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Brad and I are floating a stretch of the Pere Marquette River in avid fly fisherman Larry VonDrasek's drift boat when I spot an osprey perched in a treetop as we round a bend. Fortunately, I have my camera settings ready for "jump shots" because within seconds the osprey dives off the perch and soars right over our heads. I find the fast-flying bird in my viewfinder, swing with it like a duck hunter, and pull the trigger. My digital playback shows I was right on target.

I imagine that this old Dodge was the pride of the Motor City back in the 1950s, but after sitting in one place for several years on the Shoup's farm east of Custer, Michigan, Mother Earth has taken its toll on this beauty. I love how it has become one with its surroundings. F6.3 at 1/80, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

Polar Vortex

Cow Lick

This tom turkey displays its full regalia while strutting amongst a flock of turkeys in the morning light. How can a bird that often looks ugly look so magnificent looking when it wants to? I was glad to have shot him (with my camera) during turkey hunting season. F5.0 at 1/125, ISO 250, 80-200 mm lens at 165 mm

Mother Nature and the Ludington Fire Department have teamed up to light up the Ludington waterfront on a July evening. The community bonfire special event gives the public a chance to enjoy a bonfire on a public beach where fires normally cannot be permitted for safety and environmental reasons.

My grandparents, Bud and Dorothy Reed, had a house on the Pere Marquette River for 50 years just upstream from where I made this photograph today on the Shoup's property. This was a fresh view for me and it reminded me of all the amazing times the Reed family had at my grandparents' house. The reflections of the clouds in the river are what caught my eye and drew me down the steep bank to the river's edge. F7.1 at 1/200, ISO 100, 14mm lens at 14mm

Dotties Delight

This is my first good photo of a Caspian tern. I have not seen many of these birds around West Michigan until recent years. They are beautiful, agile and incredibly nimble in the air. Just after I made this photo, the tern dove head first into the water and came out with a nice treat for dinner in its beak. F5.0 at 1/2000, ISO 640, 70-200 mm lens at 200 mm

One can only imagine how lonely it must have felt for light keepers to spend the entire winter isolated at Mission Point Lighthouse during times gone by. On this February morning the grand old lighthouse at the tip of Old Mission Peninsula north of Northport looks lonely but simply beautiful with a fresh coat of snow.

I have driven past this scenic turnout vista along M37 south of Mesick for more than 40 years, admiring the view at 55 miles per hour. Today the light falling on Hodenpyl Pond is exquisite so I stop to make a picture. Timing is everything in outdoor photography. F22 at 1/1250, ISO 800, 80-200mm lens at 80mm

Fall Color

Fall Color West Shore

Fall Color West Shore

For a very short time, the fruit country south of Ludington blossoms into a fairyland. This evening view is from Hawley Road looking north. F5.0 at 1/200, ISO 200, 80-200 mm lens at 200 mm

Like so many Michiganders and Michiganders at heart, I love looking at the barns scattered across the countryside of our great state. In recent years more and more Michigan barns are being adorned with wooden barn quilts for owners and passersby to enjoy. This barn quilt brightens a February day on Old Mission Peninsula along East Bay north of Traverse City.

Hustling from Scottville, Michigan to the Ludington State Park to photograph the sunset, I made a last minute decision to not shoot right along the shoreline of Lake Michigan, and instead, turn down Piney Ridge Road and shoot from a location that my dad discovered during Week 6 of our Tuesdays Project. Once I got on top of the massive dune, I knew I had made the right decision. F11 at 1/13, ISO 100, 18-50mm lens at 18mm

Red Light

Freeze Morning