Ludington North Breakwater Lighthouse
Todd's Destiny
Like a giant teapot in a tempest, the Ludington North Breakwater Lighthouse is almost completely engulfed in a roiling sea at the height of a November 1, 2020, storm. I observed this storm for more than three hours, photographing during times of peak waves and peak light. The light in particular changed dramatically. This was one of the rare moments when the waves were the brightest and the storm clouds the darkest. I watch and wait a lot, yet try to remain always ready to trip the shutter.
Mirror Mirror on the Wall
Wearing my life jacket and ice grippers on my boots this morning, I slowly walked and crawled my way out to the Ludington North Breakwater Light to photograph. My local knowledge and experience had taught me that if I got close enough to the lighthouse, I would probably see a reflection of it on the ice. As expected, the reflection was there. Now all I had to do was wait for the big splash. As you can imagine, I got very wet and cold.
Underwater Ludington Channel Cropped Pano (8854)
Underwater Ludington Channel Cropped Pano
Breathtaking
The night took my breath away, not from trying to breathe the below zero air but from viewing the icy splendor before me on Lake Michigan at Ludington.
Eminence Front
Color emanates from the sky on the Ludington waterfront on a January evening. It is 15 minutes after sunset and the color is much more saturated than at sunset.
Flying Ashore
Flying Ashore by Todd Reed
As I was heading back to our photography gallery in downtown Ludington after lunch today, I observed a segment of very dark clouds high in the sky to the west. I drove quickly to the west end of Ludington Avenue, grabbed by camera out of the back of my Suburban and sprinted up a nearby sand dune at shore’s edge. A fast-moving rain (and hail as it turned out later) storm was headed ashore. I noticed that a powerful-looking portion of the clouds looked like a gigantic bird. I knew instantly that needed to be my focus. I made several shots with my Nikon D850 and a few with my iPhone. The rain was picking up and thunder and lightning were getting closer. I scrambled down the dune and back to my vehicle, beating the downpour of rain and hail by just a couple minutes. Gotta love a good storm front! Nikon D850. F10 at 1/100, ISO 400. 14-24mm lens at 14mm. On a tripod without a flash. September 20, 2022 at 1:18pm.
Reflections of Summer - Panoramic
My dad has taught me how to use my camera to convey different emotions within the same scene. To portray a peaceful summer evening mood, I stood in the puddle and positioned my camera and tripod inches above the water’s surface. The angle resulted in a mirror-like reflection of the sky and clouds. I also set my shutter speed to 15 seconds to make the water appear more like a painter's palette of colors than a cloudy storm pool.
Steady As She Goes - Panoramic
Tonight I took our college intern, Brett Whitehead, out on the Ludington North Breakwater so he could shoot video of me as I photographed the SS Badger carferry going by from one of my favorite "hot spots." The fog was an added bonus.
D800, F6.3 at 1/640, ISO 3200, 14-24mm lens at 24mm
Lake Michigan Voyage
Steaming westward toward Wisconsin, the carferry Badger departs Ludington Harbor on one of its daily Lake Michigan crossings. The big ship carries passengers and autos back and forth between Michigan and Wisconsin from spring to fall in almost any kind of weather.
