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What the heck is that?!?! That would be my mom's hairless cat Grub. Isn't he cute? F6.3 at 1/125, ISO 640, 18-50 mm lens at 38 mm

I spot turkeys almost daily along Iris Road south of Ludington but this morning they look more splendid than ever. Hold that pose while I grab that camera off the car seat. Thank you, turkeys! F8.0 at 1/60, ISO 800, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

One of the most famous fish markets on the Great Lakes is in historic Fishtown in the tiny village of Leland, Michigan. For five generations, the Carlson family has been catching and selling fresh Lake Michigan fish to customers all over the Midwest. It is worth a visit to Leland just to experience this incredible Michigan business.

Days without my kids can be lonely. This weekend was especially hard. The willow tree in the backyard is one of our favorite trees on our Tiny Acres Farm. The blue light of night matched my emotions.

The Rieth-Riley asphalt company in Ludington always has large piles of crushed up material behind their headquarters. I have always thought they would make an interesting photograph, but never took the time to do it. Today the giant pile of black asphalt looked strikingly beautiful against an all-white sky. F11.0 at 0.3, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

This is the first photograph I have ever made of a Michigan coyote. Photographing a coyote has been near the top of my bucket list for several years. This wily coyote was circling around in long grass to get closer to a herd of deer. I shot this photo with a 600mm telephoto lens from about a 800 yards away near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Leelanau County. Hopefully next time I will be able to get closer, but I still really like this environmental portrait of the large coyote.

Charlevoix has always been a favorite vacation place for my dad and my stepmom, Debbie. I have been there several times with them. We love photographing Lake Charlevoix and also their beautiful red lighthouse on Lake Michigan. I drove over three hours in a snowstorm to make this image. I am so glad I did!

Driving from Michigan to Georgia makes for a long haul, but the journey does have its benefits. Spectacular views

This alpha doe was protecting her family from a hungry wounded coyote near the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Leelanau County. To get a little closer to this scene, I used a 1.4 extender on my 600mm lens. That made my lens 840mm and with my cropped sensor my lens became 1260mm at F5.6.

Cardinals have always been my mom’s and my favorite. After my brother, Kevin, passed away, they are a welcome sight. I made this image to show my mom that he was visiting us this day.

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.

My stepmom's mother, Marjorie Brye Vyse, attended this old school house in her youth. The school sits vacant today on the corner of Hawley Road and Old US 31. I find it fascinating how Mother Earth is slowly reclaiming this building. F8.0 at 1/200, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

Something about this dead tree attracted me to it when I spotted this snow-covered bog along US131 north of Manton, Michigan, and decided it would be a good place to make some early morning images.

I walked out into Grand Traverse Bay early this morning to make this image of a large tree stump covered in snow and ice. I enjoy making photographs when the sky is reflected in slow-moving water.

For many of the months my dad and I were shooting at Ludington State Park for this book, my older brother Tad was busy fighting the war in Iraq. The park became a safe haven for my dad and me, a place to clear our heads and our hearts. The park allowed us to somehow feel closer to Tad. This tree on the north edge of the Ridge Trail became a special place for me and I named the spot "Tad's Tree."

My stepmom's mother, Marjorie Brye Vyse, attended this old school house in her youth. The school sits vacant today on the corner of Hawley Road and Old US 31. I find it fascinating how Mother Earth is slowly reclaiming this building. F8.0 at 1/200, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

Butterflies have fascinated my six-year-old daughter Julia since she was about a year old. She often tells my wife, Betsy, and me that if she only had one wish in life it would be to grow a pair of butterfly wings and be able to fly. When I spotted this butterfly shape on some tree bark, I immediately thought of Julia.

The Ludington North Breakwater Light looked wonderful this morning! I made a pit stop before heading to work to capture the ice, clouds, and magic light.

 

My son Tad and I have teamed up to scramble across some rocks with my camera gear to get up close and personal with this waterfall at Flat Rock Park in Columbus, Georgia. The light is quickly fading but my trusty tripod enables us to make a sharp time exposure that captures the beauty and speed of the falling water. F8.0 at 1/6, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 145 mm