Springtime Kitchen Window View

This tree bloomed so beautifully and I enjoyed looking at it out my kitchen window as I washed the dishes. It seemed so perfect in the green field, under the blue sky and with the moutains looming up for a backdrop. It's blooms are gone now and the moutains are bright green but this shot still reminds me, what a blessing it is that my corner of the world is so beautiful :)

Dwight & Amanda

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Carl

When Carl spends the day with me, he enjoys posing for me

and I love, love to take his picture. He is such a handsome little guy!!

Great Blue Herons

Where I live I don't see these beauties very often. Occasionally I will catch a glimpse of one near a river, as they fly away.... they always see me first :) They are huge, yet fly so gracefully.

I was so surprised to find these huge birds nesting in a couple trees at the edge of a little stream that wound it's way through the college campus where I was attending a seminar.

I was so interested in getting shots of them that I returned to the area 2 more times for additional shots. The second time I went to a protected area and there were thousands of birds but you couldn't get close enough to get good shots. On our third trip a nice lady who worked at the college directed us to an area where we could get closer to them.

This is a view of the tree top from a distance.

They were still building their nests. Sometimes both birds would be on the nest, sometimes one would leave and return with a big twig and give it to the other bird.

The birds congregated on these islands. Locals told us the birds knew which areas were protected and which ones were not. I don't think these were Great Blues, but a different variety of heron.

The colors on this lake shoreline were awesome just after sundown.

This is my friend Wanda. She and I travel together for photo outings. I is so nice to have someone that loves to take pictures as much as I do. We go a lot of places together that I probably wouldn't go to alone.

It was wonderful to be able to get so close to these herons and what a thrill to capture them with my camera!

Rock Island State Park

I recently visited Rock Island on a cold and chilly January day. It is a great place for photography. Lots of rocks, water, waterfalls, frozen icicles and even people in kayaks. It was about 13 degrees when we started our day but it warmed up to 27 during the day :) We bundled in layers and stayed reasonably warm despite the temps.

Two of My Favorite Models

Carl and Caleb are so sweet and they love having their picture taken.

Snowflake, Pretty Little Snowflake

I love the intricate designs of snowflakes.