New gallery: Florida Wildlife!
New Florida Wildlife Gallery is Live!
Documenting the wildlife quickly became an integral part of my winter trip, so I’m excited to share some of my favorite photos with you. The new collection is can be viewed here or by navigating to my galleries page. Prints are available using the button at the bottom of the gallery. I hope you enjoy the images as much I enjoyed capturing them. Let me know what you think…I would love to hear from you!
Red Shouldered Hawk at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve.
Crocodile!
Crocodiles in Everglades National Park
Wow, it has been an amazing couple of weeks. Southern Florida does not disappoint! I’ve been enjoying photographing the wildlife on this trip. It is challenging - you have to react and adapt quickly to achieve focus and composition…so much to learn. This past weekend I was in Everglades National Park. It is an interesting place…you see the landscape transform the further you drive into the park as it transitions from the pine lands into the sloughs and Florida Keys. On Sunday I snagged a spot on the free ranger-led kayak tour up the Buttonwood Canal. I didn’t do much research for this trip, so I had no idea I was going to see crocodiles. We saw three as we paddled up the canal - how exciting! The highlight of the tour was seeing this three month old croc basking in the afternoon sun at the water’s edge. I’m so grateful to have witnessed this moment! It was difficult to keep control of the kayak and photograph at the same time while maintaining a safe distance to not disturb them. This was taken with my 400mm zoom lens with the extender attached. Enjoy!
Kissimmee
Night Sky at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve, Florida
I arrived at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park yesterday evening. It reminds me of being out west… the remoteness, big open skies with patches of trees scattered about, except instead of aspens and sage brush its palm trees and saw palmetto plants. It is a dark sky site and they have red light only areas and red lights on the buildings to reduce light pollution. I wish every state park did that! It was refreshing to see the night sky in such detail, and you could tell the dark sky rules made a big difference. Here are a few quick first impressions from yesterday. I look forward to exploring the trails and sky over the next couple of days!
St. Augustine Part 2
Sunrise at St. Augustine, Florida
I mentioned in my last post that I witnessed a beautiful sunrise at Anastasia State Park. Here are a few photos from that morning. I’m so glad I went…I almost slept in.
St. Augustine
I just arrived to St, Augustine, Florida after spending some time in the north Georgia mountains. The warm temperatures, kind people, and beautiful water is very welcoming. I am grateful to be here in this place. Here are a few quick snaps from my beach walk yesterday after setting up camp. Hope to share more as I had a fruitful morning photographing sunrise. Lots to see and do over the next couple of days!
Holden Beach, NC
Holden Beach photography
I started the new year off with a little winter camping trip. The first stop was North Carolina to go fossil hunting. I camped next to the beach for three nights and enjoyed many peaceful walks, and a couple of late night fossil hunts at low tide too! I never looked for shark teeth at night with a headlamp before. You can see more and less at the same time…it was an exciting experience. About a mile and half down the beach there was a huge deposit of shells, where I about found 6 crow shark teeth, and a mosasaurus tooth! I also collected many sea biscuits. They were so fun to find. Here are a handful of photos. Enjoy!
Sentinels
Botany Bay, South Carolina Sunset
I’ve always thought of myself as a “mountain person”. If there was anywhere I could be it was hiking up a summit or deep in a valley along a river. I was drawn to the physical challenge of it and the potential reward of a nice view from above away from the noise of the city. The solitude, the excitement of unexpected weather..the mountains are a remarkable place to be that I hold dear in my heart.
Recently I discovered I am not a mountain person, I am just a person. My time exploring some of the coastal regions in NC and SC these past two weeks has opened my eyes to appreciate what is around me more. Surely we all have preferences, but it’s important to keep an open mind and be receptive to new experiences. Getting out of your comfort zone allows you to discover more about yourself, transforming what you previously viewed as flat and boring into sublime. I strive to be more like these trees on the beach…grateful and at peace wherever life takes me. I look forward to more time spent with the ocean.