Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed: A Michigan Tribute

As summer wanes, I get the urge to spend more and more time in the woods. Today something inside us draws Brad and me to drive to Hartwick Pines near Grayling to experience being in the largest stand of virgin white pines remaining in Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Many of these trees tower more than 300 feet overhead. F22 at 0.8, ISO 200, 14-24mm lens at 14mm

One of Michigan's best-kept secrets is the giant white pine forest at the Hartwick Pines State Park, located just north of Grayling, Michigan. The forest is home to Michigan's largest section of native white pine trees. Some are over 300 years old. Most of Michigan would have looked like this forest 150 years ago before most of our state was logged off. F20 at 5 seconds, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 24mm

This is only the second porcupine that I have had the pleasure of photographing. My dad and I spotted this awesome animal on a dead end road near Torch Lake. I look forward to my next photo encounter with a beautiful porcupine. F2.8 at 1/500, ISO 3200, 300mm lens at 300mm

My dad and I try to be good stewards of the environment. Today, we spent a few hours walking through one of Michigan's oldest, tallest forests near Grayling, Michigan. F4 at 1/100, ISO 3200, 18-50mm lens at 20mm

This is what remains of the Mighty Monarch. The Mighty Monarch was one of the tallest white pine trees in the entire state of Michigan and lived for over 300 years just north of Grayling, Michigan. My dad and I photographed her remains today at the Hartwick Pines State Park. In 1992, a storm took the top off the gentle giant and in 1996, she died. She is now slowly returning to the Earth. F20 at 5 seconds, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

My focus is on the clear message and the clear view of nature out the window of the Chapel in the Pines at Hartwick Pines State Park. After making this available light image, I used fill flash to light up the interior log wall and a carved plaque beneath the cross containing "Nature's Prayer." In the end, I preferred the simplicity of the darker naturally lit image that keeps the focus on the natural cross outside. F4.5 at 1/30, ISO 200, 24-70mm lens at 32mm

To end our shoot for Week 34 of "Tuesdays with Todd and Brad Reed," my dad and I rushed to the shores of Lake Michigan in time to photograph the sunset in Charlevoix. Luckily, we avoided most traffic and construction and were able to get a few shots off before the sun dipped into the lake. F10 at 1/80, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

It has been a long day of traveling, searching for pictures and shooting, but that does not stop me from running to get my camera and tripod set up just in the nick of time to catch the sunset at Charlevoix, Michigan. Charlevoix has long been one of my favorite Michigan places to watch the sun set. F13 at 1/8, ISO 100, 24-70mm lens at 24mm

Tonight, after the sun had gone below the horizon, I put my camera and tripod away and got in my truck and waited for my dad to finish shooting. After making a few phone calls home to talk to my wife and kids, I looked back out over Lake Michigan and could not believe my eyes. The afterglow over the lake had become incredibly vibrant and colorful. I quickly got my camera and tripod out again to make this image. F8 at 1/6, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 120mm

Twenty minutes earlier the Charlevoix pier was lined with people watching the sun setting. Now, as the afterglow color continues to become more saturated, I have the pier to myself while taking in what has to be one of the prettiest Lake Michigan skies of the summer. Lingering longer does pay handsome dividends. F9 at 0.4, ISO 100, 24-70mm lens at 34mm

I have always wanted to make a good photograph of Whalen Lake, the little lake that is east of Baldwin, Michigan. However, I have always been in too much of a rush or the conditions were not right to get out and photograph it. This morning however, my dad and I couldn't resist stopping to photograph the foggy morning sunrise. I am sure hundreds of little lakes across Michigan looked just like this today. F8 at 0.6, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

Picture hunting from the truck is one of my favorite things to do. While driving across Michigan today, my dad and I spotted this bog full of different kinds of trees and loaded with fog. We got out of the truck on US10 between Baldwin and Reed City and quickly made these images before the sunrise burned the fog away. F8 at 0.5, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 120mm

Foggy, warm mornings in the late summer in Michigan are hard for outdoor photographers to resist. You don't have to walk far to find great images. This morning, my dad was on the hunt to create images that captured the essence of a perfect late August morning in Michigan. F5 at 1/640, ISO 100, 105mm lens at 105mm

The combination of fog and rising sun makes this huge tree stand out even more than usual in a farm field west of Chase, Michigan. My son Brad spotted the rolling field and tree as we were driving across the state to photograph Lake Huron. We try to be always ready and willing to stop to photograph magic moments that appear anywhere we travel in Michigan. F16 at 1/13, ISO 100, 80-200mm lens at 120mm

Sometimes moments like these are so fleeting that you only get one opportunity to capture the magic with your camera. Seconds after stopping the Suburban alongside the road on M32 today, I captured one image of these sheep grazing in a flowered field as the magic light rained down from above. Moments later, the sheep got spooked and ran for cover and a cloud moved in front of the sun. F6.3 at 1/320, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 24mm

One sheep maintains a lookout while others graze on a farm along M32 between Gaylord and Atlanta, Michigan. I love seeing and photographing farm animals along Michigan's highways and byways. F10 at 1/1250, ISO 1600, 300mm lens at 300mm

Just a few miles west of Alpena, Michigan on M32 my dad and I discovered an old abandoned shale quarry. A good portion of the quarry is now full of water and trees, many of which appear to be dead. The fantastic clouds and low wind made this quarry picture-perfect today. F11 at 1/125, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

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

In my mind's eye, the scene in front of me at this flooded old shale quarry west of Alpena, Michigan is most incongruous. Dead and dying trees appear almost colorless while brilliant yellow goldenrod along the water's edge thrives. I spend a long time fitting these two subjects together to make an image that I find oddly and artistically harmonious. F22 at 1/30, ISO 100, 14-24mm lens at 16mm

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