Rachel's Images

We have been spending a lot of time at the farm during this COVID-19 shut down. Today, my nephew spotted a muskrat in our pond. Thankfully he was feeling photogenic and stayed above water!

We have several special buildings on our family farm. One being my Bespop’s milk parlor. Tonight, the clouds and blue sky were the right accent to the weathered building.

With the wet spring we have been having, this swamp is overrun with water. It worked out perfectly to capture the reflections among the clumps of grass. I had to wade in to get the composition that I was looking for. I tried to convince myself that the water was too chilly for any snakes to swim in!

Towards sunset, I took a drive by myself through our woods along the Pere Marquette River. This spot is often forgotten, a path to drive through but rarely to stop and view. It overlooks the image I made on Day 83 of 366. The green moss on this downed log was too brilliant not to stop.

When the house across US-10 from our family’s front field came available, we knew it would be a great spot to raise the kids. A very short walk and we are on farmland and can walk all the way to my mom and dad’s farmhouse. In the summer months, we enjoy watching our cattle and their calves in this front field. Tonight, it is quiet but stunning.

When the house across US-10 from our family’s front field came available, we knew it would be a great spot to raise the kids. A very short walk and we are on farmland and can walk all the way to my mom and dad’s farmhouse. In the summer months, we enjoy watching our cattle and their calves in this front field. Tonight, it is quiet but stunning.

My mom has always loved her flowers. Over the years, her flower gardens have gotten smaller but no less beautiful. Her daffodils in front of their large porch glowed in the light this evening.

The sky was on fire! The layers in the sky were subject enough, I decided to simply pair them with a silhouetted tree line. This was one of the best sunsets of 2020 so far.

I am thankful to see more and more bald eagles. This immature eagle was flying overhead as we were exploring the woods on the farm.

Growing up we had a huge garden. I knew that I wanted my kids to have the same garden experience that I did. We have enjoyed growing starter plants in the house. It is great fun watching them grow and care for them over the months before they are ready to be planted outdoors. I believe it helps teach the kids to appreciate all aspects of food and life.

We look forward to celebrating the Easter Vigil every year. My dad has had a solo with the choir for as long as I can remember. With the churches closed due to COVID-19, my kids could not imagine an Easter without it. They came up with the idea to have our own at the farm. My son, David Benjamin, made the cross they decorated with Easter lilies, my dad sang his solo, and we celebrated in our own way. It will be an Easter to remember.

An Easter lily seems a fitting image for Easter Sunday. It was not the same Easter gathering that we typically have, but we tried to make the best of it.

Happy 4th birthday, Joshua James! Mother Nature blessed him with magic light for this important day!

My kids love climbing this tree in our roundabout drive. As David Benjamin took a break from having fun exploring its branches, I grabbed my gear, lay on my back and worked to compose the sun so that it shined bright on the tree trunk.

Sometimes the least expected subject can be fun to photograph. This helium balloon weight was the perfect abstract subject tonight.

Walking out to check our freezer beef cattle, a group of geese came in for a landing. I am so fortunate that my kids can wander our fields and have first-hand encounters with all the wildlife here.

For the first time in weeks, due to COVID-19, Brad and I went shooting together. We ventured to the Lake Michigan shoreline and he shot from a higher viewpoint while I climbed down on rocks for a different perspective. It was fun to shoot together again.

I don’t have many images from the Manistee area, so I decided to head there tonight. It was very windy and difficult to steady my tripod, but worth the effort. Lake Michigan sunsets never get old!

Clouds are your friends! The clouds today are a photographer’s dream! I love the marsh land around the Pere Marquette River. I drove to the farm, climbed down a steep bank, and found a log to walk out on. This allowed me to get rid of the smaller limbs along the shoreline and showcase the clouds reflecting in the river instead. Now to climb back up!

I had hoped there would be a stunning sunset tonight, but it was disappointing. However, the blue hour after the sun had set was beautiful.