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Ethan has wanted a dirt bike for years and today was finally the day his dreams came true. As he was doing a few laps in the front yard, I made photos of him using a slow shutter speed and panning by hand. Ethan and his new motorcycle look fairly sharp, and the background behind him looks blurry. This effect gives the image a sense of speed and motion.

The fruit trees in Mason County are starting to blossom. I love this newer sculpture in Waterfront Park that is dedicated to the hard-working fruit farmers past and present in our area.

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.

Rachel had the kids and me out to her house for dinner tonight with her and her kids. While there, Rachel’s daughter Kasey was excited to show us some of the new kittens that were born below their porch.

I could see the makings of a shelf cloud over Lake Michigan, so I headed to the lakeshore from work. As I was making several images of the small cloud, I could see a paddle boarder coming my way. I thought he was very brave! I waited until he was in front of me and had the paddle in a position I wanted. Thanks to social media, later I was able to find out who he was and give him a free print!

Julia made a nice putt tonight while she, Ethan, and I were playing mini golf at the Ludington Jaycees Mini Golf at Stearns Beach. The newly redone course is a Ludington treasure and I have always loved the Badger hole. I have great memories of playing this same course with my dad and my brother when I was little, so it is super fun for me to play it now with my kids..

We don’t usually shoot commission photographs for people, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to photograph Lon Reader’s 1967 Plymouth Belvedere GTX convertible with a 426 Hemi and a 4-speed manual transmission. Lon was getting ready to sell this car that he had purchased in high school several decades ago. He wanted a picture to help him remember this classic American car.

Today was Julia’s very first day of golf practice ever. Julia has decided to try out for the Ludington High School girls golf team. She is new to the game of golf, but already loves it. As she was standing there at Lincoln Hills with her golf bag on her back and her awesome muscles showing, I couldn’t resist embarrassing her and making her pose for a cell phone shot to document this fun moment.

The Marble family had a big gathering today out at my Uncle Rod’s house near Hamlin Lake. I have always loved his rebuilt 1958 Chevy pickup truck, so today I decided to try and make a nice photograph of it with my big camera. You should see the engine and the maple pickup bed!

Dwight “Scotty” Scott was my step-grandpa. As a little kid, I loved my Papa Scotty. I spent a lot of time at his restaurant Scotty’s in Ludington. Unfortunately, his original restaurant, Scotty’s Wren’s Roost, located on the middle bayou of Hamlin Lake, had burned to the ground a year before I was born. A family friend gave me an original coffee mug from there and I photographed it tonight.

For an early birthday present, Rachel bought us tickets to go parasailing over Grand Traverse Bay together. It was something I had always wanted to do. At first, she was more nervous than me, but once we got up into the air, she was all smiles and calm as could be. I was the one who was having to work really hard to relax and not freak out. I love this photo of her I made with my cell phone.

Brad can be a bit of an adrenaline junkie. I am not. Parasailing seemed to be just the right combination for a surprise birthday gift to him. To my surprise, I loved it! We had a blast, and definitely want to do it again with the kids!

When my Grandma Reed died last year, each family got to pick out one of her large Santa dolls. I leave this Santa out all year for us to enjoy and to remember all the wonderful Christmas gatherings at my Grandpa and Grandma Reed’s house. I used my macro lens and made this close-up image tonight.

I am very proud of Kasey and her first cross country season. She is running in Evart today at SpringHill Camp. Due to COVID-19, they split the large invitational up into three groups of teams to keep the athlete and spectator numbers low.

My brother Tad called me today to see if I could photograph the Bud Light Seltzer Jeep and models that were touring the country doing promotions. Tad is a fourth-generation co-owner of Ludington Beverage, which distributes Anheuser-Busch products, along with a lot of craft beers. I met the crew down at the Loomis Street Boat Ramp and went to work..

Ethan had an away soccer game today that was in a beautiful farm setting between Holland and Grand Rapids. I love watching my kids playing sports and being active. I am so glad they were able to have a soccer season this fall.

After a fun night of hanging with the guys at the golf outing, we teed off at Hawk Hollow golf course near Lansing. I found this hand-carved hawk statue in the clubhouse and knew I had found my photo of the day.

While driving around downtown Ludington today doing errands, I noticed this heart shape inside of a stained-glass window. This window is in one of the large historic homes near Ludington Avenue. I am always on the lookout for hearts.

For years Julia and Ethan went to Elaine Buskirk’s daycare in Ludington. They are old enough now that they don’t need to go to daycare, and we always miss seeing Elaine. While driving in our old neighborhood near Lakeview School today, I spotted one of Elaine’s cool Halloween pumpkins in her front yard. Elaine’s sister makes these entertaining Halloween decorations.

My Uncle Budde and Aunt Sheryl have an extraordinarily beautiful home just north of the Ludington City Beach on Lake Michigan. This is the view out of their dining room. They both have excellent decorating style.