Following the first winter storm in Michigan's Upper Peninsula earlier this week, many areas were blanketed in inches of fresh powder. Marquette even broke records for most two-day snow in October, with 9.1 inches falling on Monday and 8.9 more on Tuesday. News stations were posting countless photos of small Michigan towns who were now thrust into the news for no reason other than the extreme snowfall so early in the year. True Yoopers are used to early snow and lots of it, so this was no earth-shattering event for them, but to the rest of us it was certainly more newsworthy.

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After this storm, while perusing the PureUP Facebook group, I came across these beautiful photos from a photographer named Laura Maynard, also known as U.P. Serenity. A Marquette native, she moved to the U.P. from Wisconsin at age 5 and never left. She has raised two sons here, and she couldn't imagine living anywhere else! When I reached out to her to ask if I could write an article showcasing her amazing photography, she could not have been nicer about it, saying "thank you so much for your kind words about my photography, so sweet!" She sells full-quality, un-watermarked photos under the name U.P. Serenity. The photos can be found on her website here if anyone is interested in showing a fellow Michigander's art some appreciation!

She has been taking photos as a hobby since 2012 with her Nikon D3100. I got my first camera in 2016, and it was a Nikon D3300, a very similar model. If anyone is looking to get into nature photography, I would recommend a D3100 or D3300.

Below are Laura's incredible photos of Monday's storm over Lake Superior in Presque Isle Park. The full-quality versions can be found here.

Uniquely Beautiful Shots of First Winter Storm in U.P. from Local Photographer

Local photographer Laura Maynard of U.P. Serenity Photography was able to capture the first winter storm over Lake Superior at Presque Isle Park in Marquette, Michigan. She agreed to let us use her beautiful photos!

Also feel free to check out these photos from another local photographer, Bob Huston, aka Detroit Unseen.

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