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I get excited when I see the turning of leaves for the first time each fall, if it is a fall that lasts a few months, and we have time to enjoy it! This tree in our yard is always one of the first to turn each fall.

Today I walked across the street from our new house and explored the land along the Lincoln River. The grass and cattails were several feet above my head and showed no sign of slowing down their growth. It was also a mosquito heaven and I was dinner. The photo made the excursion worth it. F2.8 at 1/320, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

I have played many different sports throughout my life and I believe swimming is the most demanding sport I have experienced. Swimming a few hundred meters in a pool is a ton of work. Now imagine swimming 50 miles in Lake Michigan without touching a boat or the bottom the entire time! My cousins, Jeff and Sara Tow, are going to attempt that amazing feat in August. F4.5 at 1/1600, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 17mm

Since I was a young boy, my Papa Bill would convince his musician friends to play live music for us at family gatherings or his famous barn parties. One of the staple musicians has always been Al Villadsen and his concertina. Al played again for us today at Wilson Park on Hamlin Lake as we enjoyed our annual Labor Day Marble family reunion.

It is a blue morning along Lake Michigan and I am a blue person. By that I mean I love the color blue; don't ask me why, but I always have. Some might say I wear blue clothing way too often. They probably don't notice as much my penchant for blue pictures. Now they know. F4.0 at 1/320, ISO 200, 12-24 mm lens at 12 mm

About the size and weight of a ping pong ball, a newborn piping plover scurries along the Lake Michigan shoreline on its spindly legs. Naturalists helped the rare bird get its life started by erecting a protective cage over the nest its parents made on a highly trafficked area of West Michigan beach. F4.5 at 1/1250, ISO 800, 500mm lens at 500mm

It is difficult shooting the sunset at home, due to our neighbor’s sprinkler irrigation system running north and south in the field to the west. I have had to work hard to compose shots where the sprinkler doesn’t take away from the feel of the image.

While Betsy and I were chatting with some of our new neighbors in our side yard, I noticed a tree full of fungus. I excused myself from the conversation to make this photograph before the light changed. F22.0 at 15.0, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 46 mm

With or without all the "bling" it is wearing, an adult piping plover is simply a beautiful creature. The bands help researchers keep track of the endangered bird, enabling them to know exactly which bird this is no matter where it travels. This plover and its mate are among less than 60 mating pairs currently identified along the Great Lakes. F4.5 at 1/1250, ISO 800, 500mm lens at 500mm

The Wright Family at Thundering Aspens Hunt Club in Mesick have outdone themselves again. Today they let us be some of the first hunters to try their new hunting clays course. Of course, my Uncle Budde beat all of us with his trusted double barrel 20-gauge Winchester shotgun, but we all had fun. Along the way, I spotted this heart-shaped rock and had to stop and make an iPhone image of it.

I love watching thunderstorms sweep toward my home from across Lake Michigan. I have seen a lot bigger storms and bigger lightning bolts, but I still find the bolts of this storm exciting and alluring. Why is it that so many of us are drawn to storms? F5.6 at 30.0, ISO 400, 80-200 mm lens at 80 mm

Daisies are one flower that always seems to make everyone smile. My aunt, Sheryl Reed, has several beautiful gardens at her home, but this daisy garden is by far my favorite. F7.1 at 1/320, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 10mm

I was in my van when I saw what I thought was a bee, flying around against the window. I grabbed my camera and put my macro lens on. I then waited until it flew onto a part of the window that would show off its beauty best, without showing what was outside. I learned later that it was a hover fly not a bee..

Tonight was our last 20/20 Vision Workshop of the summer. The light was not very good so we all had to look harder and deeper for our photographs. The waves in the channel were a little bigger than usual and were making some interesting pattern images along the shore. F4.0 at 1/50, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Just recently I was loaned a 10-17millimeter fisheye lens and I am loving it. Of course the lens distorts the natural world, but we teach our workshop students that distortion is not always a bad thing. In fact, done well, it can really make a scene go from good to great. F3.8 at 1/320, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 11.5mm

I live for days like this when Lake Michigan displays its awesome power and beauty. The feeling of 40-knot wind gusts in my face, sound of waves rushing and sight of water flying over the Ludington lighthouse overwhelm my senses. Before making this shot, I warned several swimmers about a recent drowning in the same location.

One of my fellow CrossFit friends, Patrick Mousel, was out for a sunset run along the Lake Michigan shoreline at the Ludington State Park tonight. As he quickly approached, I got into position and made this "Pure Ludington" image. F22 at 0.4, ISO 100, 10-17mm lens at 10mm

After getting the kids ready for the first day of school tomorrow, darkness fell quickly. I was not sure what to make for my photo today. I was running out of ideas when Kasey jokingly brought out a mermaid that grew in water. It was larger than my hand but very odd in texture. I made several different images at various shutter speeds while moving the mermaid. I was happy with the way this shot turned out.

Just recently, we had a first time visitor to our gallery telling us that she had never been to Michigan before. She went on to tell us that the night before was her first time experiencing a sunset over Lake Michigan and that when she saw with her own eyes that the beach and sand really do turn neon pink during sunset, she started to cry. I was thinking of her when I made this image a few days later. F4.5 at 1/40, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

I grabbed a single sunflower that had been sitting in a mason jar on my kitchen table and took it outside on my deck so I could make this image. I knew I needed a clean, simple background for the image I had built in my head while eating dinner with Julia and Ethan. The photo turned out better than I had imagined. The details in the clouds disappeared nicely when I exposed for the flower.