Square Format (No Cityscapes)
Mount Sneffels and the surrounding area, in southwest Colorado, is one of my favorite places for camping and photography. I was camping there in the late summer of 2022, hoping to get some nice photos of Sneffels, which unfortunately didn't really work out, and I found myself camping next to a whole bunch of bristle thistles, which I just learned is considered a noxious weed in Colorado! Quite a beautiful weed. It seemed that these thistles worked well to attract both honeybees and a bunch of butterflies, specifically aphrodite fritillaries, like the one shown here. They were everywhere! Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48.
I was traveling through the Midwest in the summer of 2021, and decided to do some exploring. A little bit of research led me to Clifty Falls State Park, on the banks of the Ohio River, roughly halfway between Louisville and Cincinnati, but on the Indiana side. The weather wasn't particularly great when I visited, so none of my landscapes turned out particularly interesting, but on my way out of the park, I saw this young cardinal, and spent a few minutes photographing him before he flew away. If you look closely, you'll notice he does not yet have his full adult coat of feathers. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24.
It seems that something like half of the photographers I run into while in Florida tend to show photos of deserted beaches, and egrets with mating-season plumage. I'd wanted to photograph some of these beautiful birds for a few years, and I finally got around to it in the winter of 2021. The best place (for photography, anyway) that I was able to find to photograph these beautiful birds was at the Venice Rookery, in southwest Florida. Great egrets were aggressively hunted in the late nineteenth century to make adornments for ladies hats, but have since then staged a recovery. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36.
It seems that something like half of the photographers I run into while in Florida tend to show photos of deserted beaches, and egrets with mating-season plumage. I'd wanted to photograph some of these beautiful birds for a few years, and I finally got around to it in the winter of 2021. The best place (for photography, anyway) that I was able to find to photograph these beautiful birds was at the Venice Rookery, in southwest Florida. Great egrets were aggressively hunted in the late nineteenth century to make adornments for ladies hats, but have since then staged a recovery. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42.
North Clear Creek Falls Square
North Clear Creek Falls, near Lake City, Colorado, is kind of in the middle of nowhere, and doesn't get many visitors. But it is one of the prettiest waterfalls in Colorado, and it is a one-minute walk from the parking lot to the viewpoint from which I took this photo. Everything around the waterfall is relatively flat, so you'd never know it was there if not for the signs. It's definitely one of my favorite waterfalls, and unquestionably one of the easiest to photograph. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48, 54x54, 60x60.
Not a difficult bird to photograph, but a beautiful one nonetheless. I shot this house finch just outside of Yellowstone National Park in the dead of winter. I have no idea how an animal so small manages to stay warm when the temperatures dip down to negative twenty and colder, but somehow, they manage. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48.
I had one and a half days to spend in Bangkok during my February, 2020 visit to Thailand – one of my favorite countries on the planet. This definitely wasn't enough time, but it also wasn't my first time in this beautiful, but hot and humid city. I spent much of my time simply wandering, eating arguably the best street food on Earth, and visiting temples and other tourist destinations. I'd been to Wat Suthat in 2012, and taken some photos, but when I visited in 2020, I was fortunate enough to have a few opportunities to photograph the temple without people wandering through the frame. In my opinion, this is one of the most challenging aspects of taking photos of popular destinations. Getting a shot without people – oof, it can be tough. But I nailed it here! Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48, 54x54, 60x60.
“The Great Migration” refers to the months-long journey of millions of zebras and wildebeest (and other antelope species) between Kenya and Tanzania. It is truly an amazing event to see. Perhaps the most picturesque example of this migration is when a herd of thousands of animals must cross a crocodile-infested river. The herd will gather at the river bank for hours, until one brave animal strikes out for the other side. I took this photo shortly after a herd of zebras and wildebeest crossed the river I was observing. At least a few animals were taken down by crocodiles, but this little guy was one of the lucky ones who made it across. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42.
When people think of big, scary animals in Africa, things like lions, leopards, and rhinos come immediately to mind. What some people find surprising is that hippos cause more human fatalities in Africa than any other large animal. Males are extremely territorial, and females can become aggressive if they think anyone or anything is trying to come between themselves and their young. They can reach speeds of up to 30 kilometers per hour, too, so good luck outrunning one. They don't look particularly threatening in this photo … in fact, I think they're pretty cute, sleeping like this. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48.
Murchison Falls, shown here, was not the highlight of my visit to Murchison Falls National Park, in western Uganda. The real highlight, for me anyway, was all the spectacular wildlife that inhabits the area. The falls, themselves, were impressive, though. According to Wikipedia, roughly 300 cubic meters of water (roughly 80,000 gallons) flow through a gorge only thirty feet wide every second. And standing near them, the sound is deafening. As an interesting bit of trivia, Ernest Hemmingway crashed a plane just downriver of the Falls in 1954. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48, 54x54, 60x60
“The Wave,” in northern Arizona, was made famous by a Windows XP wallpaper many years ago. It subsequently became famous enough that, in order to keep the wilderness wild, the Bureau of Land Management decided to allow access to only twenty people per day, decided by a lottery. I'd wanted to visit “The Wave” for several years before I finally won a ticket to visit in late January, 2019. The entire region is spectacular, filled with otherworldly geologic formations and beautiful rocks in shades of pink, orange, red, and yellow. The “famous” view of the wave is taken by continuing down this canyon, and turning to the right. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48.
I arrived in Churchill on October 29, 2018, and had a relaxing, do-nothing day before meeting my tour group on the morning of the 30th. From there, we spent almost every moment of daylight driving around near Churchill – the “Polar Bear Capitol of the World” - searching for bears. This was the first one I saw. I love the composition I was able to get here, with the blue sky above and the icy-cold waters of Hudson Bay contrasted beautifully with the gray rocks, white snow, and, of course, the bear walking into the frame. Available in the following sizes (Rectangle B): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36.
I've spent quite a bit of time in Canada – known for moose – but to this day, I think portions of the Rocky Mountains remain the best spot I've found for seeing and photographing moose. I found this young bull moose while out photographing the aspen trees near Crested Butte in the fall. I spent an hour or so watching him wade through the meandering rivers and ponds in the area, and although it looks in this photo that he might be considering charging me, I never actually found his behavior to be at all aggressive. I made sure to keep my distance, and had a great time photographing him. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48.
Vernal Falls is another Yosemite icon, but it is one that actually requires a bit of a hike to reach. I was lucky to have the weather I did for this hike, because the sunlight was powerful enough to create the rainbow made by the mist generated by Vernal Falls' 318 foot drop. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48, 54x54, 60x60.
Small birds are notoriously difficult to photograph. Even with an enormous lens, small birds are still small, and therefore one must be quite close to them in order to capture any detail. Fortunately, the Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, outside of Naples, Florida, has several bird feeders set up near boardwalks that are intended to draw painted buntings to them. There was one point where I saw five of the males (this is a male, the females are drab by comparison) all hanging out by the feeder. I didn't even know this type of bird existed the day before I took this photo, but now that I've seen a few, I have to concur with the bird watching community, that seems to be in agreement that this is one of the most beautiful birds in America. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30.
The American Bald Eagle Foundation in Haines, Alaska, is set up to educate people about an American icon – the bald eagle. It was here that I took this spectacular photo of an adolescent bald eagle's head. Notice the white head isn't entirely white. This is because the eagle is young. They are born entirely brown, and their heads and tail feathers only turn white at five or six years of age. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24.
Arizona's Antelope Canyon has become overwhelmingly popular for photographers in recent years. Fortunately, there are several less popular slot canyons in the same area that offer similar experiences. I took this photo in nearby Mountain Sheep Canyon. The colors of the canyon walls become incredibly vibrant when hit by direct sun, and this vibrancy contrasts beautifully with the portions of the wall that lie in the shade. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30, 36x36, 42x42, 48x48.
One would never guess that there are two countries visible in this picture of Santa Elena Canyon. The Rio Grande River, visible in the bottom center, defines the US – Mexico border, so the sunrise-lit canyon walls on the right of the photo are part of Texas, while those on the left belong to Mexico. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30.
I saw this great blue heron perched on a rock in a bay near the village of Glen Margaret, in Nova Scotia, and tried to sneak up on him to get some close up shots. Unfortunately, he saw me coming, and took off before I was able to get as close as I'd hoped. However, he flew off directly over the bay, and I really liked the seemingly endless water horizon. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24.
There are a lot of ungulates (hooved animals) in Africa, but the impala is, with the obvious exception of the giraffe, the most famous. The horns on these animals are spectacular. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24.
I came across two sleeping lionesses in Masai Mara National Reserve, and I was able to convince my driver to stick around for what must have been close to an hour, before one of them finally woke up long enough to let out a big yawn. Immediately afterwards, she went right back to sleep. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30
The time and money I had set aside for my travels in Mongolia in 2015 allowed me to see some wonderful, beautiful places, and have some unique experiences. Unfortunately, it didn't allow me to see the Gobi Desert. I suppose if I look at this from a “glass half-full” standpoint, it provides me a good reason to return. But I did want to see something that would give me some idea what life would be like in the Gobi, so I visited the “Mini Gobi” in Khogno Khan Uul Nature Reserve, shown here. I've seen and walked across sand dunes in California, New Mexico, Utah, Chile, and my home state of Colroado, but I don't know that I've ever photographed them with quite as “perfect” a sky as in this photo. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30.
A well-lit, meditating Buddha statue at Gwaneumsa Temple, in Jeju, South Korea. The statues shown in the preceding photograph, “Stadium of Statues,” surround this sculpture. Available in the following sizes (Square): 10x10, 12x12, 16x16, 20x20, 24x24, 30x30.
