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Shadow Waves

Winter Therapy

Water rushes over Munising Falls. A small pile of snow remains as a reminder on this 78-degree afternoon that this is the next to last day of winter. Spring has come early to Michigan's Upper Peninsula. F22 at 0.6, ISO 100, 24-70mm lens at 31mm

As I am working to compose this picture, it suddenly strikes me that I see what looks like a face amidst the rocks and rushing water. I liked this scene downstream from Munising Falls before seeing the face; now I like it even more. F22 at 0.5, ISO 100, 14-24mm lens at 24mm

Au Train Falls is my favorite waterfall to photograph because you can stand right in the water. That helps photographers create strong immediacy and make the viewers of the work feel like they are really there experiencing the waterfall for themselves. My camera and lens got very wet, but that is the reason for insurance! F22 at 1/5, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

Seeing Upper Tahquamenon Falls took away what breath I had left on this below-zero January morning in Michigan’s fabulous Upper Peninsula. Winter had already partially frozen the more than 200-foot-wide falls.

Winter had transformed Munising Falls from a rushing torrent of water to a motionless ice sculpture. The quietness on this windless January morning put me at peace and added to my enjoyment of one of my favorite Michigan waterfalls

You know you are in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula when you have to look 100 feet up to see the top of a waterfall. I was at the bottom of Laughing Whitefish Falls. I liked the name almost as much as the tall falls located near Chatham, about a half-hour away from Munising

All five of our kids spent time photographing and wading into Au Train Falls this afternoon. After they had all gotten their shots, I took our underwater housing and my tall rubber boots and I got into the waterfall as well. With my camera almost half underwater, I finally captured an image I had built in my head almost a year earlier.

Laughing Whitefish Falls is one of my favorite places. The walk to the fall itself is a stunning forest. The cascade of the falls isn’t straight down, which I like. And the pool at the bottom has great moss-covered rocks. It was a wonderful experience to share with all five kids.

Rachel and I were so excited to finally be able to take all of our kids to 12 Mile Beach to see the white birch maple forest. We all had fun exploring the colorful forest with our cameras. After that shoot, the kids were tired, so Julia and Kasey stayed back and watched the boys while Rachel and I went over the dune onto the Lake Superior shoreline. This is the same spot where I captured “Exhilarating” in 2014.

The foreground in this photograph of Manido Falls is the most important part of the composition. When focusing on building a strong middle ground and background, it is easy to forget the most important part, the foreground. I micro-composed the image so that the orange tree would show up in the reflection of the water in the foreground. F8 at 1/25, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

A section of Manido Falls on the Presque Isle River catches my eye at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park. The mid-morning sun plays nicely off the water and the trees from this vantage point. I move in close to keep the "burned up" front-lit trees further to the right out of my image. F22 at 0.3, ISO 400, 24-70mm lens at 24mm

I find the patterns of rock, water, and colorful woods at Manido Falls exquisite on their own, but combined together the patterns make this one of my favorite views so far in Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park. Hiking to this waterfall is well worth the effort. F22 at 1 second, ISO 100, 24-70mm lens at 24mm

When you are photographing fall color and the sun becomes too bright to shoot the trees and leaves, try shooting the reflections of the bright colors. The mist from Manido Falls on the Presque Isle River at the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park made the rocky surface very reflective. By positioning myself at just the right angle, I was able to show the reflections of the brilliant colors. F22 at 1/5, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

When you are photographing fall color and the sun becomes too bright to shoot the trees and leaves, try shooting the reflections of the bright colors. The mist from Manido Falls on the Presque Isle River at the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park made the rocky surface very reflective. By positioning myself at just the right angle, I was able to show the reflections of the brilliant colors. F22 at 1/5, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

I love photographing small, intimate details of large objects and giving a fresh view of common objects. Today I moved in close with my telephoto macro lens on a small, but colorful section of Manido Falls on the Presque Isle River at the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park. I love how the reflections of the fall color on the surface of the water look like flowing flames. F4.5 at 1/640, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

A natural vignette of complementary-colored leaves makes me want to use them to frame one of my favorite Michigan waterfalls

A small section of AuTrain Falls catches my photo eye this October morning. The green grasses, leaves, and streams of water make it look to me like a waterfall garden. The scene looks far prettier to me than when I was here in the spring. F22 at 8 seconds, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 145mm

Like a wake board shooting through the waves, an autumn leaf surfs over the water in the rapids beneath Munising Falls in Munising, Michigan. F8 at 1/6, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm