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An hour or two before sunset, my dad can usually foretell whether the sky will produce great color. I have endeavored to learn this skill from him. On this evening, my dad and I both noticed that the sky looked very similar to four nights earlier when I photographed the particle ray behind the Ludington North Pier. We immediately drove to Pentwater and our predictions were realized.

A cool new tradition in Pentwater every summer night is to give the sun a standing ovation as it dips into the water. I am sure this happens in several Michigan beach towns. It would be fun to try coordinating it statewide on the same evening and make it an annual event.

A cool new tradition in Pentwater every summer night is to give the sun a standing ovation as it dips into the water. I am sure this happens in several Michigan beach towns. It would be fun to try coordinating it statewide on the same evening and make it an annual event. D800, F11 at 1/60, ISO 100, 24-70mm lens at 24mm

Pentwater

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.

The Director

Tranquil summer evenings on the Lake Michigan waterfront lure boats and people like fish to water. This late July evening in Pentwater was no exception. As in so many other favorite locations along the Lake Michigan shoreline, people and their vessels are drawn back year after year like salmon to their birthplaces.

Still in use between Big and Little Sable Points, the Pentwater South Pierhead Light is the only remaining tower light boasting a traditional skeletal structure. Its erector-set-looking construction is interesting and has withstood Lake Michigan's fury for more than half a century. I usually take great pains to avoid photographic mergers, but I could not resist lining up the full moon with the light to create an illusion of the moon being the light of the lighthouse. The red light on top of the light is the real Coast Guard aid to navigation marking the entrance to Pentwater harbor.

Unique photographs are often right in front of our eyes. Looking closer for pictures opens a new visual world featuring more detailed, stronger views of its parts. On this summer night, the base of the Pentwater South Pierhead Light provided an abstract view of the moon rising.

A breaking wave splashes onto the rocks protecting the Pentwater South Pier. I am one of only a few visitors to the Pentwater waterfront this evening. I savor the sunset in solitude.

Calm Night In Pentwater - panoramic

Calm Night In Pentwater

Fresh Water Day

Loving Pentwater

Pentwater Lighthouses

Pentwater Lighthouses

Rolling Over Pentwater

We like to immerse ourselves in a scene. On this February afternoon, my camera and I are very close to the ice-covered shoreline and waves breaking inside the Pentwater pierheads.

Pentwater North Pierhead Light attracts many people on summer nights, but its main purpose is to help guide boats into Pentwater harbor. Its conical tower stands 43-feet high to help mariners, find the harbor by day. By night, a green light on top of the tower flashes to aid boaters in finding the harbor entrance.

Nikon D850. F10 at 1/400, ISO 200. 24-70mm lens at 24mm. April 9, 2020 at 2:49pm.