For decades, Robert DeJonge has returned to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore with a camera in hand.
But for his newest book, “While the Bear Was Sleeping: How the Beauty of The Bear Awakened My Imagination,” the landscape was no longer just something to capture; it was something to reinterpret.
“This book is more about imagination and kind of a dream world,” DeJonge said.
The collection marks a shift from his earlier work, which focused more directly on documenting the region’s natural beauty. This time, the images are more interpretive, blending photography with digital techniques and artistic influence. DeJonge transforms and distorts familiar scenes through the eye of his imagination to create images that expand our understanding of the world around us.
“I’m not a documentary photographer… I’m an artistic photographer,” he said. “I take some liberties with my images.”
That shift in approach is visible throughout the book, where recognizable landscapes of dunes, forests, and shoreline are pushed beyond expectations. Some images remain grounded in realism, while others take on surreal or impressionistic qualities, reflecting a more open exploration of place rather than strict documentation.
For DeJonge, that creative freedom is central to his work.
“I like to document my imagination,” he said.
That imagination is deeply tied to a lifelong connection with the region. He has been visiting Leelanau since childhood, first traveling north from Grand Rapids when he was about 10-years-old.
What began as family trips eventually became a long-standing creative relationship with the landscape. Even now, after decades of return visits, DeJonge says the area continues to offer new inspiration.
Part of what makes the region so enticing for him is its variety. Beyond the dunes themselves, he is drawn to wetlands, rivers, historic structures, and lesser-known corners of the park that continue to reveal new perspectives with each visit.
That sense of discovery carries into the book’s visual language, where images are sometimes planned carefully and others emerge over time through experimentation. DeJonge said his process often involves revisiting work later and seeing new possibilities within it.
“Sometimes it’s just serendipitous,” he said.
In some cases, that experimentation includes combining multiple images or drawing from unexpected influences. One image in particular, titled “Dali Wood”, was inspired by the surrealist style of Salvador Dalí after he noticed similarities in the landscape itself.
“When I took the image… the first thought that came to my mind is, this is like a Salvador Dali,” he said.
Ultimately, “While the Bear Was Sleeping” is less about showing readers what Sleeping Bear Dunes looks like and is more about encouraging them to experience it differently. DeJonge hopes the work inspires people to slow down and pay closer attention to the world around them.
“I like people to be good observers,” he said. “It’s amazing how many things start to attract your attention if you just… take the time.”
“While the Bear Was Sleeping: How the Beauty of The Bear Awakened my Imagination” is available to purchase at local book stores across the county, Traverse City, and Frankfort. Copies can also be bought at Synchronicity Gallery in Glen Arbor alongside DeJonge’s other works.
Doug Verellen
When Doug Verellen first set out to write a children’s book, it wasn’t with publishing in mind.
“It was sort of something I just felt compelled to write,” he said.
Verellen’s literary debut became “Sugar Bear and the Sleeping Bear Mystery,” a children’s story set in the woods, dunes, and shoreline of Northern Michigan, where a curious young dog sets out to solve a lingering question about the legendary Sleeping Bear. Along the way, she moves through familiar natural spaces, meeting a range of woodland creatures who each play a role in helping her better understand the mystery at the heart of the story.
At its foundation, the book is a love letter to the beauty of Sleeping Bear Dunes and his real life dog.
The real life Sugar Bear came to Verellen through his wife, to whom the book is dedicated.
“When that dog came to me, I did not want a dog,” he explained. “My wife insisted and went and got the dog anyway.”
Verellen ended up falling in love with Sugar Bear, and she has remained a constant joy and comfort in his life since his wife’s passing.
“The dog is like such a beautiful creature. She has no menace, no ferocity, she just loves people,” he said.
That sense of affection and gregariousness carries through the book’s tone, while aimed at young readers, is intended to be experienced together.
“It was designed for having a child on your lap,” Verellen said.
In that same spirit, several of the animal characters are based on his children, incorporating their personalities into the narrative through playful names and roles in the forest community.
“I kind of wrote it for my family, really,” he reflected.
The illustrations were done by local artist Jim Moore, who was introduced to Verellen through a neighbor. Both came to the project as novices in the publishing world and built the book together, refining both the story and the pictures over months of collaboration.
“He would draw a picture, send it to me, and I’d say, ‘That’s perfect,’ or… ‘I sort of pictured it being a little bit like this,’” Verellen explained.
Once completed, Verellen chose to self-publish the book and donated copies to pediatricians’ offices and libraries.
“I didn’t do it to make money,” Verellen said. “It was more like just a labor of love.”
“Sugar Bear and the Sleeping Bear Mystery” is also available for purchase at local book stores throughout the county and online.
