Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed: A Michigan Tribute

The view from atop this massive sand dune in Ludington State Park is breathtaking. From here, you can see a large section of lower Hamlin Lake, a huge portion of the Ludington State Park, miles of Lake Michigan, and some of the tall buildings and landmarks in the town of Ludington. Access to this dune is along Piney Ridge Road.

It looks like what I like to call a "Colorado Day" in Michigan with sunshine and blue skies as my son Brad makes his first run of the year down the reworked Loki run at Crystal Mountain near Thompsonville. Our family has always loved winter and skiing in Northern Michigan is one of our favorite winter adventures.

Photography for my son Brad is always an action sport. Therefore it made perfect sense to have a mountable Go Pro camera so that others can see and experience what Brad is experiencing as he is making outdoor photographs during outdoor adventures. I plan to make good use of the camera as well.

Today we got our GoPro waterproof sports action camera in the mail so we had to immediately put it through the paces while downhill skiing at Crystal Mountain Ski Resort. The tiny camera shoots high definition video and beautiful still images. This is a self-portrait I made as I was riding up the chairlift just as the golden sun was setting.

Red-bellied Woodpeckers are beautiful birds. This one came for a mid-morning snack at my Papa Bill and Nana Bev's bird feeder while keeping a keen eye out for the fat barn cat that frequents the neighborhood.

I have always loved looking at blue jays. The house I grew up in on the corner of Pere Marquette and Ferry Street in Ludington frequently had blue jays in the yard. I have fond memories of sitting on our porch when I was little, watching the blue jays harassing all the other birds in the yard.

This fat barn cat owned by my Papa Bill and Nana Bev was fixated on the small song birds that were fluttered around the bird feeder. I was on the hunt for a photograph of the albino squirrel that my grandparents kept seeing. This cat was on the hunt for his next tasty treat. Neither of us were successful in our hunts today.

I remember a teacher asking me in middle school what animal I would be if I had a choice. The entire class roared with laughter when I said a squirrel. The teacher wanted to know why. I proudly stated that squirrels make people laugh and lots of girls think they are cute.

A momentary lull in the wind stops the nearby snow from blowing long enough for me to make an image of the intriguing patterns of the sand, snow, fences, and waves along the Lake Michigan shoreline today.

I have long wondered what the view was like from St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, which stands high atop a hill just north of Beulah, Michigan. On a cloudy winter day I find the distant view limited yet beautifully atmospheric.

The quaint little village of Beulah, Michigan is surrounded by steep hills and tree lined ridges, but its most famous asset is Crystal Lake. This morning Crystal Lake was covered in thick ice and dotted with ice fishermen as far as the eye could see. I wanted a clean, simple feeling for this photograph so positioned myself to capture a scene in which no fishermen were in view.

My dad and I always like to have strong immediacy in our photographs. With my wide-angle lens, I got very close to this frozen fruit tree and then made the barn a much smaller part of the composition. The final photograph is an environmental portrait of Cherry Basket Farm near Omena, Michigan in Leelanau County.

The architecture of this barn was simply exquisite when it was built more than a century ago just north of the Village of Omena near Northport, Michigan. Now the barn serves as the centerpiece of Cherry Basket Farm, which hosts weddings, private parties, and other events. As an outdoor photographer and lover of classic Michigan barns, I am grateful that the creative use of the barn and other structures on the site enables the owner, Epicure Catering, to maintain the farm in such pristine condition.

Grand Traverse Lighthouse probably looks as good as when the Coast Guard first put it into service in 1858. Its "squared away" appearance makes me wonder how many men and women have had

Ice lines the Lake Michigan shoreline where Grand Traverse Light has helped guide mariners past Cathead Point since 1858. Winter is a quietly beautiful time at the light.

We often teach our workshop students that the main subject of your photograph does not have to be a very big part of the final composition. This photograph of Grand Traverse Light is a good example of that concept. The Lake Michigan ice formation in the foreground becomes the focal point of the photograph and the lighthouse in the distance becomes more of an added ingredient and helps identify the location.

I have long been fascinated by the big wooden reels used for storage and repair of large commercial fishing nets. This reel is mounted along the channel of Fishtown in Leland, Michigan, near Carlson's Fisheries. I wonder if it is still used today.

Time appears to have passed by this old fishing net marker buoy. It rests against one of the old buildings still standing at Fishtown in Leland, Michigan.

This stylish yet functional weathervane definitely grabs your attention as it "swims" into the wind in Fishtown at Leland harbor.

One of the most famous fish markets on the Great Lakes is in historic Fishtown in the tiny village of Leland, Michigan. For five generations, the Carlson family has been catching and selling fresh Lake Michigan fish to customers all over the Midwest. It is worth a visit to Leland just to experience this incredible Michigan business.