This photo is part of the 5 senses garden sculpture at the Children's Gardenat the Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids.

If you've never been to the gardens be sure to put it on your places to visit in 2010. Currently you can check out "Butterflies Are Blooming" which is their most popular annual exhibition and the largest temporary tropical butterfly exhibit in the nation. They also feature a fantastic "Summer Concert Series" and allow patrons to bring their own picnic food and non-alcoholic beverages—in non-glass containers—to enjoy during concerts.

From angela7dreams's Flickr profile:

I am an educator, facilitator, artist and community activist. As a co-founder and associate director of LEAP (Land Empowerment Animals People), I encourage people from all walks of life to come together and share their hopes and desires as well as sorrow and despair about the condition of life here on our planet home.

Be sure to check her amazing photo sets from around the world!

Today's Photo Friday is brought to you in part by Alice in Wonderland.

vintage.carousel (Brooke Hren) has sets including Favorites, Viewfinder and (in a seasonal way) Summer, Autumn and Winter (slideshow)

Splash around in her flickrriver ... and don't be late!

abigail burch (Abby Burch) says that she's always loved photography and loves taking pictures of things, places and people she finds interesting with her still relatively new Canon Rebel Xsi .

You can (and should) check this photo of the Muskegon beach out bigger and have a look at her sets including favorites, nature, city, artprize and cottage (slideshow).

Take a dip in her Flickriver.

MightyBoyBrian (Brian Wolfe) says that since graduating from college, his love of photography has gradually intensified and is one of his most potent escapes from the engineering box that he seems to have learned himself into. He says he favors nature and urban shots, but with the new acquisition of a 50mm f/1.8, he's getting more into portraiture.

You can see this photo bigger and check out his sets including The Urban, Nature,  Panoramics and The Top 30 (slideshow).

Dive into his Flickriver!

gkretovic (Greg Kretovic) says that he lives for the outdoor and loves capturing it with his camera in unique ways, especially the opportunities offered by the Upper Peninsula.

He took this photo at last weekends Pine Mountain Ski Jumping Tournament. His sets include nature and you'll want to check out some of his tags including waterfalls and upper peninsula (slideshow).

Much more in his Flickriver.

In addition to making some pretty cool prints, allthingsgrow has some cool pictures in her the rest slideshow.

She took this picture in Ypsilanti's Depot Town.

Check out her Flickriver.

John.Dykstra says he's an eighteen-year-old photographer living in Canton, Michigan and equipped with a sharp eye and a passion for the Great Lakes region.

His sets include Lakes, Waterfalls and Lower Peninsula (slideshow).

Meander down his Flickriver.

budderflyman (Michael) took this photo at Avery Lake. See it bigger in his Explore slideshow. His other sets include Personal Best, Black & White and Michigan (slideshow).

Dive into his Flickriver.

...nature listens. ~Antoinette Van Kleeff

Laura writes that she is passionate about horses and photography to a fault and that she HATES cold and snow, yet finds herself out in a -14 degree blinding blizzard so I can get a shot where the light is *perfect* and the mane is blowing just right.

Check out her sets including Black and White and Explored(!) (slideshow).

Jump into her Flickriver.

Matt Burrows says:

Though I've had my Nikon D70 for a few years, my iPhone has quickly become my go-to camera. It fits in my pocket and goes with me everywhere I go.

As a result, I've not only been able to document my life with photos of my family, but also capture the little things in life that are too often overlooked--the little things that keep life interesting.

In early July, my love of taking photos with my iPhone resulted in an invitation to write for iPhoneography.com, a blog that focuses on reviewing iPhone photo apps and discussing iPhone photography.

This photo is part of his super-cool iPhoneography set (slideshow). His other sets include ArtPrize 2009 and Nikon D70.

Hop in with Big Bird and cruise over to Matt's Flickriver.

Jacob Bommarito shoots with a Canon Rebel XSI and says he'll be going to the College for Creative Studies for film and video after he graduates.

Be sure to check this out bigger and also have a look at his sets including portraits and scholastic entries (slideshow).

Daryl says that he took this photo in a marshy part of Lake Erie in Monroe County. You can see it and a few other shots on his map and check it out larger in his Colorful Skies slideshow.

His other sets include Barns and Outbuildings and Autumn.

Check out his Flickriver.

buckshot.jones, another fantastic Detroit storyteller writes: "This is Detroit, straight up. Justbeamensch (Donald Jones) has one of the best collections of the odd and funky in the City of Detroit. Take a cruise through his photostream and you gather a sense of the soul of the city."

The photo is part of Donald's Detroit Greeting Cards at the Book Beat set (slideshow) which are available for purchase at The Book Beat in Oak Park (248-968-1190). His other sets include Murals in the City, Flora and State Fair.

Take a ride down his Flickriver.

danenmolly (Molly) is a friend of mine from the real world and her husband Dane is a pilot - hence the rare photo opportunity showing The Whaleback and North Lake Leelanau taken from high above Lake Michigan's Manitou Passage.

Be sure to check this out bigger and you can see more from this flight in her Fishtown - Leland - Good Harbor - Manitou Islands - Leelanau Peninsula set (slideshow). Her other sets include Aerial Photographs and Lake Michigan Sunsets.

Dive into her Flickriver.

Rob the Photog (Rob Gingerich) is a former TV news photographer (and current TV production manager) who loves macro photography. He also says he has a fondness for things covered in dust, rust, cobwebs, etc and that the older he gets, the more he becomes interested in old things.

He invites you to view this photo bigger. His sets include Vacation 2009 (in Manistee),East Lansing Art Fest 2007, MSU Hockey (of Michigan State University's 2006-2007 National Championship hockey team) and My Best (slideshow).

Dive into his Flickriver (where this photo is appropriately first!).

This photo by photofrenzy2000 seemed perfect for the day before Halloween. See it bigger in his slideshow and check out his sets including Robinette's Photowalk 09, Holland Flickr Photo Walk, 2008 Hessell Antique Wooden Boat Show and Michigan Waterfalls (slideshow).

You can also explore his Flickriver.

Just learned that this motel was used as a set in the movie, "Road to Perdition" starring Tom Hanks.

Check this photo from richwyllis out bigger and also have a look at his sets including Moonset at Sunset and HDR Images (slideshow). He also took a recent trip to the UP and got some sweet shots along the Chapel River in the Pictured Rocks.

Jump into his Flickriver.

Even the undead enjoy Michigan apple cider!

A Dubs (Alan) runs the blog Faded Detroit.

His sets include Detroit in Black & White, Faded Detroit: City wide and Tiger Stadium Demolition.

Dive into his Flickriver.

Luminous Light Huntress (Tamara Jacobs) says that she loves landscape photography, especially waterfalls. Also that she's a tree hugger* in a major way and aims to merge her passion for the environment with her love of landscape photography.

Judging by the photo above, she seems to be well on her way. You can see this photo bigger in her incredible Waterfalls set (slideshow). Her other sets include Natural Landscapes, Man Made Scenics, My Favorites and Porcupine Mountains.

Dive into her Flickriver.

*I know that "tree hugger" has become some sort of dirty word or smear, but what in the heck is really wrong with having a deep love and respect for the natural world?

jiant@flickr (Scott Jones) took this photo with a Holga 120 at the Upper Tahquanemon Falls in October of 2006.

He doesn't have any sets, but you can check out his other Holga shots or dive right into his Flickriver.

jmbarclay (Jim Barclay) says he first discovered photography when i was about 7 years old and his father brought home his new 35 mm camera and dark room equipment. He spent many hours watching the images come to life in the chemicals under the glow of the orange bulb.

Check this photo out bigger in his Flint - Michigan slideshow. Also see his other sets including bldg, vintage and up north.

Dive into his Flickriver.

Editor's Note: Today is of course Monday. Some wires got crossed on Friday apparently.

*Squeeg* says that photography is her business and if you live in the West Michigan area and are looking for a photographer to give her a call.

Her sets include Grand Haven and The River (slideshow).

PS: Enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend!

Heightened Senses (Dennis) is from Grand Rapids.

Be sure to check this photo out bigger and check out his sets including 2.27.09 (great winter shots), Kalamazoo Walk and 9.7.2009 Labor Day Weekend (slideshow).

Here's his Flickriver.

susiej35 (Susan Lucas) is a high school art teacher.

Be sure to check her photo out bigger and in her Michigan Fair 2009 set (slideshow). Some of her other sets are Bower's Farm, Belle Isle, TTV and Super hero gets attacked by the giant weimaraner!.

michiganartisan (Robert deJonge) says that he thrives in both the digital and natural worlds, creating images with camera and computer.

Some of his tags are sleeping bear dunes, Petoskey and Michigan (slideshow).

Dive into his Flickriver and see and purchase his work at Robert DeJonge Images.

Welcome to a very special Photo Friday on Absolute Michigan, the 75,000th photo in the Absolute Michigan pool on Flickr!! I can't tell you how amazingly cool it is that so many people have graciously allowed us to use their photos to help tell the stories of Michigan. Thank you, all of you.

[ JARED ] (Jared Fossum) says that photography is a passion of his and he posts photos of anything that he thought was interesting or for a moment made him stop, look, and think about it.

His sets include Fake TTV & Canon S3 IS (slideshow) and while he hails from Minnesota (wherever that is) he has a few more photos from the Upper Peninsula.

Check out his Flickriver.

tbug2 (Tenille) says she's just a girl on the loose with a camera.

Be sure to check this photo from Silver Lake near Traverse City out bigger (a great background for sure!)and her sets including Flora, Fauna, Structures and Landscapes (slideshow).

Check out her Flickriver.

Sets from kmay include home (glen arbor) and naturescape (slideshow).

Check out their Flickriver.

mikesophia is one of tens of thousands of people taking in the 2009 Traverse City Film Festival. He snapped this shot of one of balloon artist Jason Hackenworth's fanciful sea creatures on the opening night of the festival and we're using it today on a brief article about how the festival is bringing inspiration to the lives of youths in our On Location: Traverse City Film Festival coverage.

The photo is part of Mike's Traverse City Film Festival set. His other sets include Birds and Nature (slideshow).

Check out Mike's Flickriver.

See an interview with Jason Hackenworth over on TED.

Sets from Nature's Lens include Animals, Water and Landscapes (slideshow).

Check out his Flickriver.