Blog

The Making of “Table for Two”

The story behind a fine art print, including how close it came to not happening at all.

Drop-catch Behavior in Gulls

Sometimes, gulls just want to have fun.

A Monsoonal Visit to Kakadu

During the wet season, the flow of water dominates life in Australia's Kakadu National Park. If you choose to visit during this time, it will dominate your stay as well.

A Cornucopia of Everglades Lightning

Deep in Florida's summer, the storms are alive 24/7.

Dawn on Hodgdon Pond

In the minutes before sunrise, a small lake in Maine is bathed in soft pastel colors.

Night of Fire — Lightning near Gainesville, Florida

Central Florida is one of the lightning capitals of the world, but it's still not easy to catch the perfect bolt.

Near miss on the plains — Tornado passing behind farmhouse

Photographic triage. How else could I describe my shooting style while photographing this tornado on the South Dakota plains?

Flight of the Ibis

In this surreal photograph, a flock of white birds heading for their roost become the center of a semi-abstract composition.

Tornadic Texas Supercell

Have you ever seen a lightning bolt that looked like a string of pearls?

Indian Creek Cascades

Hidden in the Smoky Mountains is a long, narrow Japanese garden, full of boulders and pebbles, moss and shrubs, and a delightful series of small cascades.

Photogenic Wall Cloud near La Crosse, Kansas

A beauty of a wall cloud forms over the Kansas heartland. Will a tornado follow?

South Dakota Cone Tornado and Storm Chasers

As this cone tornado crossed a highway near Plainview, South Dakota, storm chasers scrambled to document the moment, bracing themselves against the hurricane-force wind.

Midsummer Buffalo River Sunrise

Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. But not my wife and I.

A Happy American Lotus

Nature draws a smiley face on this aquatic plant.

An Iridescent Boat-tailed Grackle

Pigments aren't the only way to get colorful, flashy plumage.

Utah's Gunnison Island

Learn why the water surrounding Gunnison Island is bright purple.

Rhesus Macaque Grooming Infant on Silver Springs River

Did you know there are colonies of wild monkeys living in central Florida?

Catching a Swallow in Flight

To photograph an impossibly swift bird, you just need a little wind.

Dry Season Alligator

You don't always find alligators in waterholes. Sometimes they go overland.

Under the Maelstrom — Jet Aircraft and Ominous Mammatus

As air traffic control routes planes under a bank of mammatus clouds, a passenger jet appears to skim the surface of a violent, boiling maelstrom.

The Bighorn Sheep of the Badlands

There's more to Badlands National Park than just spectacular scenery.

The Comanche Creature

Creative lighting is used to transform a sun-bleached dead tree into a fantastical monster in Colorado's Comanche National Grasslands.

The Afghan Hound of Laurel Creek

A surprising result comes from an experiment with a repeating flash and a frothy rapid.

A Cabbage Palm Puzzle

Yes, this is a photograph. No, it is not photoshopped. Can you guess this photo's secret?

Prairie Dogs of the Wichita Mountains

Yes, I think they're ridiculously cute too.

Jasper Coyote

A Canadian coyote on the Athabasca River floodplain.

Chiaroscuro in the Forest

There's something very appealing about a pool of light in the darkness.

The Flehmening Lion

This lion may appear to be snarling ferociously, but it is actually using a secondary odor detection system. You've probably noticed housecats doing the same thing.

Facing Down a Monster — Wall Cloud near Collyer, Kansas

As a monster storm makes its closest approach, I'm battered by epic winds. Will I ever see my hat again?

Milky Way and Sagittarius above the Missouri River

The bright heart of the galaxy rises above a tent on the Missouri River.

The Photobombing Flamingo

This Disney World flamingo wanted to be in all of my pictures.

Cone Tornado near Howes, South Dakota

Why is there sunlight streaming down on this tornado?

Looking Out Over an Ocean Sunset

The sun ignites a fiery sky over Florida's Captiva Island.

Working Around Zoo Bars

It's always preferable if tricks aren't needed when taking a photograph. But in the field, conditions are rarely perfect. Not even in a zoo.

The (Mock) Battle of the Sloth Bears

What to do when confronted by a filthy glass wall? Just turn lemons into lemonade.

Jewels of the Southern Sky

Against the pitch-black sky of rural South Australia, the stars of the Southern Cross sparkle. But what is that black hole in the Milky Way?

The Green River in Stillwater Canyon

The views go on forever in Canyonlands National Park.

Western Kingbird Eating a Grasshopper

Sometimes the wind can be a useful culinary tool.

Yellow Rat Snake

In search of the elusive forked tongue.

An Urban Red-tailed Hawk

Nature, red in tooth and claw, applies even in the big city.

A Symphony of Rock and Water — Latourell Falls

Find out how the viscosity of lava erupted millions of years ago can affect the choice of shutter speed when photographing a waterfall today.

A Fleeting Visitor — Tornado near Roscoe, South Dakota

The life cycle of a tornado, from birth to death, caught in a series of photographs.

Sailing Stone by Moonlight

What could cause huge stones to travel around a remote dry lakebed in Death Valley?

Bobcat Marking Its Territory

An alarm used to control housecats is pressed into service to obtain photos of their big brother.

Moonrise and Alpenglow Clouds Over the Gila Wilderness

In a contrast of cool and warm colors, a full moon rises under a bank of clouds that glow vivid orange due to alpenglow and forest fire smoke.

Orion Rising Over Death Valley

On a magical moon-lit night, the constellation Orion rises over our tent in Death Valley.

Lightning Paloozafest in the Badlands

A fast-moving squall line brings magnificent lighting to Badlands National Park. Have you ever seen a lightning bolt shaped like a running man?