A family reunion over Thanksgiving in Monterey, California presented a wonderful opportunity to finally visit and photograph one of the country’s most awe inspiring sites, Yosemite National Park. Loaded down with photo gear, my family and I flew out to San Francisco and after two days sightseeing, and a morning in the Muir Woods National Monument just north of San Francisco, we headed east toward the Sierra Nevada’s and Yosemite hoping for a autumn snowstorm to hold off long enough to get in and out of the park. 

Many years ago, I discovered an area on the shores of Lake Superior on my way to the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness area.  Having never encountered another person here, I sort of clamed it as my spot. It is just a short walk, maybe a quarter of a mile down an incline to the shore. ....

 

New Jersey is a state of great diversity which is often overlooked for its amazing wildlife and nature areas.  The close proximity of mountains, swamps, lakes and seashore brings together a wide variety of wildlife and vistas.

The alarm sounded at 5 am that Sunday morning. As I got up, I could hear the wind driving the rain against the motel room window. I opened the door to see the entire parking lot alive with dancing water drops. I thought to myself –– This is perfect!

Before beginning each hike, my mother puts her hands together at the trailhead, and prays for a fun, enjoyable, and safe hike for the family. She always states that we are just visitors, and kindly asks the mountains to let us pass through. She would then bow and begin the hike.

Maine often conjures images of harsh indestructible cliffs bracing against vociferous waves: waves pressing ever forward along the rocks and exploding into a shroud of water.  But there is another Maine. A Maine of gentle bays and coves inhabited by small fishing villages.

Like many nature photographers, autumn is my favorite season to enjoy the outdoors and hopefully get some quality fall photos as well. As summer comes to a close and the days get shorter, I anxiously await those first few trees to display their glory. More and more, as the days pass, the landscape begins to dance with vibrant reds, yellows, and golds. However, it seems that no sooner do I get into my autumn groove than it’s all over. 

One of the main reasons that I enjoy landscape and nature photography is that it is my time to reflect and savor the solitude. This can be a difficult task as one visits the popular photogenic sites and seeks to bring home some of those iconic images from the precious jewels across our country.  The obvious way to avoid crowds at our beautiful national parks is to visit in the off-season with respect to tourists.

A trip to Africa for the average person can seem a dream come true or an adventure. Trips to Africa depending on what part of that United States you come from may add a bit to the air fare but not to the African Trip itself. As a single person it is sometimes a bit more expensive but when you weigh the experiences you find it is all worth it.

National Park located in central California, to me, is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. Yosemite National Park changes with every visit and I seem to discover something new to capture on film. Each season depicts the wondrous formations and waterfalls in completely different ways.

Since I was a child, have been always longed for visiting Madagascar. I got this “fatal attraction” because in my father’s encyclopedia there were stunning pictures of marvelous frogs, chameleons and lizards from Madagascar.

We can barely hear each other over the cacophony of screeching seabirds as we carry our field equipment along the precipice of a towering sandstone cliff, hundreds of feet above the pounding surge of the frigid North Atlantic. Several days of severe weather has destroyed countless nests, and today’s sun-filled sky, which would normally be placid in mid-July is instead filled with thousands of airborne seabirds, busily rebuilding what they have lost.

A Sioux legend tells of a woman who brought them the red stone pipe and taught them to smoke the pipe in the name of peace. The pipe was sacred and still is the center of Sioux spirituality. Pipestone National Monument, a “living monument,” was created to protect the quarries where the indigenous people still mine the red stone to make their sacred pipes.

Native Americans called the flower Quamash. Some people called the flower Indian Hyacinth or Indigo Squill; but most people have adopted the name Camas, which was derived from the genus and species name Camassia Quamash. I just called it—that cool looking purple flower.

Tucked away among primordial swampland and the ubiquitous southern mossy oak trees lies Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, a veritable photographer's haven some 20 miles north of Charleston, SC. With its 500 acres of varied flora and fauna, including some 254 migrating and year-round bird species, Magnolia has become one of my favorite destinations due to boundless photographic opportunities in a picture-perfect setting replete with southern charm.

With 15,000 species of plants, 1,000 species of birds and 200 mammal species, the Manu Rainforest holds the distinction of being the most biologically diverse place on Earth.

The beauty we behold and the wealth of wildlife and fauna in our daily lives are a photographer’s dream come true.

The beauty we behold and the wealth of wildlife and fauna in our daily lives are a photographer’s dream come true.

The Captivating and delicate beauty of nature inspires my passion for nature photography. I have traveled to many places to photograph and have always returned home with great satisfaction.

If you are a nature photographer or astrophotographer, as I am, and you really want to capture some nice magic hour “light” then Cape Cod, Massachusetts, is where you want to be.