Search

Fountain Road is one of my favorite roads in Mason County to photo hunt on. With the fresh snow we got overnight, I was excited to head out to the countryside looking for new photos. I was on a mission to photograph a barn or farm that I had not ever photographed before. While driving down Fountain Road, I loved how this red barn just popped against the white snow.

Taking winter head-on, a tufted titmouse pauses momentarily on an icy rail just outside the kitchen window of my parents' home near the south border of Ludington State Park. Many species of songbirds flock year-around to the feeders, providing great enjoyment for my parents. F2.8 at 1/500, ISO 400, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

I took a detour on my way home tonight. I stayed off US-10 and drove mostly backroads. Color started to fill the sky. The only thing I needed was a subject. This tree was placed perfectly in the roll of the hill.

Most of Michigan was hit with a nasty winter storm overnight. Unlike most people, my dad and I love when winter strikes hard. Ethan and I made our way down M-116 and I made this photograph of Epworth Heights from the bridge over the Lincoln River. F22.0 at 0.8, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

Roger and Marcia Hansen's barn looks like a Christmas card to me today, just as I thought it would. The Christmas wreath I noticed a few days earlier, combined with fresh snow, make the beautifully restored barn even more stunning than usual. F7.1 at 1/100, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 24 mm

The kids and I spent time at the farm tonight. It was a rain-snow mix earlier today, creating a puddle in the driveway in front of the barn. I worked hard to have the Christmas lights reflect in the puddle. My nephew, Preston, always does a great job with the lights.

With temperatures in single digits the last few days, it didn't take long for Ludington North Breakwater Light to become a giant ice sculpture. The mix of light, wind, and blowing snow turned the frigid waters of Lake Michigan a gorgeous green color this morning. F5.6 at 1/1000, ISO 400, 600 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 850 mm

This is the first good photograph of a Petoskey stone I have ever made in the Ludington area. This was in front of my Uncle Budde and Aunt Sheryl’s house on Lake Michigan, which is just north of Stearns Beach. I lay on my stomach in a puddle to make this image. I wanted the clouds and sky reflected in the thin layer of water that was on the sand.

It is beginning to look at lot like Christmas at the Polcin farm. This scene looked like Christmas in the country when I chose to photograph it earlier today. But now I am back because the sun came out and I knew I could make a cheerier Christmas picture. F22.0 at 1/50, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 24 mm

I kept an eye out for a Christmas scene on my drive to Manistee, Michigan tonight. I passed by this nativity scene, and thought with the right exposure and angle, I could hide the house from the background, and it could make a very emotional image. I stopped on my way back home and worked the scene until I achieved that goal.

Snowflakes have been flying in downtown Ludington and it is beautiful. In a couple weeks there will hopefully be over 10,000 people near this spot at the clock tower to witness the largest New Year's Eve ball drop in Michigan. F6.3 at 1/500, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

Ron and Donna Sanders are Betsy and Sean’s next-door neighbors on Riverview Drive in Ludington. After having dinner with Betsy, Sean, and the kids, I was getting ready to drive home when I noticed this family of snowmen in Ron and Donna’s front yard. With my tripod, I was able to capture this festive image.

For years I have loved this simple yet unique wooden fence along North Lakeshore Drive at the Warrick property in Ludington. Today, with snow adding its own patterns, I find the fence especially interesting. F8.0 at 1/60, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 12 mm

It has been a while since I had my toes in the water. That didn’t quite happen tonight either, but I did have my boots in the water! With no snow, it doesn’t feel very much like winter here, more like a long fall.

Today feels like a Colorado day to me: cold and crisp, tons of sunshine, a brilliant blue sky, and white puffy clouds. Days like these make me want to sharpen my downhill skis and hit the slopes. F8.0 at 1/30, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

The high winds coming off Lake Michigan this afternoon mixed with the bright sunshine made the green dune grass dance. It looked like giant green waves of water flowing back and forth. My job was to wait until the clouds in the background mimicked the trees. After an enjoyable five minute wait, the clouds were just where I wanted them to be. F11 at 1/160, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

My dad and I used to photograph the black and white “Oreo Cookie Cows” in this field on South Lakeshore Drive near the hydro-electric plant. Now the family that owns this farm has beautiful brown and white cows. The huge old maple trees have always made this farm extra beautiful as well.

I knew steam would be rising from icy Lake Michigan when the sun came up on this 10-degree morning. I got out early to photograph Ludington harbor from near the Ludington South Breakwater Light. I am pleasantly surprised to see this outbound tug and barge come into view to complete my picture. F4.5 at 1/320, ISO 200, 12-24 mm lens at 24 mm

We tend to shoot water ripples that are vibrant with color or cloud reflections. This photograph leans towards a darker feel, but I liked the patterns in the water.

Little did I know that as I was photographing this tree during an extraordinary sunset at my Uncle Budde and Aunt Sheryl’s house on Lake Michigan, Rachel was also photographing trees miles away at her family’s farm.