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Ludington's Queen of the Great Lakes

I love the iconic nature of this photograph. A gorgeous sailboat, a person fishing off the pier, and a beautiful Lake Michigan Lighthouse all bathed in blue and silver light. I captured this photo today 7:15 p.m. on the shoreline at South Haven, Michigan. F20 at 1/640, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 160mm

It was a great sailing day in Ludington today. With a stiff and steady wind, I watched several sailboats cruising the lakeshore. I was geeked when one of the bigger sailboats decided to pass the pier heads under full sail.

12-24-22 All Is Calm

12-24-22

Double Your Luck

By getting very close to the frozen life ring with the front of my wide-angle lens, I can emphasize the orange-red color in the foreground of this photograph. I then compose the photograph so the red lighthouse at Grand Haven is at a dynamic diagonal to the life ring. Together, they create a powerful point/counterpoint of color in this otherwise monochromatic scene.

Supeer Blue Moon

Ludington Lunar Sunrise

The calendar still says it is spring but this mid-June view through my large telephoto lens at South Haven beach sure looks and feels like summer to me. It is a splendid day to be on the Lake Michigan shoreline photographing Week 24 of "Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed: A Michigan Tribute." F6.3 at 1/1000, ISO 200, 300mm lens at 300mm

What I like most about this photograph is its timeless nature. It is hard to tell if this photograph was taken in the 1950s with black and white film, or if it was taken today. One thing is for sure; it is definitely a Pure Michigan moment on the pier in South Haven, Michigan. F14 at 1/640, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 130mm

Living in Ludington my whole life, I have seen some pretty cool sand sculptures over the years, but this simple acoustic guitar is one of the best I have seen. Corinne Gahan and Beth Carpenter, both from Three Rivers, Michigan, built this wonderful piece of art on the shores of South Haven, Michigan earlier today. My favorite detail of their sand guitar is the seaweed they used for the strings. F13 at 1/400, ISO 100, 14-24mm lens at 14mm

Three things in life really get my dad fired up. Skiing the fall line when it is steep and deep, seeing a big buck in the woods while deer hunting, and being on or near Lake Michigan during a huge storm. You can feel the excitement radiating off him in this photo. F8 at 1/640, ISO 800, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

I filled my boots with ice-cold water several times this morning in order to capture this image. Every 10 minutes or so the beach would flood on the north side of the channel in South Haven. This surge was significantly deeper and more powerful than any of the others I experienced in the morning hours. Rest assured Mom, Debbie, and Betsy, I was not actually in any danger shooting this photo, it just appears that way. Remember, cameras do lie! F9 at 1/640, ISO 800, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

I filled my boots with ice-cold water several times this morning in order to capture this image. Every 10 minutes or so the beach would flood on the north side of the channel in South Haven. This surge was significantly deeper and more powerful than any of the others I experienced in the morning hours. Rest assured Mom, Debbie, and Betsy, I was not actually in any danger shooting this photo, it just appears that way. Remember, cameras do lie! F9 at 1/640, ISO 800, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

A wave generated by Superstorm Sandy explodes against the South Haven, Michigan lighthouse. The hurricane turned superstorm brought 50-knot-plus winds all the way from the East Coast to the Great Lakes and churned up 20-foot monster waves in southern Lake Michigan. F7.1 at 1/250, ISO 1600, 300mm lens at 300mm

A wave generated by Superstorm Sandy explodes against the South Haven, Michigan lighthouse. The hurricane turned superstorm brought 50-knot-plus winds all the way from the East Coast to the Great Lakes and churned up 20-foot monster waves in southern Lake Michigan. F7.1 at 1/250, ISO 1600, 300mm lens at 300mm

One of the concepts my dad and I teach in our 20/20 Vision Workshops is "little object in the big world." Today, Jon Debruyn of South Haven, Michigan looked pretty tiny as he kayaked out past the lighthouse in his hometown. To my surprise and that of hundreds of other spectators on the beach, Jon was able to hold his own against the giant 18-foot breaking walls of water on Lake Michigan. F8 at 1/1000, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 82mm