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I photographed Ludington State Park for several hours on a glorious January morning after the biggest snowfall of the winter. Then it occurred to me that a spot where I had taken a photograph of fall color might also look spectacular in winter. A half-hour of hiking later, I was making this picture. The two shots show how places that are beautiful in one season may well be beautiful in another.

I was running out of daylight yesterday and worried that I would have to shoot my photo of the day for the 365 Project in the dark, when the sun broke through the thick cloud layer and cast magic light along the Lake Michigan shoreline. I quickly found some beautiful grass to frame my photograph. F2.8 at 1/6400, ISO 640, 18-50 mm lens at 50 mm

After being seconds too late to photograph the magic light at sunrise this morning and also missing great light hitting the Ludington North Breakwater Light with a giant rainbow, I finally got my prize at Big Sable Point Lighthouse this afternoon. Lake Michigan in October is cold, but worth it for the composition I wanted. F14.0 at 1/100, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 22mm

In 1984 my dad bought a used 13-and-a-half-foot Boston Whaler Super Sport. Our family has had so many incredible adventures on this boat. It still looks like new and the old 25-horse power Evinrude outboard motor starts every year with just a few pulls. Now my kids are enjoying making memories on the same boat. Besides family fun, salmon fishing, and pan fishing, the main use of our Whaler today is for photography. With its triple hull, the boat does not tip to the side, even when three grown people are standing on the same side.

Have you ever been walking in a beautiful woods and felt like the trees were talking to you? While I walked to Inspiration Point inside Ludington State Park, I felt like if I just stopped walking and listened with my eyes, I would be able to hear the trees' stories. I tried to record their stories with my camera.

En route from Fremont to Walkerville, Brad and I discover this old house that is slowly but surely returning to the earth. As aged and deteriorated as the structure is, it somehow retains a certain grace and dignity that appeals to both Brad and me.

After a brisk 30-minute hike to the north end of the Island Trail at the Ludington State Park, I was very relieved to take a rest inside this old warming shelter. My camera bag weighs over 30 pounds and it traps a lot of heat as I walk. The 10-minute rest I took lying on my back almost turned into an hour-long nap. Once the magic light of the golden sunrise appeared though, I was instantly rejuvenated and quickly made this photograph. F8 at 1/30, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

Pere Marquette River Lodge fishing guide Drew Johnson uses his skills to precisely cast his line into a trout fishing hole while photographer Bill Dietrich uses his skill to precisely compose and expose fly fishing photographs from Johnson's drift boat. Both are absorbed in their pursuits on a May afternoon on the Pere Marquette. F3.5 at 1/800, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 135mm

Seeing the Coast Guard Cutter Acacia docked at the Manistee ship museum takes me back to my Coast Guard days when I sailed on the 180-foot buoy tender during one of its end of season buoy runs to take photographs of the ship's winter operations. Crewmembers used shotguns to blast ice off some of the buoys so they could be hooked and lifted aboard. I am glad to see the sturdy ship being preserved and appreciated. F22 at 1/20, ISO 3200, 24-70mm lens at 24mm

Ludington State Park

Crisp Point Light

Little Sable Lighthouse

Eagles in Muskegon

4th of July Cruise

Laughing with Friends

Sea, shore and sky abound with more curves than a curvaceous woman. S-curve shapes have been pleasing the eye of artists and art lovers for centuries. An August sunset afterglow highlights the clouds and meandering Lake Michigan shoreline between Ludington and Pentwater.

On Guard to guide mariners safely past a treacherous point that juts into Lake Michigan, Big Point Sable Lighthouse has stood the test of time since 1867. The Coast Guard stopped operating the lighthouse in the 1970s. Vandals nearly destroyed the vacant dwelling before volunteers teamed up to begin restoring the tower and keepers' quarters to their original grandeur. Today, Big Sable Light stands as testimony. People with a dream, goal, and willingness to give of their time, talents, and money can accomplish great deeds. Abraham Lincoln, who approved the light's construction, would applaud this achievement.

A great wildlife photographer friend of my dad's and mine told us several years ago: "If you don't get off the couch, you will never be able to make good photographs." Our friend was right; the more time you spend outdoors shooting, the better your odds of capturing a great moment in nature. On a warm October afternoon in 2007, I was tired of looking at the computer all day and drove out to the Ludington State Park for a mental health break. Twenty minutes into the shoot, a curious fox crept very close to the tree I was resting against. The fox held still long enough for me to make two photographs. I was never so glad in my life that I had gotten off the couch.

On my way home from Ludington State Park I have just enough time to shoot the sunset after finishing a photo tips program Brad and I put on at Big Sable Point Lighthouse. What a summer for sunsets this continues to be. F4.0 at 1/500, ISO 800, 500 mm lens at 500 mm