Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed: A Michigan Tribute

My dad and I try to position ourselves at dynamic angles to our photograph's subject. In this photograph, look at the triangles that are created throughout the composition. By placing the jetties at a dynamic diagonal on the left side of the image, it creates a more powerful and three-dimensional look and feel. F7.1 at 1/20, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 20mm

The howling winds off Lake Michigan and the bitter cold temperatures have turned the peaks of the Silver Lake Sand Dunes into a cavernous landscape. I lay on my stomach and got very close to a sculpted sand cave in order to lose the size perspective.

The Inland Seas sailed the inland sea on Grand Traverse Bay between Traverse City and Suttons Bay on a spring morning. The 77-foot Great Lakes schooner provides inland sea science and sailing adventures regularly from Suttons Bay.

Hamlin Lake is one of the largest manmade lakes in Michigan. Back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, lumber barons cut down thousands of trees in the area and then built a dam on the Sable River to create what is known today as Hamlin Lake. Many of the old stumps still remain on the lake bottom and they actually move around the lake because of the snow and ice. These two massive stumps near the Lost Lake Island move a few feet every winter. F5 at 1/400, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

Hamlin Lake is one of the largest manmade lakes in Michigan. Back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, lumber barons cut down thousands of trees in the area and then built a dam on the Sable River to create what is known today as Hamlin Lake. Many of the old stumps still remain on the lake bottom and they actually move around the lake because of the snow and ice. These two massive stumps near the Lost Lake Island move a few feet every winter. F5 at 1/400, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

The planets Venus (brightest) and Jupiter pop out of a star-filled sky along with Little Sable Point Lighthouse. It is near the end of the twilight "blue hour" artists have long loved to paint and photograph. Tonight, with Venus and Jupiter so rarely close together, I am especially excited to photograph a blue sky. F2.8 at 58 seconds, ISO 1600, 14-24mm lens at 20mm

By closing the aperture down on my camera lens to a tiny hole at F22, I knew I could create hundreds of little star shapes on the surface of Lake Michigan today while photographing at South Haven, Michigan. Because so little light was entering the tiny hole in my lens, I needed to bump up my ISO to 800 in order to get a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the motion of the rolling water. We teach all of our workshop students to operate their cameras in full manual exposure so that they can be in control of how their photographs look and feel. F22 at 1/2500, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

The SS Spartan has not operated since 1979. For several years it has been floating in the same spot behind the Badger. The Spartan has always been my favorite carferry. The word "Spartan" can mean simple or undaunted. I love how the Spartan lives up to its name in this photograph. F8 at 1/800, ISO 400, 10-17mm lens at 15mm

The lure of a Michigan salmon, steelhead, brown trout, or walleye is irresistible for many anglers, no matter the season. Here anglers pass Big Red Lighthouse in Holland en route to their favorite Lake Michigan fishing grounds. F6.3 at 1/400, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 80mm

I love black and white photography. Today's bright overcast light, along with the varying tones of the sand, ice, and snow make for stunning images. I love how this sand formation looks like it could be part of the Grand Canyon.

Big Sable Point Lighthouse stands guard on a massive point of land along the shores of Lake Michigan between Ludington and Manistee. The lighthouse was commissioned by Abraham Lincoln and is a beautiful piece of Michigan history. F6.3 at 1/1600, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 100mm

The tug Undaunted pushes the fully loaded Pere Marquette 41 barge toward its homeport of Ludington after passing Big Sable Point. It is a delightful day to be a Lake Michigan sailor or a waterfront observer of this Great Lake and the big ships that ply its waters. F8 at 1/6400, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

After nearly two hours of shooting stormy seas battering the Manistee pier, a little sunshine finally finds its way partially through the clouds, providing a wider range of tonal values for the black and white image I want to make of this lakeshore drama. Good light is worth waiting for. The added light also enables me to close my aperture by two more stops to render more of the scene in sharp focus while still stopping action. F11 at 1/800, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 200mm

I have always been drawn to the color blue, especially when it is mixed with shades of green. The tropical looking waters of Lake Michigan and the golden dune grass blended together perfectly through my large telephoto lens in order to create the warm, calm feeling I was looking for.

I haven't spent much time on sailboats, especially on Lake Michigan, but every time I see one catching the wind I think it looks like something I would really enjoy. From my aerial view, I could see the different wind currents on the surface of Lake Michigan. F9 at 1/2500, ISO 800, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

Tom and Yvonne Beatty own Trillium Creek Gardens on Conrad Road between Ludington and Scottville. Today, a beautiful double rainbow appeared to land in the farm field just behind the Beatty's historic red barn. I love when it is raining, but the sun is shining

In my mind's eye, I see this picture as all about patterns and not at all about color. Any of the color seems distracting so I make an image to emphasize the pattern and tonal values, knowing I will remove any color later. F18 at 1/125, ISO 100, 24-70mm lens at 70mm

Simplicity is one of the 20 concepts we teach in our 20/20 Vision workshops. Simple pictures can be hard to pull off because there is a very fine line between simple and boring. Thankfully the gorgeous sunlight reflecting off Lake Michigan helped make this simple picture beautiful and not boring.

The beach at Little Sable Point looks like ice cream swirls today. Wind and waves and sand have worked together to create one of the most unique natural artworks I have ever encountered on a Lake Michigan beach. Little Sable Point Lighthouse and autumn clouds provide an appropriately beautiful backdrop. F32 at 1/125, ISO 400, 24-70mm lens at 24mm

Lake Michigan at Point Betsie Lighthouse is so crystal clear on this hot summer day that I want to reach down and take a drink. I concentrate instead on trying to make an image of the lighthouse that emphasizes the clarity of the water and beauty of the rocky shore. F20 at 1/250, ISO 400, 14-24mm lens at 21mm