At last!

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Of the images I create, the ones I love most are often not the ones that get accepted into art shows. The lack of art show-juror interest does not diminish my affection for an image, but it is gratifying when an image that has been passed over a number of times finally gets the recognition I think it deserves. Juror Susan Goetz Zwirn chose Red-wing Flush for a show called “Bold & Free,” sponsored by the Marin Society of Artists in Marin County, CA. It’s a virtual show; you can see it here until June 21. Some might say this…

June: Laccasine Pool

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The Laccasine Pool is one part of the Laccasine National Wildlife Refuge in Cameron Parish, southwest Louisiana. It is a freshwater wetland prepared for auto touring with an elevated gravel road around 16,000 acres of marsh. And it is best to stay in your car! On the day in June 2024 I visited, two rather large ‘gators got into a fight maybe 40 yards from me driving by. What a commotion! It didn’t last long and I don’t think any serious damage was done, but it sure stirred up the birds! For me, of course, birds were the primary reason…

January: Backyard Birds

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Once again, a new year calls me to bravely begin my #YearInReview, namely a pilgrimage through my past year’s photographs to pull out one image a month that helps me tell the story of my photographic year. It takes bravery because I don’t always like what I see and I don’t always have much to choose from! Nevertheless, it has been a valuable exercise, so hear goes. I begin by breaking a rule. For January 2024, I will post multiple photos because I love the diversity of birds I sometimes have in my backyard. January is prime time–especially if there’s…

#Humility #AdventWord

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What is more humble in all creation than the sparrow? When humans are not trying to shoo them away from our feeders for “serious” birds, or otherwise treating them like a nuisance, we tend to pay them little mind. The Bible uses the sparrow to make a point about God’s extravagant attention to even minor, inconsequential details–like sparrows. Sparrows are small, commonplace and nondescript. Or so we think. Until something happens that draws our attention to them in a new way. For me it was the snow and ice storm of February 2021 that grounded dozens of hungry birds in…

Creature Encounters

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I can’t think of much that is more gratifying than an up-close and personal encounter with one of the scores of amazing creatures with which we share this planet. I use hashtags to identify themes in my photography, so go online and search for #CreatureEncounters. You’ll find more of my fave works. Recognize, of course, that when I say “up close,” I am speaking relatively. I never was very close to the osprey and its prey in Angel of Death. But our encounter extended for a 15 to 20 minute period as I followed the bird clutching its prey from…