Sleeping Bear Dunes

A group of friends who live downstate were enjoying a fabulous sunset at the Empire Bluffs this evening. They were gracious enough to let me photograph them. I worked hard to micro-compose this photograph so the boardwalk started on the bottom left corner and the arch of the shoreline with the town of Empire was on the right edge of the frame. I also liked how the magic sunlight was hitting the Sleeping Bear Dunes near Stocking Drive in the distance.

My dad and I were shocked when we realized we had never heard of or seen the Empire Bluffs. It is a decent hike from the parking lot to the bluffs, especially carrying 30 pounds of photography gear, and has a few steep sections of stairs. But the hike through the forest is beautiful and the view from the bluffs might be one of the best views in America. I recommend taking the journey.

Watching the sun rise over the Sleeping Bear Dunes is like watching a moving picture because the light and shadow change so quickly. With the camera on the tripod, I can savor the show and make an exposure whenever I am loving the moment I am witnessing. Fuji S2. F11 at 1/30, ISO 100. 12-24mm lens at 17mm. On a tripod without a flash. October 21, 2005 at 8:20am.

Watching the sun rise over the Sleeping Bear Dunes is like watching a moving picture because the light and shadow change so quickly. With the camera on the tripod, I can savor the show and make an exposure whenever I am loving the moment I am witnessing.

Earlier today I picked Julia and Ethan up after school and told them we were going on a shooting adventure. We rushed north all the way to Stocking Drive at Sleeping Bear Dunes. We had to run from the parking lot to the top of a tall dune near the main lookout area. With just minutes to spare, we made this image of the sun setting into Lake Michigan. I love our adventures together!

Rolling Into Empire

Sleeping Bear Scenic Drive

Windy Night at Sleeping Bear

Brad and I are always trying to discover different spectacular vantage points from which to view Michigan. Tonight we have hiked to the Empire Bluff for the first time. I stop short of the bluff at this overlook spot because I just can't resist making an image of the view northward toward Empire, South Bar Lake, and Sleeping Bear. I am content here but can't help wondering what Brad is seeing from the bluff's edge.

The tropical blue waters of Glen Lake never cease to amaze me, especially when viewed from Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The white billowy clouds and gorgeous sunshine made this view even more spectacular than usual. F8 at 1/160, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

The God beams, bright blue sky, clouds below my feet, and the tropical-looking Lake Michigan water made me feel like I was actually floating on the clouds today when I made this photograph. I wish all of you could have been next to my dad and me experiencing this rare sight. F22 at 1/60, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

Today was the first time I experienced being above the clouds along the Lake Michigan shoreline without being in an airplane. The scenic overlook at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore is over 450 feet above Lake Michigan and was a great vantage point to photograph this rare phenomenon. The hike down the steep dune is fast and sometimes furious. The hike up is torturous, especially on your calf muscles. F16 at 1/100, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

A couple standing on the edge of a 450-foot-high Sleeping Bear Dunes bluff find themselves above the clouds as a cold front sweeps across Lake Michigan toward them. F10 at 1/800, ISO 400, 14-24mm lens at 24mm

The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore area was voted the most beautiful place in America in August 2011 by ABC's Good Morning America. The view today from the top of one of the tallest dunes at Sleeping Bear helps prove why ABC was correct in their judgment. When you can stand above the clouds on a sand mountain and look down at the endless turquoise waters of Lake Michigan, you know you are experiencing a world-class view. F22 at 1/40, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

This is the view looking over the edge of the 450-foot-high Lake Michigan shoreline bluff at Sleeping Bear Dunes. My vantage point is from one of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore scenic lookouts along the 7.4-mile Pierce Stocking Drive. F16 at 1/320, ISO 400, 14-24mm lens at 24mm

A massive storm cloud rolled in quickly off Lake Michigan and devoured my dad, me, and several naive spectators this afternoon at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Being 450 feet above Lake Michigan allowed us a vantage point that was above the clouds. When the storm cloud finally hit us, we were lost in a freezing cold sea of white nothingness. It was a religious experience to say the least. F11 at 1/160, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 23mm

Like an enormous tidal wave, a shelf cloud hundreds of feet high extends out of sight as it sweeps ashore. I have an eye-level view of the fast-approaching front from the observation platform built atop a 450-foot-high dune bluff on the Lake Michigan shoreline at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. F11 at 1/1250, ISO 280, 14-24mm lens at 14mm

Clouds bear down on Lake Michigan's eastern shoreline and begin to climb the bluff toward me at Sleeping Bear Dunes. Moments later my son Brad and I are literally in the cloud in near-zero visibility. What an incredible experience! F11 at 1/1600, ISO 280, 14-24mm lens at 14mm

From over 11,500 feet above sea level, it is easy to see why the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was just voted the most beautiful place in America. I love how the clouds were in just the right spots in this photograph to add to the composition. My ace pilot, Ryan Johnson, dipped the plane at the perfect angle so I was able to get the wing out of the top of the image and the wheel out of the bottom. F8 at 1/1000, ISO 400, 14mm lens at 14mm

Other visitors and I savor the stillness and soft glow of an August evening on Sleeping Bear Bay. This spot near the old Sleeping Bear Point Coast Guard Station in Glen Haven is one of my favorite locations in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. F5 at 1/800, ISO 400, 300mm lens at 300mm