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Little Sable in Magic Light

Little Sable On A rainy Day

At 5:05pm tonight when I left work from our downtown Ludington photo gallery, I looked up at the sky and knew I needed to go shoot the sunset and waves a few blocks away. I parked next to the south concession stand inside of the Ludington City Beach and walked to the edge of the water inside the pier heads. The wind was kicking and the sunset was incredibly intense. After only a few minutes of shooting, I knew I had made my shot. The drive to continually push on a get better as a photographer was ingrained in me by my father. He was right next to me shooting and making his own art. Life is good!

This winter has been one of the mildest winters on record for West Michigan. Normally on January 31st, the channel in Ludington would be frozen. Unfortunately this winter we have had very little snow or ice. Hopefully Jack Frost will reappear soon.

If you own a copy of our Tuesdays book, go to the back of the book and read the section on aspherical perspective. I used that technique to make this image. I sat in my truck and watched the waves splash and built a photo in my head. Then I went down to that exact spot and quickly made this image.

A November gale shook my Jeep, as if one of those coin-operated kiddy rides, when I pulled into the Ludington beach. I knew I was looking at a great picture; making it would be the challenge. A bean bag on the roof of my rocking vehicle was out of the question. The 35-millimeter camera and telephoto lens shook like Jell-O on my heavy tripod. Searching for a solution, I spotted a sturdy lifeguard tower. I climbed it, lay on the floor with the camera and lens braced in the top of my soft camera bag, and shot away.

Unreal? When the sky over Lake Michigan looks this vivid, even people viewing it sometimes cannot believe their eyes. I am a believer. I did not use special filters to record this view of Ludington lighthouse, or any other image in this book.

By getting very close to the frozen life ring with the front of my wide-angle lens, I can emphasize the orange-red color in the foreground of this photograph. I then compose the photograph so the red lighthouse at Grand Haven is at a dynamic diagonal to the life ring. Together, they create a powerful point/counterpoint of color in this otherwise monochromatic scene.

Loving Ludington

Aerial Photos

Loving the Light

Ludington North Pier Light

Ludington North Pier

This is the first photograph I've taken from the inner pier walkway under construction at the Loomis Street Boat Ramp in Ludington harbor. The new walkway will allow local residents, tourists and photographers a closer view of both Ludington outer pier heads all year long. F22.0 at 4.0, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Ludington North Pier Summer 2008

Kris Stewart and his family have owned the Toonerville Trolley and the Hiawatha riverboat for over 30 years. If you want to see wild Michigan black bears and have fun with the entire family, take a day to travel on the small Toonerville Trolley train and then float down the Tahquamemon River on the Hiawatha riverboat all the way to the Upper Tahquamemon Falls. Kris has a wealth of knowledge and is an expert navigator and ferryboat captain.

Ludington Shining Bright

The shadow of the 112-foot-tall Big Point Sable Lighthouse is cast on dune land north of the lighthouse. The pristine view northward from atop the light tower reveals part of the thousands of acres of protected state and federal land along the Lake Michigan shoreline north of the lighthouse.

My Home Town