Search

I was driving back from dropping my kids off for a weekend with their dad, when I noticed the cloud formations to the west. I am not as familiar with the Oceana County area, and I was struggling to find a public spot to shoot. Finally, I came to Claybanks Township Park and ran to compose my shot.

We had been trying unsuccessfully all morning to make strong still and video imagery of an eagle while shooting in 2007 for an upcoming book, Ludington State Park: Queen of the North. Some days are a bust; this started out being one of those. The eagles were not cooperating, and we had gotten wet and cold bouncing around choppy Hamlin Lake. In the Coast Guard, I learned that if Plan A does not work, always have a Plan B already in mind. So, despite being disappointed, cold and hungry, we turned our attention to photographing salmon making their annual return to the Sable River from Lake Michigan. It was the last week of October, and the fall color reflecting off the wind-rippled surface of the water made this salmon appear to be under stained glass. It was not the image I had set out to make, but it turned out to be one of my favorite images from a year of intensely photographing Ludington State Park. In years past I had made lesser photographs of salmon in the same spot, just under water on a spawning bed with fall color reflected on the surface. But on this day, Mother Nature blessed me with an extraordinary added ingredient. A brisk west wind made all the difference, agitating the surface of the water just enough to create a shower glass effect on the river. This faceted surface reflected various colors in various directions, turning my photograph into abstract art. I don’t like setting up an image. I love “found” pictures that are real-time moments in the Michigan outdoors. I am especially proud of this image because, while many people surmise it is not “real” and is somehow an electronic after-the-fact manipulation, it is as real, as purely Michigan at its genuine best as I have ever made. I love a lot of abstract art, but I don’t find myself drawn to setting out to make a lot of abstract images. But I do know a good abstract photo moment when I see one.

Viewing the world through a telephoto lens with a wide aperture creates an impressionistic view of dandelions and one sharp standout.

I love photographing the morning light as it hits the Lake Michigan shoreline. Today the lighthouse clearly has a bright side and a shadow side, making the photograph more dimensional. F5.6 at 1/320, ISO 500, 600 mm lens at 600 mm

Before my mother-in-law, Sharon Verduin, passed away from cancer, I remember her telling my kids that when they couldn't fall asleep at night that instead of counting sheep, they should count their blessings. I loved that idea and have done it several times myself and it always makes me smile.

It occurred to me during one of the most spiritual photographic experiences of my life that I was inside a real-life crystal cathedral. I think the beauty of this God-made ice cave “church” on Grand Island on Lake Superior by Munising far surpasses the beauty of the Crystal Cathedral made by man. Brad and I had photographed many phenomenal views in the Michigan outdoors, but nothing had prepared us for what we witnessed inside the Grand Island ice caves. We felt like we were stepping into God’s art studio as we entered a glowing world of intricately sculpted green and white ice. Few places could be as incredibly glorious as this place. We were, and remain, most grateful for the experience and privilege to make images testifying to the beauty we beheld.

When I was working up this aerial photograph of Hamlin Lake on the computer, I noticed how three-dimensional this image was. The shadow on the north edge of the lake makes the trees and homes off of Nurnberg Road appear to be coming off the page. D800, F8 at 1/100, ISO 400, 14-24mm lens at 14mm

Beautiful Silver Lake

Enjoying Ludington

Legends

Seas roiling like a cauldron of churning, boiling water are bathed in storm light during one of the most spectacular Lake Michigan gales of November I have ever seen. Gulls soar above the Ludington lighthouse, on the lookout for fish churned with the waves.

As I lay on my stomach at the end of the inner North breakwall, an icy cold wave crashed over my head. I braced myself for the cold shock and pressed the shutter button at the same time. It all happened so fast, that I was not sure if I captured the moment. I continued to lie in the snow and shoot, but another wave never came. Fortunately, my first shot turned out.

The nature trails at West Shore Community College abound with outdoor photography subjects. This orange hawkweed stood out along the shore of a pond on the picturesque campus.

At one summer art fair when I was a young boy, I remember hearing a gentleman say to my dad, "That isn't art, it's just a photograph!" Well, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, and I enjoy the fact that art is subjective. I enjoy making images like this one, where an object that might go unnoticed takes on a new appearance.

I photographed two deer in a stand of sumac and was pleased with the shot until I saw this view of the Ludington South Breakwater Light right after sunset. The tube-shaped light tower is usually unattractive but tonight it looks like a lit candle dripping wax. I concentrate on keeping my biggest lens still on the tripod. F4.0 at 1/50, ISO 800, 500 mm lens at 500 mm

Tonight I had a chance of a lifetime. My good friend, Brian Flannery, invited me to photograph some world-class whitetail deer at the Legend Ranch near Bitely, Michigan. People from all over the world travel here to hunt on this beautiful ranch. I wasn't in the blind for more than five minutes when this big boy walked out. It was the largest buck I had ever seen or photographed. Little did I know, he was one of the smaller deer I would see in the next two hours.

If I had a million dollars, I would buy the three-foot-square piece of land my tripod is sitting on along M-22. I would leave the tripod there for countless others to physically stand in this spot and take in the awe-inspiring view I am enjoying of the Arcadia Lutheran church immersed in a sea of fall color.

I have long been fascinated by the big wooden reels used for storage and repair of large commercial fishing nets. This reel is mounted along the channel of Fishtown in Leland, Michigan, near Carlson's Fisheries. I wonder if it is still used today.

Close to Home

Enjoying the Glow