Winter Water Wonderland

Sam@10

Sleepy

In his favorite bed.

From 2007...

I found this pic from last year. It was taken with my D200 and my Nikkor 300mm/f4. I miss that lens, I might have to get another one.

North Carolina OuterBanks

Wild horse feeding on beach grass. Yes, there are wild horses that roam in a certain areas of the OuterBanks. Sadly, they are slowly disappearing.

R&R

Spending a relaxing day in the sun, until the UPS man arrives.

My New Camera Has Arrived...(Nikon D90)

I love the ability of this camera to shoot in low light. I was actually shooting in ISO 6400 yesterday! The photo of Gus here was shot in ISO 1600. The other cool feature on the D90 is the ability to shoot in HD video. I believe this the first DSLR to have this feature. The video clip here was shot in 720p but I had to scale it to web dimensions to post here.

Happy Halloween!!

The Final Photograph...

...with my D200! I just sold the camera on Ebay, and I will be shipping it to the buyer later today.

I took this pic of Gus this morning on my front lawn.

South Carolina Gator

Savannah II

Historic Savannah, Georgia

Gus is back home

I picked him at the hospital last night. He seems to be ok, just a little lethargic. It's been a harrowing 2 days for him. The vet told me last night that by taking him in right away probably saved his life. Gus is now taking medicine called Sulcrafate every 8 hours, and he is on a bland diet for 5 days or so.

Sitting in the Animal Hospital emergency room was a eye opening experience for me. Gus's poisoning was serious enough, but some others were worse. I recall a frantic mother and daughter racing in holding a small white dog that had just been hit by a car. You could hear the dog wailing in the back in one of the exam rooms. It was heart breaking to learn that the poor dog didn't make it. There was a Chocolate Lab that had swallowed a treble fish hook, which required emergency surgery. There was a beautiful boxer named Max who was bit by something that caused a horrible rash to break out over his entire body. He was laying on the ground just moaning. And there was my little buddy Gus, shaking and throwing up chocolate all over me and the waiting room floor. Bonds were formed with the pet owners from all walks of life during the brief time there. People held Gus for me while I attempted to clean up his mess. We were all genuinely concerned for each others situation.

Gus Today

I'm Still Alive

The Eagle Has Landed

I went to the local zoo this morning and took about 150 pics of the bald eagles. I learn something new every time I go out and shoot. This time, I learned that shots set up on a tripod with a remote shutter are much sharper than pressing the shutter yourself. Actually, I knew this already but it is especially true with wildlife that don't move very much. Already, I want to get back and try again. I think I can do better next time. There are literally thousands of great eagle photos out there, but I always wanted to take one for myself.

Gus This Morning

Playful and demanding of my full attention as usual. You may notice the black spot on his back. It seems that he lost some fur in that area for some reason. Normally I might be inclined to rush him to the vet for this, but he seems fine. His appetite is good and he's as wild as ever. I'll continue to monitor it.

Rocky raccoon checked into his room...

..only to find an empty feeder.

I had a serious raccoon problem a little while ago. It turns out that one of my neighbors was feeding them. This little guy ended up destroying two of my feeders. I tried every humane way to get rid of him, but nothing worked. He finally just quit coming around. This is why I never let Gus out on the deck at night.


NOTE: I corrected the heading on this post to reflect the correct lyrics from the Beatles song. jn

Not So Menacing

Unfortunately, you rarely have the opportunity to get very close to Herons in Michigan. It's not that hard in Florida. No wonder so many of the greatest bird photographers are based in Florida

Menacing

A little too close for comfort on this one.

Grand Canyon 2007

Saugatuck State Park

The pic here is from a few years back. It was taken on the West Michigan shore near Saugatuck. That's Sam, my step-grandson.

I just flipped my Terra Trike

I took a corner too sharp today and damaged the right front wheel. Fortunately I was still able to ride afterward. I was unhurt except a little gravel in the hand. I may have to replace the wheel this week.

Surfin' USA

Kauai 2006 -

On a few occasions, I would get up early and walk down to the shore near Poipu beach and watch the kids surf.

My Very First Photograph

This was taken in the fall of 1984. I had just traded my top loading Quasar VCR for a Mamiya MX1000 SLR and a slew of lenses, bag, etc. I grew to love this camera because of the exceptional results and the fact that it was 100% manual. Unfortunately the camera and equipment were stolen a couple of years later.

Young Gus

I forgot about Missouri

The Arch - circa 2003

The Tally So Far...

I have been asked recently about how many states have I completed so far. So to set the record straight, here is the list to date:

(random order)

Michigan - Naturally this is where I live.

Indiana - Just completed this trip

Oklahoma - I used to live here so I have a few pics to choose from

Florida - After lots of trips to Orlando, I finally saw the rest of the state.

Hawaii - I was here in 2006 - great scenery

Nebraska - I make an annual trip for the Sandhill Crane migration

North Carolina - 2007 trip to the OuterBanks

Arizona - 2007 trip to the Grand Canyon

Nevada - I spent a week there last summer, it was very hot.

There are a couple of states on this list that I haven't posted photos of yet - I will get to them soon.

Progress is a little slow at the moment, but I will be adding a few more Midwestern states this summer. I have an upcoming trip planned for this fall at Hilton Head, South Carolina. I hope to have a chance to trek down to Georgia during that time. There are also tentative plans for a trip out west next spring perhaps in Colorado or Montana.

To help alleviate some of the fuel costs, I have purchased a scooter to drive back and forth to work. (weather permitting) More on this later...

So Many Photos, So Little Time

I have dozens of decent photos from my recent Florida trip to choose from. It was certainly a successful trip. Unfortunately it is now time for me to go back to work on my "real" job. In the coming days I will continue to post Florida photos as I get through them.

Also - I am re-thinking my current strategy regarding this blog and how I will continue to attempt achieving the goal of a photo in every state.

Private Beach Heaven

The "Resident's Beach" is a private owner's only beach entrance across the street from the condo where I stayed. 

Good-bye Marco

It's been real.

Marco Beach

Everglades Gator

Marco Sunrise

Marco Lightning (almost)

I have a new goal down here before I leave. I want to take a photo of a lightning strike. I almost succeeded in this photo. I pressed the shutter just a split second too late. I went for a nice bike ride yesterday morning around the island. This morning when I go, I'm taking my camera with me.

Kauai 2006

On the road to the Waimea Canyon.

Michigan Black Bear

There are around 10 - 15,000 estimated black bear in Michigan according to the DNR. While most bear reside in the U.P. , there are increasing sightings in lower Michigan as far south as Grand Rapids. This particular bear was photographed in the Central U.P in 2007. The first time I encountered a bear many years ago in the U.P., I completely froze and my legs felt like they had lead in them. I was halfway across a railroad trestle, and I couldn't move for several minutes. Luckily the bear was just as afraid of me. Black bear attacks on humans are extremely rare, and there is not a reason to panic if you see one.

Outerbanks North Carolina 2007

I spent a week in the Outerbanks last fall. The photo here is looking north from Pea Island.

More Song Birds From The Archives...

Backyard Birds

While I'm in the midst of another 84 hour third shift, I can pass some time by posting pics that I have taken of song birds off my back deck. I have a pretty good setup - I have placed various feeders and perches in the back and I sit inside with my camera on a tripod hidden behind curtains. You need a lot of patience for this but it pays off with a few good shots.

Tahquanemon Falls

Can you tell that I love the U.P. ?

Windy Day In Marquette

My Little Gus

Gus is my three year old Toy Poodle. The image many people (including myself) have of poodles is they are kind of wimps. I beg to differ- Gus's middle name is "Wolfbane". You should see him violently shake his doggy toys when we play fetch. Granted, he's no watch dog (he loves everybody!), but if he were 70lbs instead of 7; I might actually be a little afraid of him.

I just bought a Terra Trike

A Zoomer Elite to be precise. Wiz Wheels (wizwheelz.com) is a local bike manufacturer right here in Grand Rapids that makes some amazing Trikes (3 wheel recumbents) tadpole style. The tadpole style is the two wheels in front and one in back. I visited the showroom yesterday and test drove a couple of bikes. I was blown away. It's kind of like driving a go-cart. The really cool thing is that these bikes are built to order - mine will be ready in one week. I can't wait. Even though Wiz Wheelz is a local company, the bulk of their orders are from elsewhere. I'm told that they sell very little local. It kind of makes sense because they don't advertise locally at all. When I start riding, I'm sure I'll get a lot of stares. I've ridden recumbents for years and it's still a rare site to see somebody else riding a "bent" on the trails.

Coming At Ya

Sunset on the Platte River in Nebraska

Elm Island Drive, Gibbon Nebraska

As I'm going through the 600+ images, I'm probably discarding around 80%. That may sound like a lot, but that's pretty typical. Most of the photos that end up in file #13 are repeats and are not sharp enough. As a general rule, you try to focus on the subjects eyes. If I can't see their eyes very clearly, then I throw it out. With cranes, it's very difficult, because their head is so small, and they are always moving.

Thursday AM (from an undisclosed location)

Well season two of my now annual Roe Sanctuary trip is in the books. What have I learned? You can still run out of space on a 8GB CF card. I thought something was wrong with my camera, it took me a few minutes to realize that there was no more space on the card. Unfortunately, it came at the worst time- when all the cranes decided to leave at once. There were definitely more birds this year. In fact, one of the locals said this year was the best for crane viewing in 10 years! It will take me awhile to sort through the photos, but here is the first of many.

Nebraska Mid-Day Report

Weather is perfect- yesterday was a bit warm for this time of year, but today is more norm. (high 50's during the day- 30's at night) Just driving around country roads and corn fields- this is what you see. The locals are so used to this, that it hardly fazes them. To us out of towners, this is a sight to behold. Can't wait until tonight and tomorrow morning.