I know this may be a little late in coming. But, what with combing through thousands of photos and also building this website, I have only now posted some of my favorite photos from summer 2023. This first installment is shots I took while we were vacationing for six weeks in a cabin in the Mississippi Bluffs south of Winona, Minnesota. Every day we would be inspired and awed by the array of different wildflowers we’d see on our daily walks. I hope these images capture the beauty we saw in some small measure.
All of the flower photos were taken using the Olympus M. Zuiko 30mm macro lens. I used the Olympus M. Zuiko 150-300mm zoom lens for the bird photos.
We spent the rest of the summer traveling in the Canadian Maritime provinces. I’ll publish those photos in my next post. If you would like to see more of my wildflower photos, please visit my wildflower gallery.
I am starting out with this idyllic scene because it reflects the natural splendor we were treated to each day on our walks. Truth be told, this is a layered composition. The butterflies are from two separate photos I took at about the same time. I used software to make the composite. Some people think doing this is kind of cheating. But my attitude is that this is photography as art, not as journalism. I also have some pretty high standards; I will only combine photos taken in the same place and at around the same time.
This is one of my favorite photos from the summer of 2023. We took a cruise down the Mississippi in a small tour boat leaving from the dock in Winona. The captain said we might see some eagles and he was true to his word once we entered the backwaters. I caught this eagle just as it was about to take flight. This all happens really fast and I remember getting the camera in position just in time. A second or two later and the eagle would be airborne and out of the frame. (1/5000, f6.7, ISO 6400)
You don’t have to seek out rare flowers to get an interesting photo. Queen Anne’s Lace is one of the most common sights along the roadsides in much of the country. This one is just starting to open up and I used a speedlight (flash) to give definition to the flower and also overcome the ambient light. This separated the subject from a distracting background. (1/250, f22, ISO 200)
I took this photo of a nuthatch just as it was flying away from one of the feeders we had around our rural cabin. If you look closely you will see that, true to its name, the nuthatch has a nut from the feeder in its beak. This was taken with my Olympus 75-300mm telephoto–giving an effective reach of 600mm. (1/3200, f 6.3, ISO 5000)
This is a Blue Vervain wildflower, one of many that were growing near Money Creek, which ran under the gravel road we hiked on almost every day. I was attracted to their color and unusual form. However, try as I might–through much trial and mostly error–I found it difficult to capture their unusual form and character. This photo isolates one of the blooms but also hints at the many similar buds that are part of the same plant. (1/800, f5, ISO 200)
Who said weeds can’t be beautiful and striking–even in black and white? This one is a Joe-Pye Weed, one of many growing by the roadside. The flowers are pink and the color version of this photo is nice. But I think black and white makes this shot more interesting and dramatic. (1/800, f6.3, ISO 800)
I call this Beauty and the Beast. The flower is called Fleabane and it has a Tarnished Plant Bug resting on top. It doesn’t sound very appealing, much less like something of beauty. This photo is one reason I love just walking around with my camera. It is an incentive to slow down and feel awe for what we take for granted and call ordinary. It sparks a deep appreciation for the richness of nature. (1/32, f3.5, ISO 200)
