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My favorite new lens is my Sigma 18-50 mm F2.8 EX DC Macro. I love that this lens is a wide angle, but also a macro. Wide-angle lenses capture a large degree of the scene in front of you and macro lenses allow you to get close to a subject and focus very finitely. I used that lens to make this image of some grass at the entrance to Stearns Park. F3.5 at 1/500, ISO 1000, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

My dad and I drive four-wheel-drive pick up trucks for several reasons. We often end up on dirt roads, in deep mud, snow, or sand. We also have an unbelievable amount of photography gear, clothing, rope, and other adventure items with us at all times. My truck was pushed to the limits a few hundred yards past where I made this image today. I am glad my truck has skid plates on the bottom because I went over some pretty impressive boulders to get down Indian Hill Road between Honor and Empire.

I stood on the tailgate of my truck along Custer Road to make this image. I loved all the layers in this scene and the rolling hills. All I needed to do was wait for the light. As I waited, I Facetimed with my mom, who lives in Germany.

We often teach our workshop students that the main subject of your photograph does not have to be a very big part of the final composition. This photograph of Grand Traverse Light is a good example of that concept. The Lake Michigan ice formation in the foreground becomes the focal point of the photograph and the lighthouse in the distance becomes more of an added ingredient and helps identify the location.

Autumn Arrangment

Divine Light

Legends Deer Ranch

I have driven by this barn on US-10 multiple times a year my entire life and have never seen it look as good as it did today. Julia, Ethan, and I were on our way to visit my cousin and her family in Lake Fenton when I had to pull over and walk in the deep snow to make this image. I used the fence to create leading lines

Awakening the Soul

Feeling the Energy

Fiery Afterglow

November Radiance

Squashing any notion I might have had that I was photographing pumpkins, grower Jim Schwass let me know they were actually winter squash. Visiting with the lifelong Riverton Township farmer while photographing the squash and his son's farm was one of those social bonuses that often make photo expeditions especially rewarding.

I love the view of Lake Michigan as you crest the hill leading to the Buttersville Peninsula. Today it is spectacular. As I compose this shot I am reminded of many Coast Guard boat rides on days like this. I can almost hear my former shipmate, Chief Doug Lee, smiling and declaring on the wildest of those rides: "Gotta love it, boys!" F3.2 at 1/200, ISO 100, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

I love the view of Lake Michigan as you crest the hill leading to the Buttersville Peninsula. Today it is spectacular. As I compose this shot I am reminded of many Coast Guard boat rides on days like this. I can almost hear my former shipmate, Chief Doug Lee, smiling and declaring on the wildest of those rides: "Gotta love it, boys!" F3.2 at 1/200, ISO 100, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

I had already made a picture I liked of the Centenary United Methodist Church steeple in Pentwater before finding this shadowy view of a massive tree at Snug Harbor Marina on Pentwater Lake. Both images featured sunshine, shadows and clouds. Brad thought both images had a spiritual quality; I agreed. F8.0 at 1/640, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 12 mm

Since August 2012, when I photographed this old McCormick-Deering tractor on Indian Hill Road for the Tuesdays project, I have been eager to come back and photograph it in the fall. Today the scene is even better than I could ever have imagined. My favorite part of this image is all the leaves stuck in the grass surrounding the tractor.

Right after making this image, I found a dirty diaper in the dunes. I was outraged that a parent would be that irresponsible and would litter on the beach at the Ludington State Park.

Beach House Aglow

Baby Birds