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Wind Blown

A walk in the Ludington State Park was just what the doctor ordered today. The sunshine and Brad’s company helped calm the unease of COVID-19, even if it was just for a few hours. I chose F22 so that the sunburst, or double sunburst in this case, would appear.

Torrent

There are so many beautiful orchards in Michigan to drive past; it would probably take the entire blossom season to see them all. This one within a few miles of Lake Michigan between Hart and Shelby, Michigan looks as picture-perfect on this May morning as any I have ever seen.

The students in my Photo 1 class at West Shore Community College have set out this morning to find images that will render well with color film. I enjoy watching them use their own vision to find images I might never see. We talk about looking close; I follow my own advice and find this frosted maple leaf. F20.0 at 1/15, ISO 100, 105 mm lens at 105 mm

This sight greets me as I crest a hill on Scout Road while searching for blossoming fruit trees between Shelby and Hart. This scene definitely merits a photograph.

Tulips appear to extend to infinity at Windmill Island Gardens in Holland, Michigan. Visitors from across Michigan and around the world flock to Tulip City each spring to see countless blooms, other Dutch heritage attractions, and Tulip Festival events.

Tulips and the De Zwaan Windmill are two of the spectacular ways Holland, Michigan celebrates its Dutch heritage. Today I search for just the right tulips with which to frame the centuries-old windmill. I set up the tripod low to the ground to make several foreground tulips stand out and surround the tall windmill.

These grand old maple trees look particularly attractive to me wearing their maple syrup pails in the morning light. I am sure my friend from high school days, Stanley Peterson, won't mind me stopping in the front yard of his beautiful farm on Benedict Road to make this image. F22.0 at 0.3, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 24 mm

What we feel and what we at first see through our camera lens often bear little similarity. Identifying feelings causes me to realize I need to haul out my largest telephoto lens to match the painterly, impressionistic feeling I am getting from this tulip garden in downtown Holland. Now all I have to do is organize my composition and focus only on my chosen star tulip so the viewers of my finished image will easily make their way through the maze of flowers in front to the one on which I want them to focus their attention.

Spring Blossoms and Flowers

Engine 1223 looks like it could still be steaming along the tracks but is actually a static exhibit in Grand Haven. The 1941 Pere Marquette Railroad locomotive built in Lima, Ohio, reminds me of the heydays of trains in Ludington when the Pere Marquette Railroad operated here. F10.0 at 1/25, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 13 mm

Windy Night at Sleeping Bear

With everything shut down, Betsy, Sean, the kids, and I all decided to take a hike at the Lake Michigan Recreation Area between Ludington and Manistee. After we all played in a stream and made a bridge to cross, we found this unique looking stump on the Lake Michigan shoreline. Getting off the couch and getting outside is always so rewarding!

In the Fall of 2011, I stood in the water in this same spot and photographed a double rainbow over the Mackinac Bridge during a rainstorm. This morning is a very different type of atmosphere. The foggy, still morning and muted pink and blue colors are picture perfect. F22 at 3 seconds, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 34mm

The sky wasn’t as exciting as I would have liked today when I got out to shoot. I decided to turn my focus on the reflections in the Sauble River. I love the greens and blues.

I love watching the natural world come to life along the Pere Marquette River. It is Saturday and I have slowed down to savor the morning, quietly watching the river flow by our cabin. F6.3 at 1/125, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 165 mm

Golden Moment

Today I stumbled upon a beautiful feather that was wedged between some wild grasses and a fallen tree along the shores of the Pere Marquette River in front of our family cabin. I had no idea that my dad had been out shooting in almost the same exact spot a few hours earlier. That is the second time that has happened so far with the 365 Project. F2.8 at 1/250, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

What a way to celebrate the official arrival of Spring. It is Sunday evening and any visitors to the Silver Lake sand dunes at Silver Lake State Park have long since left their footprints behind. I alone am appreciating these grand dunes. I feel privileged. F22.0 at 1/40, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 12 mm