Transitions

Starting Friday, I will be trading my life as a homeowner in the woods north of Northport for condo living in Traverse City.  I’m ready for a slimmed-down lifestyle, but it’s not without some emotional stirrings.  I will miss the many friendships I've developed here, but am confident we'll work to preserve these meaningful relationships.  What’s not as easy to maintain are the ephemeral moments I’ve had with the critters and landscapes I’ve photographed.  I’m sharing some of my favorites in this week’s blog post.

In the critter category, the fox was one of my favorite subjects.  It would pass by my bird feeders almost on a daily basis for a couple years.

Deer were also frequent visitors to my land.  During the spring, I was lucky enough to watch fawns grow and develop into mature white tails.

Photographing the Snowy Owl on a Christmas Eve afternoon was another peak experience.  I've heard sightings of Snowies happen in Traverse City too so I'm looking forward to seeing them there too.

This young Red-Tailed Hawk was perched on an electrical wire in my neighborhood.  Its eyes and claws creeped me out as to the damage this bird might inflict.

An enchanting evening at Cross Farms allowed me to photograph two Sand Hill Cranes doing their pair bonding dance.

Of course, my favorite critter to photograph is the one at home, Gracie, my three year-old mini-goldendoodle.  She loves to pose for the camera.

On the landscape side of my photography, the Northern Lights are a phenomenon we all enjoy seeing.  This night the auroras were on fire right in my neighborhood.

 Grand Traverse Light was an oft photographed subject of mine.  I love this image with the sunset reflected in the windows and side of the structure.

The Old Mill Pond was a delight to capture on this sunny fall day where the colors were reflected in the still pond waters.

This moody spring shot taken with fog rising on Kehl Lake is one of my favorites too.

Spring blossomtime is another special time on the peninsula.  I used this image on my sold-out 2017 calendar.

Winter brings another kind of quiet beauty, as with this view of an empty swing near Omena Bay.

As you may have noticed, I’ve modified the format of my blog to reflect the changes going on in my life.  I’ll continue to post weekly images on a theme, but my focus will be more on the Great Up North vs. solely on Northport and the Leelanau Peninsula.  Oh, I’ll still return for occasional photo shoots in the village, township, and the peninsula, but I’ll also be exploring new vistas as I get to know my new environs.  As always, thank you for visiting.