That is Mr. Muffet to You

Little Miss Muffett doesn't have a thing on me peeps! This beautiful mother and about 100 of her little ones patiently posed for this portrait yesterday. One doesn't have to travel far to find amazing subject matter!

Images from the Blizzard of '10

Actually, blizzard is not exactly accurate –We only received a couple of inches of snow and ice this weekend but it was beautiful anyway. I had so much fun sledding with the boys and was able to get out and shoot some winter photos, which I admittedly don't have many of in my files. Snow comes so infrequently here in South Carolina that I tend to revert (perhaps too strong of a word since it doesn't take much) to being a child again and would rather throw snowballs than make photos. But, the light was so great this morning that I couldn't pass up the opportunity. Besides, my children were inside thawing out after the old cycle of taking 2 hrs getting ready and 10 minutes to reach apparent pre-hypothermia and wanting to come back inside only to immediately want to go back out again...

Click646 & The ILCP in SC

For anyone in the Carolinas or bordering states who are interested in learning more about conservation photography, it may be worth your while to attend the upcoming Click646 event in Greenwood, South Carolina on October 16 & 17. Cristina Mittermeier, who is the founder and Executive Director of the International League of Conservation Photographers, will be delivering the keynote speech on the evening of Friday, October 16th. A selection of her images, which highlight her conservation efforts from around the world will be on display along with additional images from the ILCP. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased here.

WILD GEESE WE HAVE KNOWN: Part 1

Note: The following images are from a personal project that I've worked on over the past 2 1/2 years:

It was in April of 2006 that my family first heard the exuberant honking of two Canada geese coming from the direction of the pond behind our home. At that time, we had no idea how much of a part of our lives the pair would be become.

That first year, the boisterous waterfowl only stayed for a few weeks, aggressively defending the one-acre pond against any other approaching pair. Then, one day they suddenly left and we expected to never see them again; for better or for worse, we were wrong.

The following spring, the pair returned about a week earlier than they had in 2006. However, this time, they appeared more confident, and even began to walk up the hill from the pond and 'spy' on our daily activities. Little by little, they came quite close –we were in love. However, the feeling wasn't always mutual. The pair, comprised of a small female and a tall but standoffish male, was dubbed ‘Grumpy and Shy’ by my oldest son. Shy was the male and Grumpy –a very appropriate title– was given to the overly aggressive female. In fact, she was so willing to nip at our shins that we assumed that she was the male; that is until she began to nest.
We eagerly watched the young female as she tossed leaves and soft down onto her back and then shook the nesting material down around her feet, slowly building up a nest over a period of days. My wife, who had never really been a bird lover prior to this event, became enamored by the process and read everything that she could about the life cycle of Canada geese. Anxiously, we counted the days until when the eggs were supposed to hatch. In early May, we saw our first glimpses of the five beautiful goslings that Grumpy had hatched.

A Project Ends on the Black River

I thought that I would write a quick post to let you all know what I've been up to. I made my last last picture for the South Carolina Conservation Bank book this weekend. The property in question was located on the incredibly beautiful Black River; a South Carolina state Scenic river found in Georgetown county along the coast. The book is divided up into the four geographic regions of the Palmetto State: Piedmont, Central, Pee Dee & Coastal. Like the Black River site, most of the properties that I photographed for the book are found in coastal SC. This was a really great educational experience for me because I live, and usually shoot, in the Piedmont.

The Black River was one of the most hauntingly beautiful places that I've ever had the privilege of photographing. Now that I've fallen under its spell, I am certain that I will be spending more time there. I would really like to spend some time photographing the wide variety of flora & fauna that thrives along its banks and the riparian corridor that surrounds it.

Twitter: AKA Digital Crack

If you regularly visit this humble blog you may have noticed that I've now added a Twitter Feed to the right column. That's where you can go to follow along with all the fun! After resisting the urge to join up for quite a while, I've found that I really like Twittering –perhaps a little too much.

I find that Twitter is a much better networking tool than Facebook. I quickly grew bored with FB and have now sufficiently spied on all of the people that I went to school anyway. C'mon, like you don't do the same thing. Don't judge me!!! As suspected, my classmates haven't changed all that much anyway, with the exception of hairlines and waistbands that is. Anyone want to hang out at the 7-11 and listen to the Cure?

I intend to use my Natural Imagery Twitter Feed to post cool things that I find on-line like this and this. Occasionally, I'll also update what I'm up to but if you're like me, you'd probably prefer to just skip that and download cool stuff like this free HDR software from FDR Tools.

So, why not support my latest habit and follow-my Twitter Feed? Pretty Please???

cb

In-Your-Face Macro Photography

With a new wide-angle lens (Nikkor 18-35mm zoom), and a couple of new flashes (Nikon SB-900 and SB-600), I’ve been having a great time refining my wide-angle macro photography technique. Until now, I had been relying on ambient light and very long exposures to make wide-angle shots in this ein. Although there are a few pioneering macro photographers who have used this technique very well –Mark Moffett, Piotr Naskrecki, for example– the implementation takes some time to refine and the settings really vary based on what gear you choose to use. There are a few different ways to make this style of macro work and personal preferences vary.

Although it is common to use a ring-flash for macro-photography, I prefer to use the more flexible Nikon speedlights (just about any variable setting off-camera flashes will do) because they allow me to be more creative in terms of how I light each scene. I have also found that, because of the reflective nature of some species, it is nice to be able to pull the light source further back to reduce highlights. One of the downsides to using the larger ‘strobes’ is that they can be heavy. Because I hand hold the camera gear, this weight can make it somewhat difficult to remain steady and keep within the very limited area of sharp focus that is inherent in macro-photography. However, this isn’t that big of a deal because the flash is firing at such a rapid rate (and set at rear-curtain) that the image usually comes out sharp. The question is: Which part of the subject is sharp? Sharp grasshopper eyes are usually preferred to sharp grasshopper knees!

The minimal working distance can be threatening to more timid species so field-craft and an understanding of animal behavior is really required. Some species feel more comfortable if approached slowly, while others are best approached in a rapid fashion followed up with sudden stillness. This is where experimentation and research come into play. Once you get close to subject, you then have to throw composition into the whole juggling act. I don’t believe that the image above is exactly an amazing photograph but I like the direction that it is going in. This theatrical, in your face, and well-lit approach to macro photography is really appealing to me in a storybook kind of way and I’m having a great time exploring the possibilities.

Froggy Went'a Courtin'

I've really been having a lot of fun experimenting with wide-angle macro photography this spring. Although I'm still striving to get more depth-of-field in my backgrounds, I like the direction that this series is going in. These two photos are of one of the many spring peepers (Hyla crucifer) that have been singing for weeks around the pond behind our place. These very diminutive tree frogs are a perfect subject for my current set-up because they are so very small (max. 1.5" snout to vent) and therefore are able to fall completely within the sharp area of the image.

One of my friends recently commented that these images look fake, or almost like they were made on a set or with post-processing. I must admit that I know what he is alluding to. However to me, this strange juxtaposition of the foreground and background is what makes this technique appealing. I should say that I am, in fact, doing all of this in-camera just in case any of you were wondering as well. The addition of off-camera fill-flash on the subject certainly adds to the surreal quality or 'museum display' feel of the photograph.
I like this approach to macro-photography because it allows the viewer to see some of the subject's environment, which is an important element for natural history photography and certainly something that is quite often lacking in macro imagery.

Down into the Eastatoe

I just returned from a trip down into the Eastatoe Gorge in Northwest South Carolina. This special place is one of the epi- centers of South Carolina's temperate rain forest and home to some amazing plant and animal life. Most notably, perhaps, is its variety of filmy ferns, which include the only North American location of the Tunbridge Fern (Hymenophyllum tunbridgense) and another species that is only found otherwise in South America. I was able to locate Taylor's Filmy Fern (Hymenophyllum tayloriae) but was unfortunately unable to locate –just yet– the more photogenic Tunbridge. I hope to make another trip down into the Gorge this spring and see if my luck improves.

The day was very pleasant with beautiful, mist-filtered light and the gorge had a very ancient ambiance. Eastatoe is the Cherokee word for the Carolina Parakeet which is now extinct and I couldn't help but imagine what the site might have been like 300 years ago when these colorful birds filled the air. I'm going to be posting more images from this outing over the next few days so stay tuned. It was a great way to start off the new year.

Clay

Pickens County Land to be Preserved

This past Fall I had an opportunity to visit a spectacular piece of land in Pickens Co., SC known as the 'Nine-Times Tract.' Although this piece of land has been enjoyed by residents of Pickens for many years, it is a piece of land that very few people have heard of outside of the county. My role in visiting this special place (and reason for tagging along with more important members of the SC conservation community) was that I had been asked to create a portfolio of images of the landscapes, flora and fauna that best showcased what the region had to offer. The 2200 acre property was (and still is in part) privately owned and the rumors were that it was going to be put up for sale for development by the end of the year. It was critical to save this last large remaining chunk of the Blue Ridge Escarpment because the diversity of plants and animals that it harbors. Among those are the green salamander, faded trillium, sharp lobed hepatica, gorge goldenrod and the list goes on. It is also an important site for umbrella species such as black bears which are increasingly under pressure due to development.

Fortunately, good news came last December when Upstate Forever posted a release on their website stating that the property is going to be preserved with the help of the South Carolina Conservation bank and state and local officials. I am so happy to be a part, however small, of this effort and look forward to continuing to make images this spring.

Serendipity

I suppose that you never know when inspiration will strike. I was searching back through my image files from last year and I came across a photo that I took of a young barred owl (at Jones Gap State Park, Marietta, SC) that had just fledged. When I captured the moment I was excited to see the owl but didn't think much of the composition. A year later, however, I've really become interested in sepia tone images and saw the subject in a whole different light. I'm glad that I didn't delete this one!