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It always amazes me how mesmerizing it can be to sit and watch a campfire burn. Every flame and fire is different. The same goes for Lake Michigan sunsets. Both a fire and a good sunset warm my soul. F11 at 1/4, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

Fruit Country

I photographed this old house on Sugar Grove Road this winter but felt compelled to make a new image upon spotting springtime flowers in the front yard. The flowers put a little life in the abandoned building and make me wonder about the people who planted them and lived there many years ago. F5.6 at 1/125, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 17 mm

A few years ago my wife Betsy got me hooked on Country Dairy Milk. The dairy is located in New Era, Michigan and they sell the best tasting milk I have ever had. When you visit the dairy you can go to Moo School and also eat in their family restaurant. My favorite part of every visit is the one dollar cup of chocolate milk with free refills. F7.1 at 1/500, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

The Best of Ludington

Halloween arrived in Mason County this morning with bucket loads of rain and even an occasional snowflake. But as experienced outdoor photographers, Brad and I know that nature’s nasty weather tricks can come with some unusually good treats. So back to Conrad Road I went to photograph the tunnel of trees between the Polcin and Greene farms for the fourth time in five days. The fourth time was the charm.

A giant white cedar tree twists its way toward the sky like a giant corkscrew. This natural treasure is part of a several-hundred-year-old virgin white cedar forest on the southeast side of South Manitou Island. Visitors to the island can take a long hike to view these marvels or can sign up for a wagon tour of island attractions which includes a short hike into the cedar forest.

A classic red tractor helps give that good old-fashioned, at home on the farm feeling to Country Dairy. The dependable old tractor and grazing cows are among many appealing sights at the New Era dairy, which welcomes visitors with open arms to see and learn about dairy farming. F4.5 at 1/800, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 135mm

I learned in the Coast Guard to be “Always Ready” for whatever Lake Michigan threw my way. As an outdoor photographer, being “Always Ready” is still a motto I try to live by. And since a November gale is as predictable as a calm day in July, I make certain I am especially prepared and alert for the arrival of that big November blow. Sure enough, on November 6, 2007, Lake Michigan looked like it was in a Mix Master. I donned my waterproof, insulated clothing, Fuji S5 camera body and 500-millimeter Nikon lens and hustled to the water’s edge. Lying in the sand (and occasionally water) on the Ludington beach, I extended the tripod legs flat and let the occasional wave washing beneath me help bury the tripod solidly in the sand to minimize movement resulting from the powerful northwest winds. After nearly an hour of shooting, at about 2 p.m., sunlight began breaking sporadically through the storm clouds. The resulting “storm light” turned on my adrenaline like a light switch. I was totally engrossed in trying to shoot peak moments of light and wave. I made several images in which the waves totally obscured the Ludington North Breakwater Lighthouse as they flew over the top of the lamp house. Then came the moment I was looking for—that delicate balance between power and beauty. Mission accomplished.

Kinney Gold

One-year-old Caly Eisenlohr stands out beautifully in a sea of dandelions. I was making an image of an orchard and the dandelions in full bloom along Pere Marquette Highway when Caly's parents, Jerrod and Tara, decided this was the perfect setting for them to take pictures of Caly and her three-year-old brother Owen. F4 at 1/320, ISO 400, 500mm lens at 500mm

Fall color stretched as far as the eye could see, and the morning mist allowed, as I stood in awe at the edge of the Manistee River High Rollway, also known as the Buckley Rollway. This is, without a doubt, the best grand scenic vantage point for fall color I have discovered in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. How is it that I had never been to this magic spot before?

Upon our arrival at Country Dairy in New Era, Michigan, Brad and I are immediately attracted to one of the dairy farm's unofficial greeters, Holstein "19445." She is amongst the many attractions at Country Dairy, which range from seeing cows up close and personal, to viewing and learning about real dairy farm operations, including tasting some of the farm's products at their restaurant and farm store. F4.5 at 1/800, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 35mm

For this shot, I put my camera on a tripod, used my 70-200 mm zoom lens, focused on the yellow bush in front of me, set my aperture to F22, my shutter speed to three seconds, and my ISO to 100. Once the camera started to expose, I carefully zoomed my lens from 70 mm to 200 mm creating beautiful art inside my camera. F22.0 at 3.0, ISO 100, 70-200 mm lens at 200 mm

Discovering the woodlands in the Claybanks area of Oceana County carpeted with trillium is for an outdoor photographer like winning the lottery. Brad, our business manager Sarah, and I go our own ways to capture our personal vision of the flower story we want to tell. For my part, I find three trillium flowers that I can place front and center in my composition. Focusing on them while letting the rest of a hillside full of flowers show up more softly in the middleground and background tells the rest of the story without stealing the show from the "stars" in the foreground. F9 at 1/100, ISO 100, 14-24mm lens at 24mm

Ludington State Park June

A redheaded woodpecker stands out in golden evening light in the front yard of John and Susan Persson's home along the Lake Michigan shoreline north of Summit Park. I was looking for wildflowers to photograph when someone else spotted several woodpeckers. F4.0 at 1/250, ISO 800, 500 mm lens at 500 mm

I marvel at how exquisite this lighthouse lens is as I view it from the underside in the lantern room of South Manitou Island Lighthouse. The beautiful and effective Fresnel lighthouse lenses, built in France in the 19th century, still grace a handful of Michigan lighthouses.

I select this trillium to stand out from others in its vicinity. I want to convey the feeling of this one flower being surrounded by others, but I want the attention to be only upon this one. Like a golfer selecting the right club, I select the right lens to accomplish the mission

Marching with Mom