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One of the most radiant sunsets of the year greeted me as I took a hike while my wife and her study buddies continued to study for yet another in a long line of nursing tests. This view of Ludington harbor was from atop a sand dune near my former home at Crosswinds

One of the most radiant sunsets of the year greeted me as I took a hike while my wife and her study buddies continued to study for yet another in a long line of nursing tests. This view of Ludington harbor was from atop a sand dune near my former home at Crosswinds

The beach near my Crosswinds home in Ludington often provides me a quiet, peaceful retreat from the often fast pace of life. Tonight I will make this picture and then savor the view for another half-hour while waiting for the moon to descend toward the lighthouse. F11 at 10 seconds, ISO 400, 80-200mm lens at 105mm

After a long day shooting my portion of Week 21 of Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed: A Michigan Tribute, I noticed while shooting the sunset afterglow that the crescent moon was high above the Ludington lighthouse. I was tired and hungry. I could have gone home content with the several good images I had already made during my 200-plus miles of Michigan photo hunting travels that special early summer day. However, more than four decades as a photographer had long since proved to me that patience and perseverance are rewarded. I also knew the moon would not be setting at a peak shooting time the next day. I was rewarded with one of my all-time favorite moonset images and an excellent home-cooked meal afterward. Fortunately, my wife doesn’t mind eating late. Living with an outdoor photographer does not lend itself to strict dinnertime schedules.

Our workshop students tonight are getting a lesson in shooting twice as close. I am demonstrating how shooting part of the Ludington lighthouse can result in fresher, more abstract views. They try it and like it. I try it and also like it. F22.0 at 1/15, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 24 mm

I never get tired of photographing the Badger as she makes her way in or out of port. The carferry may be converting from a coal-fired steam system to a diesel-powered system soon. I hope for my sake as a photographer and for the sake of all the Ludington area that the Badger continues to set sail on Lake Michigan for another 50 years! F9.0 at 1/60, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

It wasn’t until the day after shooting this photograph of the Badger and Ludington North Breakwater Light from the Loomis Street Boat Ramp, did I learn that Rachel had been shooting the same scene from the other side of the channel. She was on the south side at Crosswinds. As usual, I like her image more than mine.

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Our photography workshop students are getting a lesson this evening in getting close to your subject. My wide-angle lens is close enough to this wave and reflection to be getting wet on some of my shots. This wave is close, not too big and not too small

It is a beautiful evening to take three of our grandchildren

This has to be one the best summers ever for photography on the Lake Michigan waterfront. Besides being unusually warm, this summer has presented many amazing cloud formations and dramatic sunsets. Tonight I am shooting westward onto Lake Michigan by the Ludington South Pierhead Light near my home at Crosswinds. F8.0 at 0.5, ISO 100, 12-24 mm lens at 12 mm

It is past midnight and still I am not seeing any Northern Lights tonight. This is the third night in a row I have stayed up late hoping to see and photograph the Northern Lights. I decide to make a several-minute time exposure of the stars, including the Big Dipper, and "paint" the Ludington South Breakwater Light with flashlight light. F4.0 at 220 seconds, ISO 800, 12-24 mm lens at 24 mm

While Brad is photographing some of the reddest light we have ever seen hit the carferry Badger, I am shooting the same colorful light reflecting off the black iron base of another Ludington icon

I decided that today was a good day to take my dad’s 13-foot Boston Whaler out onto Lake Michigan and try to make some unique images with our underwater camera housing. After a lot of trial and error, I was able to capture an image I had envisioned for over eight years. I wanted to make an image that made it appear like the Ludington North Breakwater Light was floating on top of the water.

The Lake Michigan Carferry, SS Badger passes by the Ludington North Breakwater Light upon reaching its homeport. The historic carferry can transport more than 500 passengers and dozens of vehicles on each of its crossings between Michigan and Wisconsin. F4 at 1/2000, ISO 800, 500mm lens at 750mm

The Lake Michigan Carferry, SS Badger passes by the Ludington North Breakwater Light upon reaching its homeport. The historic carferry can transport more than 500 passengers and dozens of vehicles on each of its crossings between Michigan and Wisconsin. F4 at 1/2000, ISO 800, 500mm lens at 750mm

I never get bored or tired of photographing the SS Badger coming in or out of the Ludington harbor. Lake Michigan was as calm as I have ever witnessed today and that makes for smooth sailing on the carferry as it crosses to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. F8 at 1/400, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

I never get bored or tired of photographing the SS Badger coming in or out of the Ludington harbor. Lake Michigan was as calm as I have ever witnessed today and that makes for smooth sailing on the carferry as it crosses to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. F8 at 1/400, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

It is always fun to find new vantage points from which to photograph the Ludington North Breakwater Light. This morning it was the reflection of the lighthouse that caught my eye. I used the dunes as my foreground and searched for a spot where the reflection would tie into the dunes. F9 at 1/400, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

Amy Seng, the director of the local Convention and Visitors Bureau, was taking time tonight to be a tourist in her hometown. The Ludington area locals have had a higher than average number of fantastic summer evenings to enjoy along the shores of Lake Michigan this year because of the warm, dry weather. F5.6 at 30.0, ISO 100, 14 mm lens at 14 mm