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As the sun rose in the east this morning, the pink light reflected in the west over Lake Michigan. I used my external flash to add detail to the blowing dune grass in front of me as I made this picture inside the Ludington channel. The soft morning light made for a peaceful start to my day.

It took me over an hour of walking, crawling, praying, and sweating to make my way out on these jagged, slippery ice mounds in the Straits of Mackinac. I had seen the large chunk of ice that is on the left side of this composition from shore and I was determined to make it out to that point in order to line it up with the Mackinac Bridge in the background. It was totally worth the effort and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Workshop at Ludington State Park

Colors Flying

Fresh Flowers

Fresh Flowers

With a field full of thousands of sunflowers to pick from, I set out to create a picture with only one star of the show. After at least 20 minutes of studying hundreds of sunflowers near the edge of the big field along Conrad Road, I made my choice. I liked how beautiful this sunflower was and the spatial relationship between it and the sunflowers surrounding it.

Even a winter hater would love this day. Snow clung to everything and turned Sauble River at Ludington State Park into a winter paradise.

North Peterson Road in Hamlin Township is lined with beautiful forests and fields. I have always loved this section between Decker and Fisher Roads. A blanket of fresh snow accentuated the repetitive patterns of this photograph. F10.0 at 1/25, ISO 100, 18-50 mm lens at 18 mm

By setting my camera directly on the ice that had built up on the Manistee pier, I could capture the sun dancing on the ripples. Generally, we use tripods, but sometimes the only way to get the immediacy in our photographs, is to improvise.

Crimson Tide

Little Point Sable

Fireworks Viewers

Grandmas Angel

Nikon D810. F22 at 1/60, ISO 400. 60-600mm lens at 60mm. On a tripod without a flash. February 25, 2020 at 5:08pm.

I came upon this scene while hiking along the Coast Guard Trail near Hamlin Lake. Staying as quiet as possible, not to appear threatening to the fearless hawk, I slowly set up my camera and tripod. The hawk accepted my presence and began the grisly process of eating its prey. The fur from the squirrel's beautiful tail fluttered in the wind. As is often nature’s way, the scene was a visual and emotional paradox; so deadly, yet so beautiful. I went away saddened but exhilarated, focusing on the beauty and knowledge that what I had just witnessed was natural and necessary.

I hiked the Island Trail at Ludington State Park religiously the spring of 2007, obsessed with finding wild flowers in bloom. After many days of trekking, this wild Iris greeted me on a dewy morning the first week of June in one of the wetland areas of the trail near Hamlin Lake.

On our return trip to Ludington after putting on a photography program in Petoskey for the Crooked Tree Art Council, Brad and I cannot resist stopping at Crystal Mountain to get in a few runs on the ski slopes. Plus it gives me the opportunity to capture a moment that shows Brad's intensity and speed while skiing his favorite run

Open water is often difficult for Michigan waterfowl to find during the heart of winter. This mute swan rests on the ice on Lincoln Lake while taking a break from feeding in adjacent open water.