Winter

Did you know Michigan has a jungle within its borders? This frozen jungle is located on a window of the logging museum in the Hartwick Pines State Park. My daughter Julia came up with the name for this image of the frosty window.

My dad found this photograph for me. He called and said he had the perfect shot for our 366 Project, we just needed magic light. I drove straight to his location on M-116 inside of the Ludington State Park. Just as I was grabbing my tripod and camera, the sunlight broke through the clouds. Thanks for the tip, Dad!

One of Michigan's best assets are the pristine forests that cover the state. I love watching how the forests change as you move farther north in Michigan. These trees at Wilderness State Park look more rugged and "Northern" than the trees to the south in Ludington.

The red ice inside the channels of Tamarac Village on Hamlin Lake caught my eye as I drove down North Lakeshore Drive. After a closer inspection, I realized the red color was probably coming from the tannic acid in the leaves that were now on the channel bottom. F14.0 at 1/13, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 34 mm

Feb-08

Up until I graduated from college, my Grandpa and Grandma Reed lived on the Pere Marquette River near Walhalla at the very end of Budzynski Road. I learned to drive on this country road. I have always thought the road was more beautiful than most, but today it looks prettier than I have ever seen.

Brad and I have learned that winter is one of the best times of the year to photograph sunsets. I am savoring this Lake Michigan sunset on a brisk evening on the Buttersville peninsula. F2.8 at 1/200, ISO 400, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

My youngest, Joshua, has always loved playing with his Tonka trucks. This doesn’t stop just because the snow comes! He spends hours dozin’ around the farm.

Amber Elk Ranch

Wilderness State Park near Mackinaw City is one of Michigan's best-kept secrets. With Lake Michigan as its border, the Wilderness State Park is a glorious glimpse of what Michigan may have looked like 100 years ago. Wild, pristine, diverse, and glorious are just a few words that come to mind when trying to describe Wilderness State Park. I look forward to spending quality time exploring more of the park in the future.

Snow-covered dunes are one of Michigan’s best kept secrets. Once more people discover this, I believe Ludington and all of West Michigan will be busy with tourists all year long.

A fresh coat of snow was just what an old Sanders Meat Packing delivery truck needed to look its best. Long after serving the still thriving Custer business, the pickup stood at Patton's Junkyard as a reminder of the good old days.

I have driven past this barn on Fountain Road a thousand times and always wanted to make a good photograph of it, but was never inspired. Today, on another skiing venture to Crystal Mountain, the snow, sunlight and clouds were all I needed to get me out of my truck and shooting. F7.1 at 1/200, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

I wish you could see the photograph I took of this scene five seconds earlier, before the sun broke through the clouds; that image is very flat, boring, and ordinary. However, when the magic light appeared, the view of this dune at Ludington State Park with Hamlin Lake in the background became extraordinary.

While on a hike on the Ridge Trail at the Ludington State Park with Betsy, Sean, and the kids, I noticed this graphic scene before me. We often remind our workshop students to remember to turn their cameras vertical and to not just see the world in horizontal photographs.

This scene greeted me on South Lakeshore Drive near my home upon my return from Georgia. It reminds me of the Bible story in Exodus of the burning bush Moses encountered. F8.0 at 1/320, ISO 100, 80-200 mm lens at 135 mm

The morning after the biggest snowfall of the winter, my son Brad and I were out early looking for pictures. The wind usually whisks most of the snow off the trees before 10:00AM. After 20 miles of looking without any satisfying shooting, we found our shot. An abandoned farm home between Custer and Fountain on Custer Road I had photographed in other seasons looked its best painted in snow.

Golden Sand

A faithful horse pulls a buggy load of Amish children through a heavy snowfall to get them to their school in Riverton Township, south of Scottville. The Amish have built sheds at the school to protect the horses while they wait for students to get out of classes.

January Blast