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Lambs grazing on a Carr Settlement farm were not quite sure of what to make of a photographer. They stayed positioned for a fast getaway while satisfying their curiosity about the stranger. Like wild animals, farm animals have instincts and mannerisms I have long enjoyed observing.

People traveled for hundreds or even thousands of miles to experience the total lunar eclipse on August 21, 2017. I chose to travel 65 miles to the Muskegon South Breakwater Lighthouse so I could experience a partial version of the eclipse along Michigan's west shore. It remained relatively bright out but with a short exposure I was able to make the sliver of moon not eclipsed at the peak stand out.

Edges of Light

Workshop at Ludington State Park

Watching from our “Crow’s Nest” front porch vantage on the Ludington waterfront, I could see a major thunderstorm approaching from the southwest. If it continued on its northeast course, the lightning would soon be upon us and in line with the carferry Badger, moored dockside in its home port. All I had to do was set up the tripod and camera, adjust the settings, compose the picture, wait for the lightning to show up, and have the shutter tripped at just the right moment. Experience and lengthy exposures of at least 10 seconds increased my odds. I love playing the lightning photography game. Bingo!

When I pass the long-abandoned farm home on Sugar Grove Road northeast of Scottville, I marvel at seeing the old Chrysler Imperial; it seems to belong in the yard of an abandoned farm home. Both car and brick home look like flamboyant works of art that have seen better days.

Radiant orange flowers growing on the side of a large dead stump near the north end of the Hamlin Dunes caught my eye as we were passing by in our small boat. I hopped out and floated with my life jacket on, using my tripod as a paddle while trying to keep my camera dry above my head. When I got close to the flowers I was able to stand up and I found the real hidden treasure I was seeking.

Electric Shoreline

Frankfort Lighthouse and Lower Laker

 

Frankfort Lighthouse

When the owners of Patton's Junk Yard, on Stiles Road in Riverton Township, granted me permission to photograph the yard I had no idea of the history that lay within. It became apparent that most of the vehicles and machinery reflected a long ago era. I found a delivery truck with "Old Tyme Milling Co." painted on its weathered side. I took many photographs, but I liked this closest, simplest shot that summed up Patton's Junk Yard. The old-fashioned junk yard, with all its relics, has disappeared.

Deep within the forest in the northern part of Ludington State Park lies a pond that my son Brad and I have discovered to be a delightful place. We watched this male wood duck and several others for more than an hour on a late September morning. We waited patiently for them to come closer and then looked for those magic moments when the splendid ducks fit in perfectly with their marshy home.

 

The bow of the commercial fishing tug Judy Ann cuts through the water as the vessel heads for the chub fishing grounds far offshore on Lake Michigan. The tug was operated by Ron Walters and his father, Jim, for many years. It was the last commercial gill net fishing vessel to operate out of Ludington. I miss seeing the sturdy old boats operated by the Walters, Cloutiers, and others plying in and out of the harbor, unloading their catches or working on their nets.

At first glance, a dead tree is not a pleasant sight, certainly not a beautiful one. But when a person spends enough time in the forest and comes to appreciate the natural evolution of life and death, one can actually look for and see the beauty in natural things that have died. I felt that way as soon as I saw this scene. Flooding years earlier in this dune valley swale had killed this tree and many others nearby. New life was all around.

 

A sign of times past, this sign once advertised a Ludington retail fish business on the waterfront where commercial fishing vessels once docked. The original location of the building and the fish tugs is now the site of Ludington Municipal Marina.