During the winter months here in Northern Michigan I focus some of my photography talent on winter sports.  This year I will be photographing a few dog sled races, one of which will hopefully be the UP200 in Marquette, and probably the I500 snowmobile race in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan.  Since winter is a slow Wedding season, although this year it is a bit more scheduled than normal, I look forward to capturing events that I would normally not consider.  The concepts of this type of motion photography is a bit different so it allows me to gather ideas for my wedding photography.

Today I added to my arsenal of cameras with a Canon 5D.  Thank you Canon for putting all these new cameras on the market and making the older/new cameras, that are truly awesome, dirt cheap.

Dog Sled Racing in Upper Michigan ~ UP200 and Kinross sled dog races

Winter Sports Photography by Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

Last night we took a two hour boat ride with our blue weimaraner, Sampson, and our Vizsla, Asta ~ Asta la Vizsla around Neebish Island.  We passed through Neebish Island and Sugar Island and had Canada about 1/4 mile away.  Only saw a few boats in our trip.  I was surprised not to see anyone patrolling the border from the water.  This was their second boat ride in our jet boat and they love the smells from the bow.

We do have life preservers that we usually have on the dogs at all times but we used their leashes and held on to them so they wouldn’t try to launch at all of the birds flying from the buoys.  We did see a beautiful Osprey and a ton of turns, gulls, ducks, and geese.  Good times…

Here are a few images of the dogs having a good time.  Asta was more of a bow rider and Sampson slept for half of the trip.

jet boat with dogs in upper michigan

cruising the St. Mary's River in Northern Michigan

Asta chilling on the bow during our boat ride on the river

sampson, our blue weimaraner, napping on boat ride

northern michigan boat ride on St. Mary's River near Barbeau, Michigan

Swing by my Photography website and see some more fabulous images! Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

This past weekend I traveled down to the lower peninsula to fish with Dad and a group of guys from the Alcona area in the Harrisville Fishing Tournament.  The tournament is run every year for like the past 25 years by the Lions Club in Harrisville Michigan.

We had a great time fishing and caught a bundle of fish.  We caught 19 fish on Saturday and 14 fish on Sunday.  The weather was beautiful until after the tournament.

Trout Scout V was in first place after the first day, always a bad place to be unless you are WAY ahead.  We ended up just out of the money but had a nice time.

Check out a few images that I captured with my point and shoot camera in my waterproof case.

Fishing Lake Huron for Salmon, Trout, and Walleye Trout Scout V

lake huron sunrise before a day of fishing on trout scout fishing charters

a plane was taping the start at the harrisville salmon fishing tournament

view from the fly bridge leaving the harrisville harbor

prop wash viewed from the tower of trout scout charters

 Swing by my photographer website

Sometimes I think that I have too many hobbies.  Fishing has always been part of my family.  I started on a boat when I was 2 years old with dad taking me out to babysit me.  I first mated as soon as I could see over the bow from the helm and started running the rods as soon as I could net a fish.  My whole teenage years I spent most days on the water first mating on the Trout Scout and Fishbuster Charters in Alpena, Rockport, and Presque Isle, Michigan.  Boredom was never a word in my vocabulary because time on the water was always new and fresh everyday, especially on the Great Lakes.

Paul Retherford the Fisherman

Fast forward to now, I occasionally run boats for people, mostly my brother’s boat http://www.catchabunch.com.  I earned my 100-ton Masters of Inland Waterways when I was out West volunteering with AmeriCorps*USA.

I have had the pleasure in being part of fishing teams my whole life.  My boats have placed first in almost every salmon and lake trout tournament on Lake Huron shoreline.  It has been nice seeing all the wonderful ports and being part of a unique class of people on the water.

Grand Haven Offshore Challenge was my first tournament on Lake Michigan.   We had a solid team with all people who I fished with.  The competition is tough with a ton of long timers in the area.  There are a lot of teams that fish the whole circuit up the shoreline.  All that I could hope for was that we fished our game.

The first day we caught our twelve fish and only had fourteen hits.  The second day we had 15 hits and only caught nine.  That put us out of the money since we didn’t get our twelve fish.  We only needed three more fish and twelve pounds to finish 4th!  It was a bummer, BUT we landed every fish that we had on the line.  We missed all of the others.  On our boat we don’t get false releases since we use heavy rubberbands for releases.

So here are a few images that I took with my Canon S500 in the underwater casing.  I love this camera for the boat since it can get wet, dropped, and still perform.  I have had this camera now for like 10+ years or more and it is still doing great.

lake michigan fishing tournament offshore challenge catch a bunch team

grand haven offshore challenge fishing tournament morning start line

Check out Catch a Bunch Fishing Charters on Lake Michigan in Grand Haven, Michigan

salmon fishing out of chinook pier on catch a bunch in grand haven, michigan

Fish Lake Huron out of Alpena, Michigan on Trout Scout V with Captain Ed Retherford

running out to the salmon fishing grounds in grand haven, michigan

beautiful days on the water on lake michigan and the great lakes

Come and see my photography at www.paulretherford.com

gaylord michigan run walk race photo

1st Annual Treetops Resort Snowbird Spring Scamper Run

snowbird spring scamper 1st annual treetops resort photo

The weather was wet but the runners did not seem to mind.  Everyone was having a nice time at the 1st annual run for benefit.  Check out the Treetops Resort Snowbird Spring Scamper website and come out next year to run.  There were three classes 1K, 5K, and 10K.

Fun times at this Gaylord, Michigan Race Walk for benefit

runners at the snowbird spring scamper image

Here is a slideshow of a group of the images that I captured during the rainy day in Gaylord, Michigan at the 1K, 5K, and 10K Snowbird Spring Scamper at the Treetops Resort north course.
Snowbird Spring Scamper Slide Show

Come and See my photography website!

Sometimes the winters are very long here in the UP, wait, always the winters are too long, SO yoopers get a bit creative in passing their time, excuse the pun.   The o-500 or Yoopers pushing Poopers is now in it’s sixth year of running.  The event takes place in a closed off downtown location in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan.  This was my first time at the event and my wife and I had a great time.  It was beautiful outside and the showing was mediocre.  I was surprised that more college students from Lake Superior State University did not attend.

We had one person fall right in front of us and the image should be the billboard for the O-500 annual outhouse race in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan.  See the image below and watch the slideshow.

O-500 outhouse race sault ste marie michigan 2009 Billboard Image

The Sootoday.com did a video on the O-500 and you can see their work at

http://sootoday.com/content/news/full_story.asp?StoryNumber=38211

Great Lakes Sled Dog Association

The Kinross, Michigan Sled dog sprint race of 2009 was a success and I captured a bunch of fantastic images of the dogs and mushers.  I have a blast hanging around the event and I hope that you take the time to see the images and the slide show at http://www.paulretherford.printroom.com/Kinross2009

Professional Photography by Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

Kinross, Michigan Sled dog racing images for the 2009 Great Lakes Sled Dog Association race at the end of February 2009.  Photos by Paul Retherford Photography, LLC, assisted by Chris Schroeder of Rudyard, MI.

aerial dog sled racing image in Kinross Michigan by paul retherford

husky dog sled racing dog image in Kinross Michigan dog race

sled dog image from the kinross sled dog race in northern Michigan

sled dog racing image from Kinross Michigan dog racing

Kinross, Michigan Sled Dog Image from 2009 Race in Upper Michigan

This image sums up the fun that I am having at the Kinross Dog Sled Race in Northern Michigan.  I will be capturing images again on Sunday and then I will have images and a slide show posted probably on Monday.   Here is the image…

kinross dog sled race image from 2009 michigan

Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

Great Lakes Sled Dog Association race in Kinross, Michigan

This weekend will be the running of the Kinross II sled dog race 2009 and I will be present on the trails to capture images of the sled dog teams and mushers.    I will be posting images online and also producing a slide show that you can sign up to receive the link when it is ready at http://www.paulretherford.printroom.com/kinross2009

I look forward to a great weekend!

Swing by and check out my website here.

Rogers City Wedding Reception at the Waters Edge on Lake Huron

Photography by Paul Retherford Wedding Photography

If you are having a wedding in Northeast Michigan in the Alpena and Rogers City areas consider using St. Johns Catholic Church in Alpena, Michigan for your wedding ceremony and Waters Edge in Rogers City for your wedding reception.  This allows for great images along Lake Huron and the Thunder Bay River with many beautiful outdoor areas for awesome photography.  The beaches are sandy and the water is crystal clear.  Check out the slide show of the wedding in Alpena and wedding reception in Rogers City, Michigan:

Here is the Wedding Album that was produced from the Wedding Event.

st. john catholic church wedding in alpena, michigan

waters edge wedding reception in rogers city michigan on lake huron beach

Lake Michigan Wedding Photographer, Paul Retherford Wedding Photography

Check out the image slideshow and give Paul Retherford Wedding Photography a call to book your Saugatuck or Douglas area wedding!

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Paul Retherford Photography, LLC images are online from UP 200 dog sled race!  Click HERE.

See a UP 200 sled dog image slideshow by Paul Retherford Photography | Photographer’s Favorites

Here are my favorites from the bunch!

excited dog howling before start of UP 200 dog sled race

pointer mix? sled dog at start in UP 200 race

dalmation looking dog in UP 200 sled dog race

sled dog team starting at UP 200 in Marquette, Michigan

beautiful dog eyes, sled dog at UP 200 race

dogs digging in at the start of the UP 200 sled dog race

the view looking down the starting line for UP 200 dog sled race 2009

introductions of racers prior to their dog sled start

musher greeting and petting dogs prior to UP 200 sled dog start 2009

dog sled musher cheering while riding in downtown Marquette, MI

midnight run dog sled race from Gwinn, Michigan to Munising, MI

ice on trees and dog sled during UP 200 in 2009

My sled dog images can be seen at UP 200 Sled Dog Race Images by Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

The 2009 UP 200 Dog Sled Race is coming to a close and I had an opportunity to capture images from the race.  It was my first dog sled race and I had a blast.  The opportunity was kind of a last minute decision and I am glad that my wife and I decided to alter our route so that I could capture a portion of the races.

I started out on Friday by heading to the Headquarters at the Holiday Inn in Marquette, Michigan.  They had a vet check in the morning and people were kind of just hanging out and chatting.  It was a nice place to see some dogs, talk to the mushers, and grab some nice images of the dogs as they relaxed on their chains.  I also had the opportunity to speak with the nice people at the headquarters and they helped with some details about the race.

After my visit I headed down to the starting line in downtown Marquette.  I wanted to get a feel of the course and also plot out a nice spot to park before the race.  My plan would be to catch some of the Midnight Run race in Gwinn and they head up to Marquette for the start of the 2009 UP 200 in downtown Marquette.

2009 Midnight Run Dog Sled Race in Gwinn, Michigan ending in Munishing, MI

Gwinn is just a really small town and I was able to hang out and capture some incredible images before the beginning of the Midnight Run dog sled race.   I spoke with some of the mushers and they really schooled me on the strategy and the art of dog mushing.  I found out that the Midnight Run was run with 8 dogs or less and the UP 200, which is actually 240 miles, has 12 dogs or less.  I was told that the Midnight Run speeds are likely faster than the UP 200 speeds, even though they have less dogs, because the UP 200 mushers don’t want their dogs to wear out.

I caught a handful of the starts in Gwinn before I had to high tail it to Marquette for the start of the UP 200.    All I can say is that if you have never seen a start of a dog race, and you love dogs, you HAVE TO check it out.  I had goosebumps and was laughing as the dogs got so pumped up to run.  These dogs LOVE to race and pull the sled and you can tell.  It was tough for the volunteers to hold them back at times.

The following morning I was in Wetmore at the check station for a couple hours capturing the UP 200 and then headed over to Munising to catch a bit of the Midnight Run finish.

I was told that the UP 200 is an Iditarod qualifying race.

You can see my Sled Dog Images at http://www.paulretherford.printroom.com/UP200

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41st Annual International Snowmobile Race | Fastest Oval Track

On Saturday I attended the I-500 Snowmobile Race in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan with the intention of getting some awesome images of the sleds as they race around the fastest one mile oval track.  The I-500 is in it’s 41st year and is going strong with great sponsorship and following by thousands of fans.

You can view and purchase images of the I-500 snowmobile race HERE.

The race all began with the snowmobile parade at 9am and then the race start at 10am.  The pole position was Caderette Collision riding a Ski-Doo snowmobile.  They would prove to be the best, holding off the field and winning the I-500 Snowmobile Race in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan.  The #21 team led most of the way and took home prizes from 1st place, leading laps, and other various donations and prizes.  It was a big win for the Ski-doo racing team of Caderette Collision based out of Alpena, Michigan with a racer from Augres, Michigan.  You can see the final standings of the International 500 Snowmobile Race in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan HERE.

2009 I-500 Race Standings from Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan

See a cool slideshow of the I-500 race here.

Congratulations to team Ski-Doo for your first place finish in the 2009 I-500 race in Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan!

Check out the images that I have posted online of each sled from the I-500 race in 2009.  See the listing above if you need to reference team numbers.

Here are just a few I-500 pictures:

Start of I-500 Snowmobile race

I-500 image, picture, photo

snowmobile race track image

view of corner bank at I-500

Ski-Doo image I-500 race

I-500 race image

pit image at I-500

pit image at I-500

41st Annual International Snowmobile Track Race

Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

In 2003 I was invited to attend a playoff game in Chicago against Chicago and Washington.  I decided to take my professional camera and make a few nice images.  It would turn out that, I think, I was the only person to record the winning goal in overtime.  I tried contacting the local Chicago papers and no one seemed to have much interest.  The Chicago fire is part of the MLS and they had a great year in 2003.  Here are a few of the images that I made:  Remember to see my website at http://www.paulretherford.com

Armas scoring winning goal in overtime

The soccer ball is in the net

Chicago Fire Players Celebrate winning Goal

Chicago Fire Soccer team celebrating victory

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Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

My wife and I had the opportunity to capture images on a 72 foot yacht at the Chicago Air and Water Show a few years ago.  It was awesome because we had the planes and jets buzzing our heads.  At one point I was capturing a jet coming right at me with over 600mm of magnification and I thought it was going to hit me, so I ducked, and everyone behind me was laughing, it was cool…  Enjoy the images.

Paul Retherford Photography, LLC

Chicago Air and Water Show observed from Lake Michigan Yacht

Chicago air and water show on Lake Michigan

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ski trail in Rudyard, Michigan

rudyard ski trail sign

snow ski trail infrared in black and white

snow form on log | infrared black and white

snow on winter log

shadows on the cross country ski trail

winter snow on evergreen

snow on trees in forest

winter snow on tree stump infrared black and white

winter evergreens

winter snow ski trail infrared black and white

infrared bw rudyard, michigan

The day was crystal clear and cold, around 15 degrees, with no wind.  It was awesome skiing once you warmed up.  Megan had a couple of hand warmers that she put in her hat because her ears were freezing.  Every tree was filled with snow, it was fantastic.  We are thinking about heading skiing tomorrow too.  I would highly suggest the Rudyard ski trail.  It is well groomed and a nice ski.  Very flat.   I found myself stopping often to grab a shot or two, or three.  I was having a blast.  Had to catch up to Megan often.

Be sure to comment on the images and let me know what you think.  See my photography website at http://www.paulretherford.com