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I like to call it the "Marne Barn" because I am always on the lookout for it when I pass by it on I-96 west of Marne. The Mart Egan & Sons barn is one of the prettiest, best kept barns in Michigan. On this snowy day I felt compelled to get off the freeway at Marne and find my way there to photograph it.

After traveling nearly 300 miles today photo hunting on a mostly gray day, experience tells me the sun may peak out as it approaches the horizon. I head to Ludington State Park and take up position on one of the tallest dunes on the shoreline. Sure enough, 20 minutes before sunset, the sun starts finding its way through cloud openings.

Mirror of Heaven

A large farm near the border of Mason and Oceana Counties looks like the skyline view of Chicago over Lake Michigan. I can’t stop my truck quick enough to make this image.

 

My son Brad and I teach that 90 percent of a good outdoor photograph is about the light and or atmosphere. Three videographers were with me on a late January early evening that could best be described as gray on the emotional scale. They probably wondered why I was stopping along this country road with it getting so dark. However, I instantly saw, looking at Cherry Hill Farm, that the soft snowfall was creating a painterly, Christmas-card atmosphere that I could previsualize much brighter. A longer exposure would do just that but I needed the snowflakes to remain relatively distinct. Adding to my challenge, I wanted as much of the scene sharp as possible. The solution was to raise my ISO (digital sensor sensitivity speed) to a fast 3200, which allowed me to shoot at a relatively fast shutter speed (1/100th second) and still maintain a medium depth of field (f9). All I had to do now was slap down the tripod, mount the camera and trip the shutter. I have studied and photographed our Conrad Road neighbors’ farm for years. This image is one of my wintertime favorites

Like a coating of white feathers, frost decorates sumac branches on a dune overlooking the Sable River Outlet at Ludington State Park. This February scene is the polar opposite of those hot summer days when the Lake Michigan tributary and its banks abound with swimmers and sunbathers. Sable River Outlet is one of the most picturesque spots on Lake Michigan in any season.

We found an old garage on the south side of Muskegon with a roof that created the American flag out of shingles. It was the coolest roof that I have ever seen. Someday I would love to do this on my garage.

Having the flu is never fun, especially when you have to work. Today was the fourth Tuesday of "Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed" so I had no choice but to get off the couch and try making some strong images. I found this image on a large man-made pond near Muskegon, Michigan. Going through the process of making this photograph actually made me feel better. Photography is often my favorite elixir!

Workshop at Ludington State Park

Munising Falls Memories

My friend, Aubry, texted me that she had just seen two bald eagles perched on a branch near Crossroads Church on US-10 between Custer and Scottville, Michigan. I loaded up my kids and headed that way. We ventured out in the snowy field to each make our own images of these two beauties.

 

Ludington State Park

Ludington State Park

As many of you know from the great Facebook debate, I had a hard time choosing which photo to use today. The pears at Meijer that I shot with my iPhone versus the ice at the end of Ludington Avenue I shot with my big camera. After reading the comments and objectively looking at the two compositions, I felt the pears were better art. F2.8 at 1/60, ISO 91, iPhone camera