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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..

Another goldfinch was back in the same butterfly bush that I had photographed earlier in the year. This time instead of a green backdrop, I wanted my red house to be the backdrop. I knew the yellow bird would rocket out against the red siding.

I would like to be as wise about birds and as in sync with them as so many Native Americans have learned to be through generations of careful observation and the passing on of knowledge of their ways. This gull seems to me to be a free spirit as it passes right over my head at the Native American Pow Wow at the National Cherry Festival. I am sure some of the Indians who saw the bird found meaning in its appearance. F10 at 1/500, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

My son, Joshua, spotted this toad in a hole in a tree at the farm. I grabbed my gear and carefully set my camera settings. Then it was a waiting game for it to pop back out.

I have fished for bluegill on Hamlin Lake since before I could walk, but I have never tried to photograph one. Today my cousin Logan Sanzeri and I went on a photographic hunt for bluegill on Indian Pete Bayou. Within a few minutes, this beautiful fish swam right up to my underwater camera and posed for this photograph. F5 at 1/1250, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 10mm

I love to eat perch, especially at Scotty's restaurant in Ludington. Today was the first time I have tried to photograph a perch. It proved to be more difficult than photographing a bluegill, but the hunt was equally thrilling. F4.5 at 1/640, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 10mm

I took a lunchtime break at the lakeshore. The seagulls were very active!

Over the last 15 years the number of new houses and cottages built on the north shore of Hamlin Lake has exploded. Most of the homes border Hamlin Lake on one side and the Manistee National Forest on the other. F6.3 at 1/1250, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 17mm

Betsy, Ethan, and I all have the flu today. It has not been a fun day to say the least, but making a photo of the day in our backyard does take my mind off of being sick for a little while. F8.0 at 1/60, ISO 800, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

I am struck while watching this duck swim on Round Lake in Charlevoix how much it seems as if the female mallard is floating over a sea of giant emerald gems. Round Lake is certainly one of the most beautiful harbors in Michigan. I never tire of spending time here. F2.8 at 1/500, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

The bees obviously know the cold weather months are ahead because they sure are busy this evening in a flower garden near Lake Michigan. Bees have fascinated me since childhood so I particularly enjoy photographing them. F4.5 at 1/500, ISO 100, 105 mm macro lens at 105 mm

As usual, I hit my drive near the trees on the left side of hole 4 at Golden Sands Golf Course near Silver Lake. While walking to my ball, we found a tiny baby mouse sitting on a leaf. I grabbed my iPhone and got down on my stomach to capture this image.

Driving down Conrad Road my dad noticed some sumac that had started to change color. He already had his photo of the day so he called me. Twenty minutes later when I showed up with my camera, this beautiful butterfly greeted me. F2.8 at 1/60, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

Sometimes it is the totally unexpected view that we need to be ready to capture. While photographing boats cruising the Pine River Channel between Lake Michigan and Round Lake in Charlevoix, a rabbit appears right in front of me to feast on grass and clover in a sunny spot. I am struck by the rim lighting of the hare's face and especially its sunlit ears. F3.2 at 1/320, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 280mm

I have made the picture I set out to make at Epworth Heights this afternoon

These pigeons are a bright spot in a sad day. Angel, our beloved cat, died today. The pigeons are on a barn roof at Country Clinic, which gave us Angel nearly 20 years ago when he was an orphan kitty convalescing from the loss of a front leg. What a gift he turned out to be! F5.6 at 1/2000, ISO 400, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

Using our "twice-as-close" rule, I move right in on some lavender flowers to zero in on a bee harvesting nectar and pollinating the flowers in the process. I want to be as close to the bee as my lens will focus so that almost nothing else is sharp in the picture. I want the image to feel like a bee's field of dreams. F3.2 at 1/500, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

Kasey had a cross country meet in Bear Lake this evening. I decided to take back roads home, from Manistee, on the search of a photo. To my luck, I saw this sandhill crane in a field. I safely pulled the van over and got in position. What a majestic bird!

Bethany Rodenbeck holds up a beautiful Lake Michigan steelhead she caught this morning off the shores of Ludington. If you haven't experienced fishing for salmon and steelhead on Lake Michigan you are missing out on a lot of fun. Charter fishing is a multi-billion dollar industry every year in the Great Lakes region and it is worth every penny. F8 at 1/2000, ISO 1600, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

I am impressed by the affection a pair of mute swans display for each other while basking in the sunshine on Pere Marquette Lake with their offspring. It is clear to me they are mates for life. F4.5 at 1/1000, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 145 mm