There are four species of puffins in the world: Atlantic; horned; tufted; and the rhinoceros auklet. Only the Atlantic puffin is found in the North Atlantic Ocean and is the smallest of the species; the other three puffins are found in the Pacific Ocean. All puffins have a lifespan of 20 years o...
Latest Articles
Looking like wide-eyed clowns, acorn woodpeckers live in large groups in oak woodlands. I saw my first one during a recent trip to Costa Rica in February this year. Their social lives are endlessly fascinating as they store literally thousands of acorns each year by jamming them into specially m...
There are a number of outstanding fall photography destinations in North America, but most of them are well-known and heavily visited. Perhaps the best under-the-radar autumn photo location is the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. While it has a devoted—but small—following in parts of the upper M...
We had been on the river all morning but were hurrying back to our lodge, hungry and disappointed that jaguars had eluded us. We had left before dawn, bundled up in blankets to stay warm as our boat sliced through chilly early morning fog. Wildlife sightings were numerous, but several promising...
If you’re like me, you take a lot of nature photographs, and you know that nature doesn’t always offer blue skies with fluffy white clouds. I’ve photographed in rain, snow, strong wind, lightning storms and fog, and always get usable photographs.
The country is having a heat wave; it’s 103 degrees F (39 C) at my home, and I have out of state visitors arriving who don’t do well with heat. We had some outdoor activities planned when we first heard they were coming out, and it was cooler, but those all evaporated. Sorry, bad pun.
I’ve always viewed myself as a “traditionalist.” I’ve never really strayed too far away from the boundaries of straight photography. It’s not that I have anything against digital manipulations, it’s just that I’m not an expert at it. I consider my Photoshop skills to be intermediat...
The little fur ball climbed up my chest and snatched away my heart.
My friend Gautam got a call from the Forest Service that a leopard cub had been found in the tea gardens off Margherita, Upper Assam in India and needed to be released. Since he worked with the wildlife in Kaziranga, his advic...
Continue readingVacations are a great way to get away and de-stress. However, I often find myself stressing even more. With only a limited amount of time, I’m always worried about getting the shot. Where are the best locations? When and where does the sun set and/or rise? How can I best secure my equipment i...
Every workshop leader has their favorite locations. Like so many locations I visit repeatedly, New Mexico has offered something different every time. Whether it is Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge or White Sands National Monument, a new surprise always awaits. One of the main reasons t...
Many nature photographers love to travel. While we enjoy creating images of familiar subjects near home, getting outside our own corner of the world is a thrill unto itself.
Living in New York City (or any other large metropolitan area) and choosing to pursue a career in nature photography can sometimes be an uphill battle. Local parks and botanical gardens are fine for floral portraits and intimate landscapes, but if you ever desire to capture anything resembling...
Imagine nearly 20,000 tons of northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris), stretched cheek to jowl on a 10 km (6 mile) stretch of beach. That’s what I saw during the breeding season at Piedras Blancas, on the central California coast, early last year. Each adult male seal weighs up to 22...
I’m often amazed at just how much subconscious thought and planning goes into the creation of a “simple” photograph.
Using a longer exposure to capture motion is very common when photographing waterfalls, although, this technique is not used as often when photographing birds. After repeatedly photographing a species, using this technique allows me to create different images from the ones I have already capture...