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Spirit Quest

Proud Eagle

The calendar still says it is spring but this mid-June view through my large telephoto lens at South Haven beach sure looks and feels like summer to me. It is a splendid day to be on the Lake Michigan shoreline photographing Week 24 of "Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed: A Michigan Tribute." F6.3 at 1/1000, ISO 200, 300mm lens at 300mm

While looking out my bathroom window tonight, I spotted this goldfinch on our butterfly bush. I grabbed my camera gear and quietly snuck around the side of my house to capture this image before the tiny, beautiful bird flew away.

Seagulls are beautiful birds. A lot of people don't like them and I have even heard people call them "flying rats." Personally, I love seagulls and I never get tired of watching them adapt to the weather throughout the year on the shores of Lake Michigan. F5.6 at 1/2500, ISO 400, 600mm lens at 600mm

The Ludington Municipal Marina has recently expanded its capacity by converting its north edge into a day dock and seawall. One of the many benefits of the recent expansion is that the new wall has allowed the marina to better accommodate large boats. This week, the 80-foot Burger named Chateau Thierry was trying out the new dock. F8.0 at 1/125, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 27 mm

My dad and I decided to try a new adventure and see if we could get our little Boston Whaler from his house at Crosswinds on Lake Michigan to our cabin a few miles up the Pere Marquette River. After several attempts, we found a path that was deep enough. Along the way, we each were able to make a few good photographs. F2.8 at 1/1250, ISO 1000, 300 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 450 mm

Tonight, Julia, Ethan, Aiden, and I decided to play 9 holes of golf at Lakeside Links south of Ludington. As Aiden was about to tee off, I looked up and spotted these Canada geese flying in a large V-shaped formation. I grabbed my camera out of the back of the golf cart and went to work making this image.

About the size and weight of a ping pong ball, a newborn piping plover scurries along the Lake Michigan shoreline on its spindly legs. Naturalists helped the rare bird get its life started by erecting a protective cage over the nest its parents made on a highly trafficked area of West Michigan beach. F4.5 at 1/1250, ISO 800, 500mm lens at 500mm

With or without all the "bling" it is wearing, an adult piping plover is simply a beautiful creature. The bands help researchers keep track of the endangered bird, enabling them to know exactly which bird this is no matter where it travels. This plover and its mate are among less than 60 mating pairs currently identified along the Great Lakes. F4.5 at 1/1250, ISO 800, 500mm lens at 500mm

Another goldfinch was back in the same butterfly bush that I had photographed earlier in the year. This time instead of a green backdrop, I wanted my red house to be the backdrop. I knew the yellow bird would rocket out against the red siding.

I would like to be as wise about birds and as in sync with them as so many Native Americans have learned to be through generations of careful observation and the passing on of knowledge of their ways. This gull seems to me to be a free spirit as it passes right over my head at the Native American Pow Wow at the National Cherry Festival. I am sure some of the Indians who saw the bird found meaning in its appearance. F10 at 1/500, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

I took a lunchtime break at the lakeshore. The seagulls were very active!

Over the last 15 years the number of new houses and cottages built on the north shore of Hamlin Lake has exploded. Most of the homes border Hamlin Lake on one side and the Manistee National Forest on the other. F6.3 at 1/1250, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 17mm

I am struck while watching this duck swim on Round Lake in Charlevoix how much it seems as if the female mallard is floating over a sea of giant emerald gems. Round Lake is certainly one of the most beautiful harbors in Michigan. I never tire of spending time here. F2.8 at 1/500, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

These pigeons are a bright spot in a sad day. Angel, our beloved cat, died today. The pigeons are on a barn roof at Country Clinic, which gave us Angel nearly 20 years ago when he was an orphan kitty convalescing from the loss of a front leg. What a gift he turned out to be! F5.6 at 1/2000, ISO 400, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

Kasey had a cross country meet in Bear Lake this evening. I decided to take back roads home, from Manistee, on the search of a photo. To my luck, I saw this sandhill crane in a field. I safely pulled the van over and got in position. What a majestic bird!

I am impressed by the affection a pair of mute swans display for each other while basking in the sunshine on Pere Marquette Lake with their offspring. It is clear to me they are mates for life. F4.5 at 1/1000, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 145 mm

Using trees for cover, I have stealthily made my way to within 15 yards of this great blue heron. Fortunately for me, the heron's attention is primarily focused on the water and his quest for dinner. F3.5 at 1/500, ISO 200, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm