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Point Betsie Light Station looks brand new following an exterior restoration project. The interior of the lighthouse is also being restored but on this bright winter afternoon I am delighted to see the outside looking so good.

Where in the world was this photograph taken? It was actually captured at the elbow of the breakwall in Ludington. I set my camera just a few inches above the surface of Lake Michigan and used a super wide-angle lens to make the rocks lining the pier look like massive cliffs. F8 at 1/640, ISO 800, 10-17mm lens at 12mm

Where in the world was this photograph taken? It was actually captured at the elbow of the breakwall in Ludington. I set my camera just a few inches above the surface of Lake Michigan and used a super wide-angle lens to make the rocks lining the pier look like massive cliffs. F8 at 1/640, ISO 800, 10-17mm lens at 12mm

Only cormorants live on Gray's Reef Light anymore. The unmanned lighthouse marks one of the most treacherous shoals in Northern Lake Michigan. I like the understated yet carefully detailed design of the 1936 structure. F6.3 at 1/800, ISO 200, 14-24mm lens at 24mm

Tuesdays With Todd and Brad Reed

Still so dark the stars were brilliant in dawn’s earliest light, I made this image of a portion of the Island Trail at Ludington State Park while my son Brad was demonstrating to our photography workshop students how much detail and color cameras could record. We both made 30-second exposures. I was very pleased with how my tripod-mounted Nikon D850 rendered the scene.

Rachel's Birthday Light

I was en route to Ludington State Park with a truckload of photography workshop students on October 2, 2018 when I saw magic light break out on the Ludington waterfront. Instead of turning north on M-116 to head to the park, I made an instantaneous decision to continue west to the west end of Ludington Avenue. We piled out and went to work making images of our own vision. I left my truck unlocked for the students, thinking at least a couple of them might need a warming hut due to the extreme wind and ice-cold windchill. The storm light got so dramatic, everyone was too busy shooting up a storm to think about being cold.

After being stuck behind the slowest driver in Mason County and not being able to pass them, I was sick to my stomach for missing a shot out at the Ludington State Park of the largest double rainbow I had ever seen in my life. I missed it by less than 30 seconds. Disappointed, I drove to the Ludington City Beach to watch the sunset and to cool off. To my surprise, we had a colorful sunset appear. Luckily for us, my dad captured the double rainbow and it has become one of our fastest selling images of all time and made the cover of our newest book Wonderous West Shore.

Bat Man

Luci

Eben Ice Caves

Wind contorts my face, waves roar and crash just short of the feet of my tripod, sun gleams and dances across the water, clouds paint the sky. I am in my glory. This is as good as it gets for a Lake Michigan photographer. These are the days I dream about and rarely experience. This mid-September day of 2001 on the Ludington waterfront was one of the best moments of my life. My camera recorded it so I and others can experience it again and again.

I could see the makings of a colorful sunrise as my kids got on the bus. I drove quickly to “The Point”, one of my favorite spots on our family farm. Hesitating slightly at the thought of getting my minivan stuck in the snow, I decided it was worth the risk. The Pere Marquette River glowed pink, just as I had envisioned.

As darkness fell and the lights of Big Sable Lighthouse and the keeper's dwelling emerged, I was certain I was in the best spot to make the strongest picture possible of the famous landmark. I shot several dozen shots over a period of 45 minutes, when the cloud patterns added to the composition of the picture. But it was in the last few minutes of shooting that the electric lights and remaining light in the sky balanced the best. I packed up my gear, shouldered my tripod and strode excitedly down a big dune to meet up with my son Brad, whom I had lost sight of an hour ago. I showed him my "trophy" shot on my digital camera; then he showed me his. It was obvious that his was a Boone and Crocket "trophy" shot compared to mine. I was glad for his greater success but still exhilerated by my own visual experience and capture.

For a few precious minutes, the light of the rising sun and the sunlight reflected from the setting moon balance on an April morning along the Lake Michigan shoreline between Ludington and Pentwater. Sunrise beach walks bring me alive as I watch the world about me come to life.

A pot of gold at the end of the rainbow applies to photography. One summer evening, shortly after telling my wife it was "rainbow weather," we had walked into P.M. Steamers Restaurant when I heard a patron exclaim there were two rainbows. I bolted out the door and raced a couple of blocks to get to a good vantage point to feature the carferry Badger beneath the rainbow. I shot for about two minutes before one rainbow disappeared and the other became less vivid. Good timing makes good pictures; so does always carrying the camera, and postponing dinner.

The symmetry of this tiny Hamlin Lake island at Ludington State Park has caught my eye for several years. I tried many times to make a photograph that portrayed its symmetry in a special way. At last, one spring day Mother Nature provided the perfect atmosphere. The island was barely visible in the early morning mist. I composed a picture, set up the tripod and waited. Soon the island emerged out of the mist just enough to appear extraordinary. The view made my entire day extraordinarily great.

Hamlin Lake is one of Michigan's largest man-made lakes and is certainly one of the most popular. The lake is named after Hannibal Hamlin, who was Vice President of United States under Abraham Lincoln. He lived before the advent of human flight, so sadly, he never got to see this view of his namesake.

This is one of the last old-time fishing boats still used in the Ludington area. My dad's love of old boats has been passed down to me. I love how this photograph looks like a fish's eye. F8.0 at 1/15, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm