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Lake Michigan waves colored with sunset afterglow wash ashore near the Second Curve at Ludington State Park, creating ever-changing watercolor artwork. Just as quickly as one of these "wave paintings" appears, it starts to disappear as the wave energy is spent and gravity carries the water back lake-ward. Seeing and capturing these interesting but fleeting patterns of light and shadow is challenging and a good exercise in seeing. Nature does the painting; the photographer's role is to watch, recognize a picture and shoot before the "painting" erases itself.

My sister-in-law Misty Reed likes to imagine that the little feather in this photograph represents her and the big feather represents her husband, my older brother, Tad. I am not sure how the feathers got stuck upright in the sand, but I love the dreamy mood of this photograph.

The setting sun laid layers of color on the gentle, rolling waves of Lake Michigan at the first curve in the Ludington State Park.

Sand Waves

Epworth, located just north of Ludington, is beautiful every day of the year. The large hillside, with a scattering of majestic old homes, makes for wonderful photographs.

Sea, shore and sky abound with more curves than a curvaceous woman. S-curve shapes have been pleasing the eye of artists and art lovers for centuries. An August sunset afterglow highlights the clouds and meandering Lake Michigan shoreline between Ludington and Pentwater.

The tops of these trees inside of Stearns Park have been intriguing me for weeks. I finally made an image of them today that I am happy with. The lines and patterns make me happy.

Coast Guard Motor Life Boat 44345 is revered by many members of the Reed family. She always took care of her crew and brought them back to shore safely, including my dad. Sadly, she is sitting outside on blocks waiting for a home at the future maritime museum in Ludington. It kills me to see such a fine vessel in less than perfect condition. F2.8 at 1/200, ISO 1000, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

The ice on Pere Marquette Lake is breaking up with the January thaw. While I would prefer a more severe winter to photograph, I can't complain about the view in front of me this morning.

Dog Days of Summer

Using my new macro lens and three stacked extension tubes, I was able to make the ice on a blue plastic chair behind the gallery look unique today.

The proof is in the pudding! The Ludington, Michigan area has been proclaimed by several national publications as one of the best places in America to view a sunset. This sunset afterglow confirms their findings.

Clouds are your friends. I preach this to my photography students at West Shore Community College more than they want to hear it. Clouds can add great ingredients to outdoor photographs. Sometimes, like on this fall evening, they make powerful subjects by themselves. At times clouds appear heaven sent. This one, over Lake Michigan, looked like an angel to my wife and me. We named it "Robbie's Cloud" in memory of an angel in our lives.

I love finding heart shapes in nature. When I got home today from work and was walking towards my house, I spotted this deer print that looked like a heart. I knew I had found my photo of the day!

Yesterday, while driving through Stearns Park Beach, I noticed a mixture of sand, snow, ice and rocks along the side of the road that looked very cat-like. I put my heavy cold-weather gear on and shot this photo. Seeing it today on the computer, I am shocked at how much it looks like a puma. F22.0 at 3.0, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

I love making abstract art with my camera. With the limestone rock covered in ice, the gold sunshine danced in front of my lens. Moving one inch in either direction totally changed the look and feel of the photograph. I like how this composition feels.

One of my favorite professors when I was a student at Calvin College told me a story recently about his father. His father was from California and every time he came to visit his son at Calvin, he would refer to Lake Michigan as the "sweet water". In California, when they would try to dig wells for drinking water near the coastline of the Pacific Ocean, the water would often be undrinkable due to the salt content. If you were lucky enough to dig a well and hit "sweet water" you were considered very fortunate. Many people today that live near the Great Lakes take them for granted and don't realize how valuable they really are.

I keep trying to edit this picture out. I enjoyed making the picture of the riveted keel of a rental boat on the Hamlin Lake shoreline at Ludington State Park. I like the resulting image, yet I did not feel comfortable with including it in this book. My son and shooting partner, Brad, loves the image. He sees abstract pictures almost everywhere he looks and shoots many of them. Getting out of your comfort zone can be uncomfortably good. So the picture stays.

One of my favorite professors when I was a student at Calvin College told me a story recently about his father. His father was from California and every time he came to visit his son at Calvin, he would refer to Lake Michigan as the "sweet water". In California, when they would try to dig wells for drinking water near the coastline of the Pacific Ocean, the water would often be undrinkable due to the salt content. If you were lucky enough to dig a well and hit "sweet water" you were considered very fortunate. Many people today that live near the Great Lakes take them for granted and don't realize how valuable they really are.

I was on the hunt for beach glass on this chilly morning. I hiked a great distance, armed and ready with my camera and ring flash. Unfortunately, I didn’t find a single piece. Determined to make the trek worth it, I found this heart-shaped rock. I loved the bubbles of water as the waves receded.