While most of the nation turns its eye towards Punxsutawney Phil, true Michiganders know there’s only one source for your winter woodchuck weathercast: Howell Nature Center’s own Woody the Woodchuck. Woody has been a fixture at the nature center since (at least) 2017 when I shared the photo from John Heinz Jr of lil Woody figuring out if something was or wasn’t food.
If you’re in the neighborhood, their free Groundhog Day Celebration is already underway, but you can also tune into their Facebook livestream that starts at 8:20 am!
A lot of the photographers I feature on Michigan in Pictures as well as many readers are from the Detroit area. If you are and are interested in growing your skills and/or your network of photographers, I encourage you to check out the “Click & Create: Detroit Photography Meetup” this Saturday, Jan 24th 10:00 AM at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
They write: “Join us for a photography meet-up designed to spark creativity across all ages and skill levels. We’ll explore the space together, work from shared shot lists, compare styles, and trade inspiration as we capture fresh perspectives in the heart of the city …. Meet inside the Woodward Entrance. Bring your camera or phone. No flash photography. No tripods or extra equipment. Just your eye, your curiosity, and your creative energy.”
Coretta Billy shared the event with me. She specializes in portraits & events, and is of the photographers who will be in attendance. You can follow her on Facebook and view & purchase her work at corettabillyiecphotography.com.
The annual Detroit Auto Show kicks off today at Huntington Place in Downtown Detroit. This annual celebration of automotive design & car culture runs January 14-25, 2026 & features new models, test tracks, and all kinds of auto related fun.
Montez Miller of Tell Us Detroit was there for an early look with Autot Show officials and new Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield. You can follow Tell Us Detroit’s coverage on Facebook, click to check out her video with some photo highlights of the preview, also also see highlights in the Detroit Auto Show’s hype video featuring GMac Cash. It’s really a great experience for car lovers!
The Woodward Dream Cruise will be celebrating its 30th year tomorrow (August 16, 2025). It is the largest one-day automotive event in North America, drawing nearly one million people & 40,000 classic cars every year.
pk got this shot of a 1971 Superbird dressed in Sassy Grass at the 2023 Woodward Dream Cruise. Here’s a few they have shared – see more great shots in their Wheels gallery on Flickr!
The 26th annual Grand Marais Splash-in on the Bay starts today (June 12) & runs through Sunday. If you get a chance to head up, highlights include a Seaplane Poker Run on Friday & Saturday competitions including a Balloon Target Drop and Take-off / Landing contests!
Even if you can’t make it, you can count on Michigan in Pictures’ Official Grand Marais photographer Gary McCormick to bring you some great pics. Check out some from last year below, view & purchase prints on his website & for sure follow Footsore Fotography on Facebook for his latest!
The 2025 Detroit Grand Prix runs Friday May 30 – Sunday June 1 in downtown Detroit along the riverfront. On Friday they have a couple of grandstand sections free on a first come, first served basis. There are also free viewing platforms located along Jefferson Avenue that are wheelchair accessible & free all weekend. Hart Plaza and Woodward Avenue will be fully activated and free to the public all weekend with fun activations and merchandise vendors.
It’s a pretty cool experience if you’re able to check it out. I combed through the Detroit Grand Prix’s Facebook photos for a representative selection.
Holland’s Tulip Time has been an annual celebration of Dutch culture & tulips since the founding of the festival in 1929. Tulip Time returns for the 96th year May 2-11, 2025. Here are some photos from recent years (and one throwback) via the Tulip Time Facebook.
For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, the flowers appear on the earth, the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.
Friday, April 4th 2025 is the 124th Opening Day for the Detroit Tigers. As a resident of Midtown in Detroit, I can tell you that this is unquestionably one of the biggest holidays of the year for us. Already the streets are filling with cars as baseball fans from all over Michigan and the world get ready for Tiger Baseball to return to the Motor City!
I’ve rounded up some of the highlights with a laser focus on FREE including and Opening Day party at Grand Circus Park by the City of Detroit and a Wisconsin manufacturer of watery beer that features a LOT of great food trucks, DJ Invisible, and lots of video walls and screens. There’s another free party from noon – 6pm just across Woodward at one of my favorite venues, The Fillmore with giveaways, WRIF and the game on their MASSIVE screen (tell the security guys Andy sent you and they will laugh). Also on the free front are a party at Gilly’s with giveaways, raffle, face painting & DJ Ray Ya Dig (official DJ of the Lions) from 9 AM–4 PM. I think that the Opening Day Party with my friends The Honest to God Jug Band is free, but they’re so fun and Cliff’s Bells is SO cool that I think you won’t mind if there is a cover.
And everywhere there are giveaways, giveaways, giveaways including the House of Faygo Pop-up at Campus Martius this Friday – Sunday.
Here’s more information on the photos & happenings. Please add yours in the comments here or on our Facebook!
Join the Golden Boy at the Marche du Nain Rouge by Andrew McFarlane
The annual Marche du Nain Rouge takes place this Sunday, March 23rd 2025 along the Cass Corridor in Detroit. The festivities begin at 11:30 on the Community Stage at the intersection of Canfield & 2nd with Detroit-centric sets & hilarious entertainment as excitement builds toward the Nain leading the celebratory procession down to the Masonic Temple and the FREE Official Afterparty with drinks, friends, vendor tables, and DJs spinning.
In the mythology of Medieval Normandy, the Nain Rouge (or Lutin, or an earlier version called “Netun”) is a sort of house spirit that has many names, assumes many forms, and plays nefarious pranks. The Lutin of Normandy is very similar to domestic spirits of England, Scandinavia and Germany. They are fond of children, horses (often taking their form), and young maidens also, but are cruel to those who do not treat them with respect. In Archibald Maclaren’s The Fairy Family: A Series of Ballads and Metrical Tales Illustrating the Fairy Mythology of Europe, the Lutin is compared and contrasted with England’s trickster Robin Goodfellow, and found to be quite a bit more mean-spirited, remarking “Many a man laid his ruin at the Lutin’s door; although it must be confessed that in these cases neighbors were uncharitable enough to fay, that the Lutin had less to do with it than habits of Want-of-thrift and Self-indulgence” (Maclaren, 1857, p.67). The subclass of Lutin called the Nain Rouge is described in the folktales of Normandy as playing dastardly tricks on, but on occasion being particularly kind to fisherman.
PS: My friend Joel was there in 2017 as well and he took MUCH better pics that I have featured before.
PPS: I didn’t know the guy in the first pic when I talked to him about the paper mache head he made, but he’s now one of my best friends and we work together. Magic!!
PPPS: The Trinidadian dancers & steel drum band ROCK!!!
The Detroit Auto Show starts today and runs through January 20th. The Freep shares that in addition to no longer putting on airs as the North American International Auto Show, there won’t be any concept cars or earth-shaking demos. Instead, the show will include more than 30 car brands showcasing their vehicles. Luxury cars will be returning to the floor, and there will be test tracks, charity drives and engineering exhibits.
Being a place for buyers to meet sellers & see the range of cars in the market is for sure cool, but can we just have just a couple concept cars? For science?? Here’s two from past Michpics posts…
“Without Detroit, cars wouldn’t be cars, culture wouldn’t be culture, and music wouldn’t be music. My family wouldn’t be what it is without this city.”
– @stephen_mcgee, Filmmaker, 2x Emmy Award Winner, Photographer MY DRIVE. MY CITY. MY SHOW.™
Michigan in Pictures 