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The S-curve shapes of this tree along the Lake Michigan shoreline at Ludington State Park have long caught my eye. Today as I pass by in my car on M-116 a crow sits atop this tree like a beautiful ornament. It stays in just the right spot long enough to make the picture. I am very pleased to have found this quieter picture. F2.8 at 1/1000, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

 I was on my way into work when I spotted this beautiful snowy owl perched on top of a barn on Fountain Road. It was so peaceful; I was able to shoot it quite a while before finally heading on my way. I was surprised to see it, as they typically disappear from our area come springtime. The snowfall we had last week worked in my favor!

Birdseye View of Hamlin Lake

 

 

 

I have learned hundreds of photography hints from my dad, but one of the most important things he has taught me is that the sky often displays the best color about twenty minutes after sunset. I had just captured the Breezy Night photograph when Betsy and I drove further into Ludington State Park to look for more photographs. As we passed over the Sable River Bridge, Betsy noticed a heron in the water below. I grabbed my gear and I was off. To get the best photograph possible, I knew I would have to get in the river. Not wanting to threaten or disturb the heron, I waded ever so slowly to within fifteen yards of the bird, and quietly captured the photograph I was looking for. Thanks for the helpful hints, Dad.

Blue Takeoff

Hiding in Plain Site

Ludington Beach R

Swan on Lincoln Lake in Front of Epworth

Hamlin Lake in Fog During Workshop

Eagles in Muskegon

Brad called me on my drive into work this snowy morning; he had spotted a bald eagle by the Pere Marquette River Flats. I headed straight there, switched to my big lens, and adjusted my settings before walking across the highway. I was able to get one shot off. That fast, I made the best wildlife shot I have ever captured and a memory to last a lifetime.

A great horned owl eyes visitors to Ludington State Park. The owl was a star attraction during one of the many wildlife education programs put on at the park's Great Lakes Visitors Center. Wildlife Recovery Association had brought the beautiful bird and several other injured birds of prey to the nature center. Attending the park's interpretive programs helps thousands of visitors better understand, appreciate and respect the park and all its living things.

Venturing deeper into wildlife photography has been a wonderful challenge. We invested a lot of money into a 500-millimeter Nikon F4 lens and a new carbon fiber tripod designed for heavy telephoto lenses. We quickly learned that even with the best equipment, great wildlife photographs depend most of all on the light and capturing the defining moment. After a year of searching for the bald eagle shot I had always pre-visualized at the Ludington State Park, my luck changed on July 25, 2007.

I can’t imagine how many shots of songbirds I have taken in 50 years, but I can unequivocally say this is by far my favorite and most artistic. The moment this male cardinal, in all its glory, landed in this spot, I realized this was the perfect bird in the perfect position in the perfect place at the perfect time. The bright red bird rocketed out of the monochromatic background of the rocks and fresh snow. I couldn’t have designed or painted a better background. Click. Mission accomplished, not because making that image was my objective; it wasn’t. I got out early that morning because of the gorgeous blanket of snow that had fallen overnight. I drove to Ludington State Park and hiked across the foot bridge to the far side of the Sable River and found a spot to hide myself, my tripod, my Nikon camera and 500-millimeter telephoto lens amidst some young pine in hopes of catching some shots of a mink or two coming out of an opening in the rocks as I had observed on a previous hike. Just as I had anticipated, a mink soon emerged. I was all set to capture the moment the mink’s splendid coat would be framed against the snow. Photographers dream of what wildlife might do. As in this case, sometimes you can even visualize the finished picture on the wall. But of course it is up to the wildlife to decide for themselves where and how they present themselves and the course they will travel. We can’t pose them. For more than two hours I watched mink occasionally come out and go back in. Never did one of them set foot in the snow. I was getting more frustrated and colder by the minute. Suddenly a cardinal flew in. Fortunately, my camera was already trained and focused on the spot because cardinals almost never stay still for more than a few seconds. Because I chose to get off the couch, because I got out early to take advantage of the fresh snow, because I had paid my dues spending a lot of time at the park, because I had previously seen the mink along the river in that location, and because I overcame the great disappointment of the lack of cooperation from the mink, because I stayed, I made a completely unexpected but better image that will be most pleasing to me for the rest of my life. Many of my favorite images did not come easy. That makes them especially rewarding.

Large telephoto lenses are great for photographing wildlife because they allow you to keep your distance from the subject. Many times the subject doesn't even know it is being photographed and its behavior will continue in its natural state. This great blue heron was focused on finding fish in Hamlin Lake and was not bothered by me while I photographed it with a 1050-millimeter telephoto lens.

Workshop at Ludington State Park

A rough-legged hawk stands out against a backdrop of pine trees outside the Great Lakes Visitors Center at Ludington State Park. The rehabilitating bird was being held by Joe Rogers of Wildlife Recovery Association for park visitors to see and learn about. Wildlife Recovery cares for injured and orphaned wildlife and sets free those that are ready to re-enter the wild.