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When I spotted my American Flag fluttering in the breeze as I look to make a picture of these blossoms, I know I have found my 365 picture of the day. It occurs to me that the beauty of America is one of the reasons so many American veterans have been willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice to defend her. F4.0 at 1/200, ISO 100, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

Growing up, some of my best memories are in the orchard at our family farm. Whether it was picking apples, playing baseball, or swinging on the tire swing, there was always activity amongst the apple trees. Joshua loves to climb this tree in my backyard, and while watching him one day, I noticed this specific clump of apple blossoms. I knew I had found my photo of the day.

I am 17 minutes late for pizza with the grandkids but I just have to make a picture of these petals in my driveway that had come down with the rain. It takes a few minutes to zero in on the best composition but I think I have it now. Click. F16.0 at 0.6, ISO 100, 105 mm lens at 105 mm

My mom loves lily of the valley. We have many that grow around our garage at the farm. It seemed the perfect photo of the day to celebrate her 78th Birthday! Happy Birthday, Mama!

It is beginning to feel like summer and lo and behold there is a butterfly to make it appear even more summer-like. The butterfly swings in the evening breeze along with the tree branches. F3.5 at 1/100, ISO 200, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

My dad gave me a tip today to go check out the American Flag made from petunias down at the newly redone Veteran’s Mall in Stearns Park. I was shocked how well done this was. I felt this was the perfect photo to help commemorate Memorial Day, 2020.

The new walking paths inside Cartier Park in Ludington are great places to look for photographs. My daughter Julia pointed out these flowers to me. F2.8 at 1/500, ISO 1000, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Nikon D850. F16.0 at 1/40, ISO 1600. 105.0mm lens at 105.0mm. May 30, 2020 at 3:12pm.

This beautiful rhododendron plant on Gaylord Avenue in Ludington caught my eye as I was driving to work this morning. I loved how the bright light seemed to be focused on one small section of the giant bush. F2.8 at 1/100, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

I think Iris Road got its name because so many Iris flowers grew there before the Pere Marquette Township road was named. This morning on my way to work this particular flower looks picture-perfect from a distance. A closer look confirms my hunch. F4.0 at 1/125, ISO 100, 105 mm lens at 105 mm

Pam Sprague, who is Sean’s manager at his hotel in Silver Lake, showed me these jack-in-the-pulpit flowers that grow every year in the woods behind the hotel. Telephoto macro lenses are so useful for photographing flowers. They allow you to get close and show detail, but they also help compress a scene and make the background less busy.

The kids and I love having snowball fights in springtime, courtesy of these snowball bushes! I will often fuel my mom with blossoms so she can ambush the kids from the porch.

My backyard is full of wildflowers. The kids and I love exploring each and every one. Today, these vetch plants stood out to me.

In a small ravine on our property, dame’s rocket grows brilliantly. They can be considered invasive, but for me, they are stunning.

Red admiral butterflies have been invading Northern Michigan this spring. This is one of dozens taking a liking today to an orchard on the Leelanau Peninsula. Butterflies are small and so my challenge is to find one willing to sit still on a blossom long enough for me to get close and in just the right position to make a good shot. F11 at 1/160, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

After emphasizing its detail in a much closer shot, I decide to create a looser image of a Red Admiral butterfly. In this case, I am attracted by the dynamic diagonal pattern of the branches and the oriental feeling conveyed by the branches and blossoms. F7.1 at 1/160, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

The large, mature forest at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore area along Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive is my favorite forest in Michigan. With its massive trees and endless amounts of green foliage covering the forest floor, I imagine that this is what most of the great state of Michigan must have looked like 200 years ago. F5.6 at 1/30, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

My front yard has several large bushes that are near the house. I was excited to see that many beautiful bright pink and purple azaleas bloomed this spring.

So many wishes have been made over the years. As I blew these dandelion seeds into the wind after making this photo, another wish was made.

Tonight I headed to my Uncle Budde and Aunt Sheryl's house on Lake Michigan to photograph their beautiful flower garden. I manually exposed for the sky and set that exposure about two stops of light to the minus side because that would bring detail back into the sky. I then used fill flash to illuminate the flower, creating a moody photograph. F20.0 at 1/250, ISO 1000, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm