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Brad and I are always trying to discover different spectacular vantage points from which to view Michigan. Tonight we have hiked to the Empire Bluff for the first time. I stop short of the bluff at this overlook spot because I just can't resist making an image of the view northward toward Empire, South Bar Lake, and Sleeping Bear. I am content here but can't help wondering what Brad is seeing from the bluff's edge.

Tunnel of Trees Conrad Road in Winter

I attended Lakeview Elementary School from kindergarten through sixth grade and now I live across the street from the school. Even as a young child, I remember loving this tree that is located next to the playground. F7.1 at 1/320, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

Guests can arrange to bring their horses with them when they stay at Bedrock Stables in Metamora. Manager Kyle Kedzierski leads a horse out of the stable at the country bed and breakfast in the heart of Metamora horse country.

The stanchions supporting the catwalk to the Grand Haven lighthouses look to me like a line of Star Wars mechanical soldiers. After making this composition and locking the camera in place on the tripod, I wait to push the shutter button at peak moments when seagulls are prominent and well placed in the scene. F14 at 1/400, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 145mm

Todd's Day 209 of 365

Big Clouds - panoramic

I love seeing the red-winged blackbirds in the Pere Marquette River flats south of Ludington. This male sings what I imagine is a springtime love song while swaying in the breeze atop a cattail. F5.6 at 1/2500, ISO 800, 500 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 700 mm

Looking out from the Rock River Canyon Ice Caves, better known as the Eben Ice Caves, I was thinking that the rock ceiling and ice looked like a winter sunflower with “petals” of ice emanating from the center of the “flower.” Any way you look at them, these caves at Eben Junction near Chatham in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula are impressive.

Pier catwalks are a photographer's friend. They add interest to lighthouse photographs and sometimes can be an interesting main subject. Standing close to one of the catwalk stanchions, I compose a picture that has immediacy, dynamic angles, and leading lines. It is also a fresh view of the Grand Haven pier and lighthouses. F5 at 0.3, ISO 100, 14-24mm lens at 24mm

The Budweiser Clydesdales have been a favorite icon for the Reed family for decades because of the Ludington Beverage Company. A few years ago my uncle, Budde Reed, purchased a life-size statue of a Budweiser Clydesdale for the front lawn of Ludington Beverage. Today, I took Julia to see the statue and to make my photo of the day. F6.3 at 1/400, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 20 mm

During our hike back from the Eben ice caves, my favorite Robert Frost poem came to mind as I stopped in the woods to appreciate the equally stunning sight of the snow-covered woods. I was in a rush on my way to the caves and passed up making a shot in these woods. Early that evening on the way back all was still and perhaps even more magical looking. I felt like Robert Frost must have felt when he stopped in the woods on a snowy evening.

One of my photography obsessions involves photographing life rings, wherever they appeal to my eye. Lake Michigan is relatively calm this evening but this life ring and others hanging on the Grand Haven pier catwalk are ready and waiting for any time they are needed. Lake Michigan waves are a force to respect and, at times, fear. F22 at 1/60, ISO 400, 14-24mm lens at 19mm

Ice Sea

Wednesday

After waiting without success for a pair of sandhill cranes to show up along the Pere Marquette River and resume their courting ritual, I find myself zeroing in on the sun rising in front of the hardwood forest east of the marsh. F5.6 at 1/160, ISO 100, 500 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 700 mm

A Michigan State Policeman pulls up behind us along US10 between Evart and Clare to see if Brad and I need assistance. We don't. We have pulled over to photograph the tapestry of fall colors screaming at us from a bog and woods. We thank the officer for his thoughtfulness and go back to work trying to convey how stunning the woodland scene in front of us looks.

As a young boy I used to come down to Grand Haven with my dad every summer for the Coast Guard Festival. As I have gotten older and busier with life and my dad has retired from the Coast Guard, we haven't been down to Grand Haven much in the last few years. Tonight was a quiet night along the shores of Lake Michigan, but I am looking forward to a busy summer night in Grand Haven when hundreds of people are walking the pier. F6.3 at 1/500, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

In the Teeth of Winter

Conrad Road Tunnel of Trees in Summer