Needing Some Warm Weather Thoughts

This morning in Iowa City, we woke up to an actual temperature of -9 degrees F. This whole week, it’s going to struggle to reach 10F. So, maybe you’re chilled to the bone and need a hint of a summer breeze or the sight of some bumblebees. I aim to please.

Happy Places

Do you have a happy place? I have several. But few have the impact on me like Dream Lake does. It’s a mile long hike to get there and worth every huff and puff of the thin oxygen available. Sometimes it’s good to have those happy places available vividly in your memory when you need…

Rocky Mountain High

I find myself often times needing the mountains. The fresh air. The quiet winds in the most rugged of terrain. The spectacular views. The distant bark of a marmot. The void of humankind. The wonder of it all. Thank you, God, for cameras. And all the above.

Caption This

I’ll go first. “Shall we grab some sushi?” Now, you go.

Checking in…

I haven’t posted in ages. So long ago, that I had to teach myself all over again how to make one. And, what’s that rounded corner photo option? Neat. I’m still here, out in the wild exploring nature, making the most of Iowa winters. I’ve learned that the bald eagle’s families have some of the…

Backyard Long Lens Photography

A few weeks ago I purchased a new Nikon D500 body for shooting the upcoming college football season and I’ve been getting myself in practice so that I’m ready to go, just like the players are doing now.  I won’t go into technical details about how the camera functions because I’m not very smart, but…

Sorry to bug you…

…but I got some new gear and I’m pretty happy with the first photograph it made. Special thanks to the fly for the nifty pose. Man, I can’t wait for college football season to use all those focal points and 10 frames per second.

Magpie, not to be at all confused with Moonpie

Last fall we took a week long getaway to Rocky Mountain National Park because we wanted to see the Aspens change to gold and the incredible elk rut. You won’t see any of that on this post, however. Ha! Last night as I was hungry (what else is new) and shuffling thru endless electronic file…

Why Iowa has Winter

It’s tough to live in a cold winter climate. But, when you do, the only thing you can really do is embrace it. I do that by heading outdoors with my camera and long lens and go hunting for bald eagles fishing on the partially unfrozen waterways of Iowa. I went to Iowa City this weekend…

New Life

I haven’t posted to this blog in nearly a full year. I think its time to resurrect this space.  I’ve been busy shooting, but you’d never know it by the looks of it here. So, here it goes.  Restart. Sort of a “new life”, or a rebirth if you will. I can’t think of a…

Derecho storm

Yesterday in Cedar Rapids, IA we witnessed a massive, destructive thunderstorm known as a “derecho”. These are severe thunderstorms that are sustained traveling very long distances, pack winds in excessive of 80 mph, and are accompanied by torrential rains and hail. I watched the storm approach us. The lead cloud structure had a very recognizable bow,…

Blood Moon 2

Here is another shot I was able to snap of the Lunar Eclipse tonight. This one shows more of the brilliant red color. The sky was perfectly clear here in Iowa tonight, however it was very cold in the low 20s F. Apparently we are in store for 3 more of these events over the…