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Oriole Pride

Over The Top

I love watching people's reactions to this photograph. I have found that people either really like this image or they don't. Personally, this is one of my favorite photographs I have ever taken. That is the beauty of art. It is in the eye of the beholder.

For weeks I have wanted to make a photograph of seagulls sitting on the dock posts at the Loomis Street Boat Ramp, but every time I got close enough they flew away. Today I took a different approach. I did the "run and gun" and it worked. I manually set my exposure ahead of time and ran as fast as I could up to the docks. F9.0 at 1/1600, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Sight Seeing

For the blue heron

After striking down at its prey, the blue heron comes up with its catch so quickly that, according to the electronic data recorded by my digital camera, only one second elapsed between the previous photograph and this one.

After pausing briefly with its catch, the blue heron extends its neck and dumps the fish down the hatch. My parents live near the Ludington State Park. They are most happy if the herons find the fishing good on the Sable River rather than the goldfish pond in their backyard.

It is officially spring when the geese flock to my parents’ fields! This one was getting a running start before flying away. I was happy to capture the reflection in the quick click of the shutter.

I have been watching these mallards at Ludington Municipal Marina all winter. Bubblers have maintained some open water for them. Today, finally, I see a unique picture of them I like. Reality and reflection make an interesting illusion. F2.8 at 1/400, ISO 100, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

John and Cheryl Larson own a beautiful home and piece of property on lower Hamlin Lake. They allow us to photograph their property and for that we are so thankful. This morning I enjoyed making images of several trumpeter swans with the famous Hamlin Lake dunes as a backdrop.

Hearing birds sing in the springtime is therapy for my soul. Photographing small birds is a bigger challenge than most people would expect. They flitter around so fast that it is hard to make a photograph that is in focus, sharp, and well composed. My hat goes off to those photographers who make a living photographing birds.

The first robin of the season is here and what a beauty it is!

The Three Amigos

Whoooo Are You

A white egret slowly walks in the shallow waters of the Sable River while hunting for food on a warm fall evening at the Ludington State Park.

Two Canada geese flew in tandem next to me this morning as I stood on the side of Long Bridge Road near the Pentwater River flats. I love the graphic nature of this image and it shows the power and beauty of these giant birds. F7.1 at 1/2000, ISO 2200, 600mm lens at 600mm

Panorama Resort

Sometimes you get to see something in nature so heartwarming it gives you a feeling of euphoria. This rare piping plover chick and two of its siblings had flown the coop and were missing in action. Well actually, the rare chicks couldn’t fly yet so they hopped away with their parents from the shelter erected by humans to protect the endangered species from predators and human footsteps. They hopped so far from their dune valley nest site that it was a couple hours before we spotted them by a pond over the next dune ridge. We were greatly relieved they were all alive and well. Being able to capture this parenting moment added to the euphoria.

After putting on a slide show in Fremont yesterday as part of a United Way fundraiser, my dad, my daughter Julia, and I drove to the Waste Water Treatment Plant in Muskegon. We got our permits and then drove around the property looking for snowy owls. My dad's keen eye spotted this one out in a large field near a utility road. We pulled over and I got my cold weather gear on and my giant lens and tripod, and slowly walked towards the beautiful bird. This was the first snowy owl that Julia has ever seen.