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Some day I hope to publish a book of nothing but photographs of water ripples. I never tire of watching the colors change by the second as the light moves across the surface. Tonight, on the south breakwall in Pentwater, I pointed out these water ripples to several people passing by.

My dad and I headed out to the north side of the channel in Grand Haven today to photograph the abundance of fisherman catching perch, steelhead, and salmon. The pier was packed and several people were showing off their catches. The fog was "pea soup," as my dad would say, so I was not expecting to see many boats heading out for a joy ride. To my surprise, Karizmaddie, a racing sailboat, was venturing out into the fog.

Fish Town in Leland showcases Michigan's Great Lakes commercial fishing heritage while also featuring shopping, dining, and boat cruises. Leland is one of dozens of picturesque Great Lakes small port villages, towns, and cities.

Little Sable

Shadows to the Light

Manistee Lighthouse and USCG

The freighter Canadian Transfer, her navigation light showing she is underway, steams slowly, carefully toward Ludington harbor on a summer night. The traditional style Great Lakes freighter was bringing a load of stone to the Laman Aspalt docks.

In the 1980s, high Lake Michigan water levels threatened to undermine Big Point Sable Lighthouse. The Coast Guard erected a planned replacement tower to be ready for the day the light toppled into Lake Michigan. Local lighthouse lovers and construction companies teamed up to repair the steel wall that once protected the light, adding further fortification against the waves. The reinforcement worked; the Coast Guard removed the backup light. Lake Michigan receded, allowing the waves to deposit sand around part of the sea wall. Knowing the potential fate at this light makes me appreciate its presence even more.

This is the best sunset I have ever seen while photographing the Manistee Lighthouse. I tried to time it so that the people walking down the pier were in a good location for this composition. I used the natural framing of the pier and placed the walkers in one of the archways. In our photography workshops, we call this concept micro composing. F9.0 at 1/125, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 35 mm

Often customers come into the gallery and question if the colors of our photographs are real. The answer is always yes, the colors are real.

My dad and I always say that "Clouds are your friends!" and here is the proof. Imagine how ordinary this photograph would be if it did not have the beautiful white, wispy clouds. It is the clouds in this photograph that tie the patterns in the water to the patterns of the sail on the sailboat. F6.3 at 1/1600, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 17mm

Sunset Off Stearns Park Beach

Storm Front Over Ludington

Shining brighter than a spotlight at a rock concert, beams of light I like to call "God beams" spotlight the Ludington lighthouse. I prefer nature's light shows to any manmade ones.

I walked out the Ludington North Breakwater to photograph the northern lights in the middle of the night. The lights we barely visible, but the Milky Way was incredible. You could also see the lights of Wisconsin. It was a beautifully calm night on Lake Michigan.

North Manitou Shoal Light Station looks to me like a giant birdhouse as we cruise past on a voyage between Leland and South Manitou Island on a gorgeous July morning. The light station was automated in 1980 and has not been manned by the Coast Guard since then. Cormorants appear to have taken over the structure.

Photographing lightning always gives me a jolt of adrenaline. This storm that rolled in from Lake Michigan hit Manistee with a punch. I was excited that I was able to capture a small bolt of lightning with only a shutter speed of 1/5 of a second. F22 at 1/5, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 27mm

Thunder Bay, near Alpena, Michigan is the ultimate Great Lakes shipping graveyard with over 50 sunken vessels that have been found and are easily accessible to view. It is estimated that over 200 vessels have sunk in this area of Lake Huron known as "Shipwreck Alley." Today, my dad and I explored Thunder Bay aboard the Lady Michigan, a glass bottom tour boat owned by the Alpena Shipwreck Tours Company. This photo shows the remains of Scanlon's Barge, which sank in 1929 and is only 13 feet below the surface. As I was shooting this photograph, a fish came by to check out the wreckage as well. F6.3 at 1/250, ISO 1600, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

Birdseye View of Hamlin Lake

Tall Ship and Sunset