Search

Sunrise at Big Sable

I arrived at my parent’s farm with a goal in mind. The dogwood trees were in full bloom, and I really wanted to make a great image of them before they were gone for the season. I got out of the van with my tripod and camera in hand. I looked back at the tree, then ahead trying to visualize where I needed to set my gear up. As I looked back a second time I heard and felt something run right past my leg. I was so startled that I screamed, and jumped not knowing what kind of animal it was. When I turned around to take a look, I saw a fawn running through the woods. I got two shots off before it disappeared. I was hand holding a bigger lens, and didn’t have time to change any settings. I was worried that they wouldn’t turn out, but when I looked at them on the computer I was very happy! Success!

I am hustling to capture this moment after seeing these canoers fishing on Lincoln Lake. The Dummy Bridge at Epworth Heights provides the backdrop. F3.2 at 1/320, ISO 400, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

Tuesdays With Todd and Brad Reed

Manning Memorial Lighthouse

I had an Ernest Hemmingway moment on the Pere Marquette River tonight. We had anchored our drift boat along the shore so that our guide, Josh Mead, could grill us a homemade pork chop dinner with all the fixings. As we enjoyed our gourmet meal, an old-fashioned wooden drift boat slowly slipped past us. I grabbed my camera and waited for a defining moment. I wondered how many times my great-grandparents floated this same stretch of the river in wooden drift boats. F6.3 at 1/100, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 112mm

 

A Coast Guard helicopter flies right over me as I am photographing stormy seas on the Lake Michigan shoreline. I make the shot of these aerial lifesavers after having only seconds to change camera shutter speed and aperture in order to render the helicopter sharp but its rotor blades blurred to show their motion. F8 at 1/640, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

I honestly believe this fly-fishing-only section of the Pere Marquette River to be one of Michigan's crown jewels of natural beauty. I am mesmerized watching the water flowing over the stony river bottom as Orvis-endorsed fishing guide, Uber Raines, deftly fishes for brown trout. F 2.8 at 1/500, ISO 800, 14-24mm lens at 21mm

The Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw looks formidable as it docks in Ludington during the three-year-old ship's first visit to this port. The icebreaker stopped in Ludington before heading to Wisconsin to the shipyard. F7.1 at 1/400, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 120 mm

Untold hours of painstaking work went into tying these trout fishing flies. Now Pere Marquette River Lodge guide Uber Rains uses years of trout fishing experience to decide which one will attract a trout. F2.8 at 1/640, ISO 800, 14-24mm lens at 19mm

Northern Lights at First Curve

Fifty-Five Thousand Sunrises

This is my third photo from early Saturday morning of the northern lights and the Milky Way from the Ludington State Park. Big Sable Point Lighthouse is in the distance and the Lake Michigan shoreline is reflecting the lights. D850. F2.8 at 97 seconds, ISO 800. 14-24mm lens at 24mm. On a tripod without a flash. March 20, 2021 at 6:23am.

As I could see the northern lights with my naked eyes dancing in the background, I knew they would be reflected in the strangely calm Sauble River near the outlet into Lake Michigan. The three minute exposure captured the beauty I was experiencing. Nikon D850. F2.8 at 188 seconds, ISO 400. 14-24mm lens at 24mm. On a tripod without a flash. March 20, 2021.

At the end of a 12-hour photography expedition through West Michigan countryside and cities, we wind up on the shore of Lake Michigan at Muskegon in time to savor the setting sun. I decide to try one of Brad's favorite techniques

As I often am, I was in the water during this sunset at Stearns Beach. I had my camera as low as I could without it being covered in water. I adjusted my shutter speed to allow for a capture of a crashing wave just ahead of my lens. This is one of my favorite images I have made so far during our 366 Project.