Nick's Picks - Chasing The Image

Enchanted Ibises

2010-12-22T02:32:00.000Z

On my way to the YMCA I spot a flock of hungry Ibises moving across a field toward water's edge. I park and sprint to head them off; then just hid and held my breath. On they came into the blinding reflection, oblivious to all that wasn't food. Luckily, my camera saw what my eyes couldn't stand to see directly.

White Ibis

2010-12-22T02:21:00.000Z

Classic downcurved beak (for probing) and clear blue eyes hallmark the White Ibis.

Ibises Feeding on Sunlight

2010-12-22T02:17:00.000Z

A cool Winter day in Northern Florida at the edge of a pond and blinding sunlight reflects off the water. It didn't bother the hungry Ibises, so I decided to not let it bother me.

Time flowing out of Rainbow Springs

2010-05-12T01:33:00.000Z

Shadow of Death

2010-04-24T19:08:00.000Z

Almost regal...

Turkey Vulture at Silver Glen

2010-04-24T18:20:00.000Z

I guess the Turkey Vulture deserves equal time with his black cousin, although I find him far less attractive. Both are well designed for how they make a living. The "bald" head is an adaptation to prevent microbes in carrion from finding a place to anchor themselves. A magnificent adaptation from the point of view of evolution.

Black Vulture at Silver Glen

2010-04-24T17:36:00.000Z

Black and Turkey Vultures are as common as pigeons in many of Florida's State Parks, but resist the urge to feed them! :)

Otsego Lake Cooperstown, NY

2010-03-04T19:28:00.001Z

Web In The Mist

2008-11-04T01:23:00.000Z

The tail-end of an early morning fog leaves these entangled orbs of light.

Clover Dance

2008-10-27T14:38:00.000Z

Your's Truly

2008-10-27T14:34:00.000Z

Fall Chipmunk on Block

2008-10-27T14:25:00.000Z

Sunprint on the Pond

2008-09-20T21:10:00.000Z

Feather on Seaweed

2008-09-08T21:14:00.000Z

A seagull left this gift behind after I took her picture.

Brine Creatures

2008-09-06T02:31:00.000Z

Animals the size of a grain of rice feeding in a tide pool.

Okra Flowering

2008-08-27T21:38:00.000Z

This is an okra flower. Some people plant them just for decoration.
Japanese beetles prefer the delicate flowers to the "gumbo" pods.

Garden Veg

2008-08-10T15:08:00.000Z

Trying something different: A black and white still life of a pile of veg I just brought in from our three gardens.

Beaver Munching Above the Waterline

2008-08-10T15:00:00.000Z

Mating Boudoir

2008-08-10T14:57:00.000Z

Monarchs Mating

2008-08-10T14:54:00.000Z

Collage: Monarch and Kingdom

2008-08-10T14:50:00.000Z

Colombia River Gorge

2008-05-27T18:04:00.000Z

Greying Black Timber Wolf

2008-04-02T15:13:00.000Z

This wolf travels to schools and get togethers all over New Mexico. He wanted to give us a friendly lick!

Stealth Ravens

2008-04-02T15:07:00.000Z

Find two ravens, coming in for a landing...

Moving In

2008-02-12T00:23:00.000Z

As I approach this gator and heron, you can bet it's not the heron I'm concentrating on...

Close Enough

2008-02-12T00:19:00.000Z

This is about as close as I want to get to these big guys. During the many times I've done this kind of shot, I've never had an alligator show any aggression and many hav fled. I don't discount the possibility of a first time, however, and keep my paddle ready!

Don't Turn Around

2008-02-12T00:12:00.000Z

This is my favorite view for closups of alligators!

Tough Life

2008-02-12T00:08:00.000Z

This juvenile might be reflecting about the burden of having a tumor on the side of his face. These monkeys are wild and catching them to treat illness is all but impossible.

Quality Time

2008-02-11T23:32:00.000Z

Wild rhesus monkeys along the Silver River have lived there since a few escaped decades ago.

Gator In Waiting

2007-12-30T02:58:00.000Z

Fretillary

2007-12-30T02:55:00.000Z

Buckeye

2007-12-30T02:52:00.000Z

Tree Frog

2007-12-30T02:43:00.000Z

E Pluribus Unum

2007-12-29T19:32:00.000Z

Anole Lizard

2007-12-29T19:24:00.000Z

The white, ragged area around the face reveals that this lizard has recently shed its skin.

Anole Lizard on Screening

2007-12-29T19:19:00.000Z

I never get tired of watching these perky reptiles hunting and feeding on small insects on my screened porch.

Nightmares

2007-12-24T02:59:00.000Z

Exotic Visitor

2007-11-26T03:02:00.000Z

(See following image).

Sand Hill Crane

2007-11-26T02:59:00.000Z

I guess this endangered bird decided that my neighbor's lakefront was a good place to wait out the extinction threat. He rejoins the flock now and then, but always returns... so far. Live long and prosper!

Walled In Woman

2007-11-23T02:51:00.000Z

Collage of various archived elements. Done entirely with Picassa.

White-Breasted Nuthatch

2007-11-14T19:10:00.000Z

Thinking about food

2007-11-14T19:08:00.000Z

This Chick-a-Dee seemed to reflect a long time before finally deciding to flit down to the feeeder (next image).

Chick-a-Dee with Sunflower Seed

2007-11-14T19:03:00.000Z

These guys can afford to be fussy at the feeder. He finally found the one he wanted!

Nuclear Fusion, Through Evening Woods

2007-11-14T18:58:00.000Z

The greatest show on Earth or any of the planets: The ongoing explosion of Gaia's personal
furnace. Eight light minutes away. Billions of years in the making. Father and mother to us all...

San Diego Zoo

2007-10-25T01:14:00.000Z

"Here's lookin' at you, kid!"

Ode to Joy

2007-10-06T02:19:00.000Z

Super Dreaming

2007-09-04T01:14:00.000Z

A departure from my usual fare, this collage was created using only Picassa. Thank you, Google... for so many treasures!

Waxwing Among Wild Cherries

2007-08-23T00:26:00.000Z

Its strange voice, exotic coloring, and acrobatic flight make the Cedar Waxwing an all time favorite to watch...

Lone Heron

2007-08-23T00:22:00.000Z

Great Blue watches the sunset for a while...
then takes flight...

Muskrat Munching

2007-08-23T00:12:00.000Z

2007-08-19T00:59:00.000Z

Stocking up...

2007-08-18T17:54:00.000Z

Irresistible attraction...

Perfect Susan

2007-07-18T23:29:00.000Z

Black-eyed queen of the fields...

Dragonfly Lore

2007-07-18T23:25:00.000Z

A good spot to cast their fate to the waters...

Four Dragonflies

2007-07-18T23:21:00.000Z

A good example of sexual dimorphism. The blue of the male probably attracts the more drab female (laying eggs).

Tandem Twosome

2007-07-18T23:14:00.000Z

Notice the tip of the female's abdomen. It's just under the surface, dropping eggs that will hatch out into fierce dragonfly nymphs, capable of ripping small fish and tadpoles apart in short order.

Blue Hairstreak

2007-07-18T23:08:00.000Z

Tiny and fragile Hairstreak butterfly. Actual size; tip of little finger.

Onion Flowers

2007-07-18T23:03:00.000Z

If you don't pull onions, this is what you eventually get... along with a menagerie of insects.

Intoxication

2007-07-18T22:57:00.000Z

Thistle flowers attract more than goldfinches (wild canaries). These rich blossoms are mined by all comers...

Bearded Iris Invitation

2007-07-17T18:43:00.000Z

I choose this image for metamorphosis. My idea was to harden its fleeting beauty into stained glass... (see following image)

Stained Glass Iris

2007-07-17T18:36:00.000Z

The same Iris after manipulations in Adobe PhotoShop...

Prairie Dog

2007-07-04T03:30:00.000Z

Playing it safe keeps him off someone's shopping list...

Cliff Swallows

2007-07-04T03:27:00.000Z

Staying safe inside cemented mud...

Cliffside Architects

2007-07-04T03:23:00.000Z

Look carefully. Three are still at home (click on them to zoom in).

The Land of Impossible Rocks

2007-07-04T03:15:00.000Z

Window Rock, New Mexico...

Arctic Skipper

2007-07-04T03:03:00.000Z

This drab little butterfly is an amazingly fast and powerful flyer and travels a long, long way.

Nervous Mother

2007-07-04T02:40:00.000Z

You can see the tension in this doe's stance, ears, gaze. She's oblivious to her surroundings, even to the flies that are swarming onto her. Right now she only has eyes for me...

And here are two reasons...

Swamp Shadows

2007-07-04T02:21:00.000Z

The spirit-photographer emerges from the depths! (If the sun is just right and he can keep his canoe in the right place...)

New Mexico Native

2007-06-28T01:08:00.000Z

While I was taking shots of Window Rock, this little guy came up through a crack in the sandstone to see what I was doing...

2007-05-25T00:12:00.000Z

Who might this be?

2007-05-24T23:52:00.000Z

The heavily-muscled underside of a the common snapping turtle.

2007-05-24T23:46:00.000Z

Don't get too close!

2007-05-24T23:42:00.000Z

Cluster of willow blossoms.

2007-05-24T23:38:00.000Z

Single willow flower sitting on the water.

2007-03-25T02:57:00.000Z

This sparrow hawk (American kestrel) seemed quite interested in what I was doing with the camera...

Tortoise Lore

2007-03-25T02:38:00.000Z

Why is my dog so excited?

2007-03-25T02:32:00.000Z

A relic of ancient times about to emerge from her burrow...

2007-03-25T02:30:00.000Z

The tortoise in front of her burrow...

2007-03-25T02:27:00.000Z

Ancient Methusela among sprigs of new grass...

2007-03-25T02:24:00.000Z

I am lucky to have a colony of the endangered gopher tortoise near my home.

2007-03-25T02:21:00.000Z

Giant Swallowtail on azalea flower...

2007-03-25T02:17:00.000Z

Backlit leaf spike with leaf shadow...

Florida "Chameleons"

2007-03-04T01:01:00.000Z

These chameleons are actually anole lizards and never far from our back door. This green variety can morph to grey or brown depending upon where it's hanging out. Fiercely hunted by cats, snakes, birds (especially Carolina Wrens!) and our dog, they are wary and quick to disappear, often leaving their wriggling tails behind as a sop to the nearly successful predator. They grow another one within a few weeks...

"Mother Nature"

2007-01-31T03:20:00.000Z

She has many names. Some call her Gaea. I put together this current avatar and put her here to invite you to delight for a while in a small sample of the endless flow of earth's living miracles, (to a few of which, I have had the luck of bearing witness with my camera). I feel privileged to have been there, occasionally, at just the right moment. I've started experimenting with other collage techniques. < style="clear: both; text-align: left;">

Monarch's Underside

2007-01-17T01:25:00.000Z

Notice the small caterpillar on the foreground leaf.

Male Monarch Butterfly

2007-01-17T01:21:00.000Z

This splendid specimen is probably fresh from the chrysalis. Note the small caterpillar at the tip of his left wing. The two black spots on the innermost vein of the back wings identify a male. (Compare to the Viceroy butterfly).

Cleaning Her Weapons

2007-01-17T01:15:00.000Z

This female praying mantis is keeping the spikes on her powerful front legs free of debris and ready for her next victim. Personally, I'm glad that insects are so much smaller than humans!

Surf Searching

2007-01-15T18:08:00.000Z

I'm always amazed at how rails and sandpipers manage to avoid the boil and find a meal at the same time...

Florida Exotic

2007-01-14T09:59:00.000Z

Piercing Gaze: Closeup

2007-01-14T01:58:00.000Z

Looking a Redtailed Hawk in the eyes...

"Florida" Longhorns

2007-01-14T01:53:00.000Z

Beach Island Exotics

2007-01-14T01:49:00.000Z

Morning glory, Florida Lotus, Hybiscus Stamen...

Redtail Hawk

2007-01-14T01:40:00.000Z

Concentration...

Concentric Alligator

2007-01-14T01:36:00.000Z

Centrifugal stare...

Skimmers Resting

2007-01-14T01:33:00.000Z

Trilogy

2007-01-14T01:30:00.000Z

Blackducks in Sync

2007-01-14T01:29:00.001Z

Sunsoaker

2007-01-14T01:27:00.000Z

Beach bloom...

Sunset Shades

2007-01-14T01:17:00.000Z

Watching the day end...

Howling Pelican

2007-01-14T01:14:00.000Z

Brown Pelican silouette at sunset...