Roselawn, Indiana on County Road 1000 there is a full-size John Deere tractor that sits atop a silo. Julia and I pulled into the farmer's yard for a closer look. The clouds and sky were perfect for a photograph. F7.1 at 1/400, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Laughing Whitefish Falls is one of my favorite places. The walk to the fall itself is a stunning forest. The cascade of the falls isn’t straight down, which I like. And the pool at the bottom has great moss-covered rocks. It was a wonderful experience to share with all five kids.

Rachel and I were so excited to finally be able to take all of our kids to 12 Mile Beach to see the white birch maple forest. We all had fun exploring the colorful forest with our cameras. After that shoot, the kids were tired, so Julia and Kasey stayed back and watched the boys while Rachel and I went over the dune onto the Lake Superior shoreline. This is the same spot where I captured “Exhilarating” in 2014.

Ethan and I went out to the end of the dock at Cartier Park to see what the mist and fog looked like over Lincoln Lake with Epworth in the background. At first the view was rather ordinary, but within a few minutes the sunlight broke out of the clouds and the view became extraordinary. F7.1 at 1/40, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

Who's watching over Bass Lake this morning? A manmade owl looms large as it faithfully performs its duty of trying to keep birds off a dock. I can't resist featuring the owl in one of my shots of the dock, lake and Three Sisters hills. F11.0 at 1/50, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 12 mm

Before we headed back toward Mackinaw City, we had to take the kids to Miners Castle Rock. Unfortunately, it was very cold here today. I had to increase my ISO even though it was sunny out, to raise my shutter speed enough that the tree was mostly still in the center of the image. Then it was just waiting for white caps to be in the right places.

On the long drive home today from Mackinaw City, we stopped at the Buckley Manistee River High Rollway to photograph the fall color. This is the best vista for fall color that we have ever found in the lower peninsula of Michigan. The color was phenomenal today and all of our kids really enjoyed this Pure Michigan experience.

This is the second photo in the 365 Project that I have made of the pumpkin patch and farm along Chauvez Road south of Ludington. I have been by at least five other times, but the light was never good enough. Early this morning however, the light was fantastic. F10.0 at 1/160, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 20 mm