Tag Archives: outdoor photography

Photo of the Week – November 8, 2012

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A Moment in Time

I actually saw this seed detach from a milkweed pod and float away on a breath of wind.  I tracked its flight until it got stuck – ever so slightly – on the seed head of a nearby grass plant.  I had just enough time to plop my tripod down, focus quickly, and squeeze off one shot before the gentle breeze lifted the seed again and carried it out of sight.

A butterfly milkweed seed clings (briefly) to the seed head of sideoats grama. Lincoln Creek Prairie – Aurora, Nebraska.

It was one of those rare, but gratifying, times when I actually caught a fleeting image with my camera.  Near misses are much more common – see earlier blog posts on photographing prairie dogs and bees, for example…  In fact, I often have to remind myself not to get so wrapped up in the (often fruitless) attempt to capture an image photographically that I forget to simply enjoy the moment.

This time, I got both the image and the enjoyment, which means I get to pass both along to you.

Photo of the Week – August 16, 2012

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This photo is actually several weeks old – taken at the Niobrara Valley Preserve right after the big wildfires had blown through.  On this particular evening, I was crossing a bridge over the river and saw a photographer working to capture the evening light coming through the spray of a waterfall.  I had just enough time to squeeze off a couple shots of him before he started packing up his tripod to leave. 

A photographer catching the evening light through the waterfall just upstream of the Norden Bridge – The Nature Conservancy’s Niobrara Valley Preserve.  Click on the photo to see a larger, sharper version.

When I took this picture, I was covered in soot from working all day in recently-burned areas.  The photographer, the beautiful light, and the clean water passing over the falls were all in stark and welcome contrast to most of the surrounding landscape, which consisted largely of scorched earth and trees.  The scene was like a small peephole into what the larger landscape had been like just a few days earlier. 

I’ve delayed posting this photo because I wasn’t sure whether I liked it because of my emotions at the time or because it was really a quality photo.  To be honest, I’m still not sure, but it’s time to post it anyway.  I hope you enjoy it.