Other Flowers

Swamps are beautiful! One of my outdoor photography heroes, Clyde Butcher, has shown people through his photographs that the swamps of the Florida Everglades are filled with beauty. Today, I have set out to showcase some of the beauty of Michigan swamps and marshes. Shortly after sunrise I discover this wildflower scene that plays on my visual senses like notes of a musical score. F11 at 1/80, ISO 1600, 80-200mm lens at 185mm

Purple loosestrife catches my eye in a marsh along old Pere Marquette Highway. Upon closer inspection, I discover evening primrose and decide to focus on the yellow flowers instead and use the purple loosestrife as a complementary backdrop. F4 at 1/100, ISO 100, 300mm lens at 300mm

Flowering bull thistle grabs my attention before its sharp, prickly leaves and stems can tear into my legs as I walk through a swamp. I find it fascinating that something so beautiful in nature can so quickly cause harm to a person or animal. F5 at 1/80, ISO 100, 105mm lens at 105mm

The word swamp does not have a good connotation for a lot of people. But those who venture into one of Michigan's many swamps and marshes have the opportunity to discover plenty of beauty. This swamp bling catches dew, sunlight, and my eye. F6.3 at 1/125, ISO 100, 105mm lens at 105mm

It is fun to experiment with different styles of photography. I knew I wanted to use the flowers more as shapes and designs than as a typical subject. I exposed to blow out the background, which would allow the stems to appear darker.

It is hard to beat Michigan wildflowers and bright blue skies that are full of giant white billowy clouds. My job today as an outdoor photographer was to find the flowers and line up all of the beautiful elements together in one photograph. The old abandoned shale quarry near Alpena, Michigan was the perfect setting. F20 at 1/400, ISO 800, 14mm lens at 14mm

I am about to get back in the truck after taking a picture near Alpena, Michigan when a bumblebee flies past me and lands on a knapweed flower. Bumblebees have fascinated me since childhood. Their colorful, fuzzy bodies and buzzing sound make them my favorite Michigan insect. F9 at 1/500, ISO 400, 105mm lens at 105mm

My dad and I have both photographed Queen Anne's Lace several times this year for the Tuesdays Project, but today I tried to do it in a more unique way. I used my 105mm macro lens and got extremely close to one section of a dew-covered Queen Anne's Lace. I love how macro photography can make the ordinary look extraordinary. F14 at 1/500, ISO 800, 105mm lens at 105mm

Queen Annes Lace

I did the last few work projects, and then hit the stores for Thanksgiving groceries. I helped my mom get the farmhouse ready for dinner tomorrow before I went home. The house is especially quiet without the kids here. Lately, I can feel the depression trying to pull me in. I had decided earlier in the day that I was done with the 366 Project. I am not happy with the photos lately; 40 minutes before today was out, I forced myself to make an image.

The 365 Project has made me a much faster and more confident photographer. I am getting much better at looking at a scene and knowing exactly what lens I want to use and roughly the exposure I am going to need. This scene needed a very large telephoto lens to make the background go soft. F4.5 at 1/800, ISO 400, 300 mm lens at 300 mm

I am driving along Pere Marquette Highway en route to Muskegon when some fluorescent green algae catches my eye on a roadside pond. I know the bright green color could make a good backdrop if I can find a subject to place in front of it. Five minutes of exploring later, there it is! F4 at 1/800, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 112mm

Michigan wildflowers are always so much fun to photograph. By getting extremely close with my macro zoom lens, I omitted the cement and junk that were cluttering this scene at P.J. Hoffmaster State Park. Because of the wind I had to raise my ISO up to 1600 in order to have a shutter speed fast enough to freeze the motion of the blowing flowers. F8 at 1/125, ISO 1600, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

In most cases, I use ambient light to create my photographs but sometimes I have to use my external flash. My goal when using a flash in nature photography is to capture the image so it is not obvious to the viewer that a flash was used in the process. I had to use my flash because the wind was moving these flowers a tiny bit. The closer you are to a subject the more any movement will show up. Also, I had to set my lens to F22 so that I could get both flowers sharp. I set my focus manually one third of the way into the scene. Macro photography requires much more technical skill than most other kinds of outdoor photography. F22 at 1/30, ISO 3200, 105mm lens at 105mm

These tiny cardinal flowers stuck out like a sore thumb in the dimly lit woods at P.J. Hoffmaster State Park. I have only seen flowers like this a few times in my life. I was so glad that my friend Jennifer had her 105mm macro lens with her because I had left mine in the truck. F3.3 at 1/15, ISO 100, 105mm lens at 105mm

I have not spent much time at the Nordhouse Dunes Federal Wilderness that is located along Lake Michigan between Hamlin Lake and Manistee. Just recently my dad told me about a small lake he read about called Nordhouse Lake. Early this morning we headed out to photograph the lake at sunrise. When we arrived we were shocked to learn that because of the hot weather and drought this year, the lake had dried up. Instead of finding water, we found a giant field of wildflowers. F22 at 1/100, ISO 400, 18-55mm lens at 18mm

With a single lens reflex camera, the viewfinder shows the image at the largest aperture available to the lens in use. In this photo, I had my camera on full manual and set my aperture to F22, yet in the viewfinder I saw the photo at F2.8. I often use my depth of field preview button to see what the final photo will look like in terms of depth of field. F22 at 1/10, ISO 800, 105mm lens at 105mm

The wind caught a brilliant maple leaf and blew it into these beautiful little flowers. My friend, Jennifer Batts, pointed this photograph out to me. I put my macro lens on and captured the scene with my camera and tripod. F29 at 1/13, ISO 800, 105mm lens at 105mm

A rainy day is perfect for photographing moss and fungus because the green colors really pop. While making this photo, I couldn't decide if the fungus in this scene looked more like little aliens or golf tees. F10 at 1/80, ISO 800, 18-50mm lens at 50mm

Our friends, the Wright family, own and operate Thundering Aspens Sportsman Club near Mesick, Michigan. Their ring-necked pheasants naturally reproduce and fly as well as any wild pheasant. The Wrights entice the birds to stay on their property by creating a natural habit and by growing sorghum and other crops that the pheasants love to eat all year long. I made this photograph on the edge of one of their fields. F4 at 1/640, ISO 800, 600mm lens at 600mm