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Tonight, I drove to my Grandpa and Grandma Reed's house to photograph some of the birds that frequent their beautiful yard. As I pulled into the driveway I spotted this male cardinal. Luckily for me, he stayed put for about 10 minutes, which allowed me to get in just the right spot to make this photograph. F4.0 at 1/200, ISO 1000, 600 mm lens at 600 mm

Nothing could have excited this Michigander more on a winter’s day photo excursion on M-22 than experiencing this eagle flying by so close that my 500-millimeter telephoto lens could seemingly reach out and touch it. The mature eagle was among several hunting for food on a January morning near Crystal Lake north of Frankfort. Brad and I were en route to photograph the Point Betsie Lighthouse when we spotted several eagles feeding just offshore by a large open-water seam in the ice. We saw one of the eagles fly to shore and roost in some tall pines on a nearby hillside. The lighthouse could wait; there might be an image here as good or better for the book we had started shooting, Todd and Brad Reed’s Michigan: Wednesdays in the Mitten. We would be proved correct. We quickly set up 25 yards on either side of the flight path and waited…and waited. I was rewarded with my all-time favorite eagle-in-flight image when one of the eagles chose to fly right by my hiding spot instead of Brad’s. The image was (and remains especially) meaningful to me because my Army Ranger son Tad served our country for several years as a 101st Airborne Screaming Eagle. This eagle was definitely screaming past. Once I got on target, I was able to squeeze off three shots as I swung the lens on my gimbal tripod head and tracked with the majestic bird. With fast action shots, a photographer can often pre-select the background; but often, time does not allow one to see at the fraction of a second of exposure exactly how the subject fits against the background. Back the next day on my computer at our gallery, this image screamed for attention and selection. The bird fit perfectly against the background, simplifying and making order out of what would have been chaotic one one-thousandth of a second earlier or later. Brad and I like to say, “Little things are big things.” On this shot, a fraction of a second made a big difference

Gull Morning

Walking out to check our freezer beef cattle, a group of geese came in for a landing. I am so fortunate that my kids can wander our fields and have first-hand encounters with all the wildlife here.

While photographing geese on a small pond near my home, I suddenly hear the familiar jackhammer sound that can be made by only one living thing: a pileated woodpecker. I swing my 500 mm lens around and there he is atop a power pole. Fortunately for the power company, the woodpecker soon moved on to find a better place to peck. F4.5 at 1/1000, ISO 400, 500 mm lens at 500 mm

Emerald Lake

I love seeing the red-winged blackbirds in the Pere Marquette River flats south of Ludington. This male sings what I imagine is a springtime love song while swaying in the breeze atop a cattail. F5.6 at 1/2500, ISO 800, 500 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 700 mm

Panorama Resort

Today is my dad’s 78th birthday. We celebrated with him at the farm, and afterwards I took a winding drive through the woods along the Pere Marquette River. To my surprise, I saw a sandhill crane in the water. I grabbed my camera and big lens and climbed halfway down the steep bank. I waited until she walked into the clearing and her reflection showed in the calm river.

I grew up listening to the mourning doves on the farm. Today, they were fighting over dropped grain in our freezer beef field. I love the combination of sharpness in the sitting dove, and movement in the fluttering one.

I am fortunate to live in an area where it doesn’t take much to see wildlife around you. I am not sure what type of bird this is, but it sure is a beauty.

What an awesome picture captured during the Heaven on Hamlin workshop in August of 2025.

Bald eagle soaring at the Ludington State Park.  August 2025

When I look upon the heron rookery that Don and Mary Klemm told me I could find along US 10 west of Clare, all I can think is how eerily beautiful the scene looks. This great blue heron stood out among the many herons we watched. F4.0 at 1/1250, ISO 400, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

Color Coordinated

Eric Riggs bought this brown duck when it was only a few weeks old and released it into the wetlands near his home. The duck is technically a wild critter now, but he is very friendly and curious. Julia, Ethan, and I got a kick out of his honking abilities as well. F5.6 at 1/400, ISO 1000, 70-200 mm lens at 200 mm