Wonderous West Shore

A first glance, this photo appears like it might have been shot at the Grand Island Ice Caves or some other large ice formation. However, it is actually only a few feet off the ice shoreline at Point Betsie Lighthouse. I lay down on my side and put my camera directly on the ice and by getting super close to the formation with a wide-angle lens, I could make it appear much larger than it was.

Like thousands of other people who live along the Lake Michigan shoreline, Brad and I love to head to the waterfront at lunchtime to enjoy a sack lunch and see what Nature has to offer. On this June day, Nature is serving up a delicious mixture of clouds and waves.

Waves blast skyward upon striking the Ludington North Breakwater Lighthouse during a fall gale. I have waited patiently for the magic storm light to show up and intensify the view.

Last night after work I tried to go visit my friend Jamie Spore, but she was still not home after several weeks of medical issues stemming from her spina bifida. When I texted her to inform her I was down at the end of Ludington Avenue and that I was going to shoot the sunset for her. Little did I know that it would turn into one of the best sunsets I had ever seen. This one is for you, Jamie!

So many of Michigan's beach trees are dying because of disease. This giant one just off Nurnberg Road in the Manistee National Forest may not have many years left, but today it looks like the king of the forest.

I spent years on Coast Guard boats watching Lake Michigan waves curl and break. Their power and beauty demanded my attention then and commanded me to photograph them.

I spent years on Coast Guard boats watching Lake Michigan waves curl and break. Their power and beauty demanded my attention then and commanded me to photograph them.

Look what the Snowbirds in Florida were missing on one of those magical Michigan winter mornings. Luckily I had stayed behind to see these jewels of frost during a drive through the Michigan countryside

I love my hometown. I love Ludington's many community events but none is more spectacular than the New Year's Eve ball drop in the center of downtown. I have photographed it from many vantage points but nothing gives a better sense of being there than immersing myself and my camera in the middle of the thousands of spectators.

Ludington lovers - residents and visitors alike - join together to break the Guiness World Record for the number of people making sand angels at once. Spectrum Health Foundation teamed up with West Shore Bank to enable 1,387 people to simultaneously make the sand angels on the Ludington beach on June 10, 2017.

I have set sail in my 13-foot Boston Whaler skiff tonight to try to make some sunset images from on the water. I don't have to walk on water to position the boat right where I want to be able to make this image. I love my little boat!

The Love Ludington committee worked together with the city police and fire departments to coordinate this amazing event in downtown Ludington. I shot this photograph from 100 feet in the air in the bucket of the ladder truck. The view from that height was incredible. Over 200 passionate Ludington residents and visitors stood inside of the heart shaped outline. If you look closely, you will see my daughter Julia holding the reigns of a horse!

I was mesmerized by the clouds tonight and loved how they all seemed to be radiating out from the sun. I noticed how it looked like the sun had a giant set of wings. After realizing that, I tried for over 20 minutes to capture a wave that would look like a reflection of the clouds. The last wave I shot before the rain started pouring had the shape of wings I was looking for.

Two nights ago, was beautiful along the Lake Michigan shoreline. The intense sunset, high winds, and big waves filled me with adrenaline. On my forth shot, everything came together just the way I had pre-visualized.

Two nights ago, was beautiful along the Lake Michigan shoreline. The intense sunset, high winds, and big waves filled me with adrenaline. On my forth shot, everything came together just the way I had pre-visualized. Nikon D810. F16 at 1/320, ISO 800. 70-200mm lens at 185mm. On a tripod without a flash. January 17, 2018 at 5:32pm.

I made this image of the northern lights last night while standing next to my dad on a tall dune near the Beach House inside the Ludington State Park. The lights were barely visible for several hours, but they erupted for less than one minute near midnight. I have never seen as many stars in the sky as I did that night.

I cannot imagine a more beautiful location across America for a summer concert than Ludington's Waterfront Park. On this July evening the park is filled with West Shore Bank Rhythm & Dunes concert goers as the Lake Michigan Carferry Badger steams past on one of its daily Lake Michigan crossings to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The Rhythm & Dunes concerts are one of the highlight events of summer in Ludington.