Distant Shores is a visual and musical journey along the Great Lakes of Superior and Michigan. The beauty of these inland seas, which comprise North America 's Midwest Coast, is legendary and has inspired artists. writers and poets for centuries.

Richard Olsenius compiled this portfolio of images along with his wife Christine’s writing, while on assignment for National Geographic Magazine. Traveling 4,000 miles along the shores of Lakes Michigan and Superior, he has captured the strength and endurance of the people and landscape of the region.

In Distant Shores. Olsenius also combines photography with his lifelong love of music by composing and performing eleven instrumental passages which evoke the many moods of these lakes. "So much of what I feel when I'm photographing and meeting people finds its expression in music," says Olsenius. "From the very beginning, photography and music merged for me. They were different languages for communicating the same feeling ."

This blending of photography and music provides a sensitive visual-soundscape of the lakes, the land and the people. It is a unique portfolio which resonates with the spirit of these Great Lakes.