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Feeling the Heat

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.

The Sable River Outlet is one of the most beautiful and popular spots at Ludington State Park. Hundreds of people flock to the river mouth on a hot summer day. But it is during quieter times, like this early May evening that it calls to me the most.

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.

A solid gold sunset greeted me on the Lake Michigan shoreline this evening. I loved the way the light was playing on the beach and small outlet.

On this cold December morning, I was glad to see the sun shining through a thick layer of clouds. I stopped the aperture of my lens down to the smallest hole at F22 in order to make the sun rays more distinct.

The sand along the Lake Michigan shoreline looks like liquid gold tonight. It is incredible how a late September sunset can transform the appearance of the waterfront.

Glow Time

Lake Michigan went wild today. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly Lake Michigan can go from being flat and calm to rough and angry. The intense color in the sky, mixed with the wind and waves, set my spirits free tonight along Stearns Park Beach in Ludington. D800, F22 at 1/160, ISO 800, 300mm lens at 300mm

Golden Sand

Lake Michigan went wild today. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly Lake Michigan can go from being flat and calm to rough and angry. The intense color in the sky, mixed with the wind and waves, set my spirits free tonight along Stearns Park Beach in Ludington.

I will forever be grateful that I was born and raised in Ludington and that I can live, work, and play as an adult in my beautiful hometown. Listening to the sound of Lake Michigan waves slowly brushing the sand along the shoreline at the Ludington State Park tonight, I was also grateful that my kids are now getting to experience the magic of Ludington as their hometown.

Golden Sand - panoramic

Some photographs have amazing secrets behind them. This is one of them.

I was recently chatting with a young man in the gallery who was a foreign exchange student at a high school in southern Michigan. When he first saw Lake Michigan, he could not believe how large and how beautiful it was. He proclaimed, "Lake Michigan is as good as it gets!" I made this image in front of Point Betsie Lighthouse and the color is real. Go check it out for yourself if you are in doubt. You won't be disappointed. D800, F2.8 at 1/1600, ISO 100, 70-200mm lens at 200mm

As I made my personal journey of photographing the Ludington State Park, I relished the opportunity to explore areas of the park that I had never seen before. It seemed that over every dune and behind every pine row there was a whole new world to discover and photograph. I knew when I found this section of dead trees that there was a great picture waiting to be made. I sat on the small sand mound for 10 minutes waiting for the light to hit the trees and give them life again.

Heaven Blessed

Keeping On

This view from high atop Big Point Sable Lighthouse shows the layers of dunes and forest between Lake Michigan and Hamlin Lake and reveals the vastness and beauty of the remote northern area of Ludington State Park. Brad and I climbed to the top of the lighthouse on an early November morning and sat in the dark, anxiously awaiting sunrise. The light and atmosphere that appeared was well worth the chilly wait.

The lookout on M22 between Elberta and Arcadia is one of our favorite spots to stop and look for photographs of Lake Michigan. On this particularly windy day, I hiked to the top of the tall flight of stairs to photograph from the stable platform at the top. It was worth the hike.