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Brad and I are both scurrying to find a picture of the day before speaking to the Alpha Graduates of Ludington High School. We have been frantically busy all day at the gallery so have little time to shoot today. I make a couple images on the Lincoln Hills Golf Club grounds I don't especially like. Then this robin appears just in time! F4.0 at 1/200, ISO 200, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

I love the return of spring and all of the pretty flowers and blossoms, but what I love the most is the singing birds. This robin was hard at work finding food near the public boat ramp off of Lakeshore Drive on Lincoln Lake. F5.6 at 1/1600, ISO 1000, 600 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 850 mm

Later tonight my dad and I have to present a slide show at the West Michigan Birding Festival, so I got up early this morning and set out to make at least one more good image of birds. I headed to Lincoln Lake to see what I could find. After many failed attempts, I finally got one photograph that was sharp and well composed. F9.0 at 1/2000, ISO 800, 600 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 850 mm

I have watched these goslings for weeks. I knew that I wanted to make a photo of them and tonight seemed like a good night for it, as they were perched on a mound surrounding their mom. As I was getting in position, the mom and goslings swam off their mound. Two other geese started to come near, and the daddy scared them away. It wasn’t the photo I was going for, but it turned out better than I envisioned.

My high school friends Bryan and Veronica Copenhaver have recently moved back to the area after living in Alaska for several years. Brian called me to say they had a white egret in their pond. Sean and the kids and I drove out there in the rain and found the bird. Just as I was rushing into position to make my first image, a truck drove by and scared the bird away. I ended up photographing this pair of geese on their pond instead.

Parents escort a squadron of Canada geese goslings on an evening voyage across Pere Marquette Lake. Perhaps the youngsters are practicing the precision V-formations they will be part of when they learn to fly. F2.8 at 1/500, ISO 100, 80-200 mm at 200 mm

I was shocked to be standing in my kitchen and to look out the window at our bird feeders to see two indigo buntings and two scarlet tanagers all at the same time. I haven’t seen either of those species in my yard before, let alone four of them at the same time. I snuck back outside to my truck and got my camera and big lens just in time to get a photo of the one remaining scarlet tanager.

All primped after taking a bird bath in the Red Cedar River, a female cardinal awaits the arrival of a nearby male cardinal that has been pursuing her on the Michigan State University campus this spring afternoon. F6.3 at 1/1000, ISO 1600, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

A male cardinal tries to pinpoint a nearby female cardinal's "mating call" in a botanical garden at Michigan State University. The alluring call is actually coming from an application on my son Brad's iPhone. F7.1 at 1/800, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

From its perch high above one of the outdoor botanical gardens on the Michigan State University campus, a young hawk keeps a sharp eye out for its next meal. It amazes me how well wildlife can coexist with the roughly 40,000 MSU students and thousands of other people on campus daily. F3.5 at 1/1000, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

Squawking as she goes, a female mallard flies over the Red Cedar River at deck level with a male pursuer on her tail. Love is in the air today at Michigan State University. F5 at 1/800, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 135mm

A male mallard drops down for a landing on the Red Cedar River at Michigan State University. The Red Cedar offers a myriad of natural views to MSU students. More than 40 years after graduating from MSU, I tend to slow down more and linger longer in order to drink in all the beauty that exists on one of America's most beautiful college campuses. F5 at 1/800, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

My mom loves her hummingbirds. They are often the topic of conversation with anyone who enjoys summer days on the farm’s porch. I sat most of the afternoon, working on my patience, and watching these fast birds. Finally, I was able to capture one in my lens that was sharp but showed movement in the wings.

I was able to sneak up on a young mourning dove that thought it was totally hidden from me. My new Sigma 70-200mm Macro F2.8 lens came in handy because I could hand hold the lens in the thick bushy tree and get my camera within three feet of the beautiful bird. F5.6 at 1/320, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

Like clockwork, it is the end of May and I find a mute swan at its usual nest site with her newborn cygnets near Long Bridge on Pentwater Lake. I shoot quickly so I don't scare them. F3.2 at 1/200, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 120 mm

I am on a scouting mission for a photography workshop Brad and I will be teaching this week. As I head out the Island Trail at Ludington State Park this red-headed woodpecker chooses to land on a tree right in front of me. I keep my body motions slow but my fingers moving fast to get the correct exposure. One good shot is all I need. Click. F2.8 at 1/1250, ISO 200, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

With huge telephoto lenses you can isolate the prettiest, most colorful parts of the sky in your photographs. The trick is to be patient and wait for something interesting to come into the viewfinder. After several minutes of enjoying the Lake Michigan sunset, a seagull flew into the scene. F5.6 at 1/6400, ISO 500, 600 mm lens with 1.4 extender at 850 mm

Canada geese are beautiful creatures. I think a lot of Michiganders take their beauty for granted because we are so used to seeing them all the time. They are loud and can make a mess of a yard in a hurry, but they are truly picturesque. F5.6 at 1/800, ISO 800, 600mm lens at 840mm