Been A While…
Wow. It’s been quite some time. A lot has happened. Initially, I was unemployed for a little bit, and anyone that has ever been there knows that priorities change. The internet had to go. Time was spent looking for a job, pounding the pavement, rather than walking the streets looking for photographs waiting to be taken. Money got tight, gas prices rose, and activity in my life ran down to a minimum.
But I’m back. I’m working, making money, and putting my camera back in hand, and priorities back in line. So by way of a re-introduction, here’s just a few random shots that have helped pass the time…
Zayne and Great Basin Gophersnake
My son and his girlfriend hunting for petroglyphs in the Volcanic Tablelands.
Goldfinch
Zayne enjoying Hot Ditch. Natural reflection from the water cured backlight shadows nicely.
Random front yard flower
1982 Shovelhead Custom Rigid. She will be mine. VERY soon…
So…yea…just a few shots to say, I’m back. And things are getting better. Thanks for stopping by!!
I LOVE my new job!!!
Yup…got a new job. I told you guys I was fired while my son was in town. I was a bit pissed at first. Afterall, who can blame me for getting upset? I was fired for not working hard enough…for free…on my days off…but I digress…
Shortly after getting fired, I found out that the local wildlife rehab center was hiring. I have been an Educational Volunteer with Eastern Sierra Wildlife Care, doing educational shows and presentations for a couple of years now. Cindy is a wonderful lady with a tremendous amount of knowledge and a heart of gold, and she always respected my reptile knowledge. When I found out they were hiring for summer wildlife interns, I jumped at the chance. Luckily, out of a rather large field of VERY experienced individuals, Cindy gave me a chance.
So here’s some pictures of our current patients…
Juvenile Red Tail Hawks
Juvenile Red Tail
This poor guy above was electrocuted. Unfortunately, it is likely that he will never fly again. His wing is wasted, and may even need to be amputated as the flesh continues to atrophy from the injury. Hopefully we can get a permit to keep him as an educational bird, but…that’s a mighty big “IF”…
Nestling Great Horned Owl
This is one of 3 nestling Great Horned Owls we have right now. All 3 were orphaned, but otherwise healthy. They are strong, healthy, and will be released to live in the wild as soon as possible. We also have an adult GHO, but she has a pretty bad wing laceration, and she stresses out really easily. She’s doing well, and we expect a full recovery and release soon, but I didn’t want to stress her out with photos…
Nestling Red Tail Hawk
Nestling Red Tail Hawk
This is Lucky. Lucky is a nestling Red Tail Hawk. He was found on the ground, out of the nest, no adults anywhere to be found, and he was FAR too young to be alone. An extensive search of the area revealed no signs of parents or siblings. We don’t know why or how Lucky was orphaned, but we sure are trying to raise him right. He’s strong, he’s full of attitude, and hopefully, with some flying time and hunting lessons, he will be released back into the wild before fall.
My mom always said, and I always believed her…things happen for a reason. Getting fired from the pet shop SUCKED. Getting this new job at the rehab center is a dream come true. When one door closes another opens, and this door is one I’ve been wanting for a long time. Stick around. I plan on sharing a TON of photos of our rehab adventures this summer…
Thanks for looking!
P.S.–Please checkout Eastern Sierra Wildlife Care’s website. It’s a fantastic, non-profit institution funded entirely by private donations and volunteer efforts. We are sometimes the only thing standing between these fantastic creatures and death, so give ‘em a look, and see what it’s all about. If you live in the area, we can always use rescue volunteers, and you could even volunteer to work hands-on at the center. It’s not a job for everyone, but everyone that does it is vastly rewarded…
Backyard Bird Watching
Backyard bird watching. It’s almost cliché. People are hustlin’ and bustlin’ around this great big world of ours, and not leaving anytime to enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Money is tight, job security is low, taxes and inflation continue growing… It seems the only thing we have any ability to control anymore is how we respond to the rapidly changing stimuli.
That’s why I LOVE my backyard. Let me explain… I live in the High Desert. My house is situated at about 5,000′, right on the feet of the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in eastern California. I can look out my living room window and I have an unobstructed view for close to 10 miles, all the way up the western slope of the White Mountain peaks, which is the western most border of Nevada. Now…there is a major highway running through there, and a multitude of high-power, high-tension lines zig-zagging back and forth. Views are spectacular, but these ugly lines are very destructive to landscape compositions. But the wildlife is incredible…
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- American Goldfinch
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- American Goldfinch
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- Common Sideblotch–Uta stansburiana
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- Domestic Iris
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- Male House Finch
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- Female House Finch
It’s amazing how curative a backyard like mine can be. I’m gonna tell you guys a little secret…I lost my job last week. Yea, right in the middle of my visit with my son, I found out that I was no longer employed. But it’s OK. I had an incredible week visiting with my son, and my emotional well-being has never been more positive. Even being unemployed and quickly running out of money, I can’t help but smile. I walk out back, and it just happens. Something will come through. I have a lot of experience in a lot of fields. I’ve done everything from flippin’ burgers and pouring drinks to antique restorations and hotel management. I also found out about some pretty cool job openings in my area, including backcountry habitat recovery and wildlife rehabilitation, and not only would I LOVE to have either of those jobs…I’m fairly well qualified for both. So something will come through. Just gotta ride this wave for a few days…
Thanks for taking the time to stop and look!
Landscapes, Lizards, and More Fire
Kevin flies back to Colorado tomorrow. It’s been an incredible week, but I’ll be sad to see him go. We’re making plans for him to come visit again in August, and that will be really nice, but…I’m gonna miss him when he leaves…
Yea, it’s really been an incredible week. I met my son. Zayne met her brother. And we really enjoyed each others’ company. It will definitely be sad to watch him go, but I know he’ll be coming back…
Thanks for looking!
Playing with Fire…
So…my son is a Fire Dancer. Fire scares the shit outta me, but he’s got WAY more balls than I do, because he purposely sets shit on fire and spins it around his head and body. It’s pretty intense to watch, because you can hear the flames and feel the heat. Makes me wonder what it feels like inside of all those flames…
What a Day!
So…I picked my son up at the airport on Sunday. I haven’t seen him since he was 2 years old, and he has no conscious memory of me at all. He’s a 21-year-old Army combat veteran, now. We had a 4 hour drive from the airport to the house, and we spent 99% of it talking, laughing, and getting to know each other. It really surprises me how much we have in common, both in terms of things we enjoy, and our personalities…the way we think. We share similar opinions on many subjects, and enjoy many of the same hobbies and activities.
It’s really been a nice couple of days. We went for a walk around the Buttermilk area, looking for snake and lizards, and taking pictures yesterday afternoon…
My son, Kevin, looking for snakes and lizards, camera 'round his neck
We did manage to find a few lizards, but no snakes…
Great Basin Fence Lizard--Sceloporus occidentalis longipes
And a B&W panorama of some of my favorite mountains…
2 shot pano--Paiute Crag to Mt. Humphries
Last night, Kevin and I went road cruising for snakes for a little bit. We didn’t see any snakes, but we did find a Great Basin Spadefoot toad, which is always a welcome and rare treat in Inyo County…
Great Basin Spadefoot--Spea intermontana
It’s been fantastic so far! We are going to pick up Zayne either tonight or tomorrow. These two haven’t met, yet, so I’m pretty excited to get them both together…
Thanks for looking!
Am I THAT Old?!?
Man…my baby girl is growing up WAY too quickly. It seems like just a couple of months ago I was changing her diapers and she was falling asleep on my chest in a rocking chair…
About 2 weeks ago, she asked me if she could pierce her ears and cut her hair short. The earrings we had discussed before, and I told her I didn’t care if her mother didn’t care. The hair was hard. All of her life I have adored her long, golden locks, and now she wanted to cut them off. “It’s your hair”, I told her. “If you’re old enough to ask me for permission to cut your hair short and pierce your ears, I suppose your old enough to decide for yourself.” And so she did…
My Heart, My Soul, My Everything
Her mom was picking her up for the weekend, and so they decided to make a “Girl’s Day” out of it, and go to the salon for haircuts and earrings. I’m telling you…I almost cried when I saw her. I have to admit she looks absolutely adorable. But she looks so…grown up! She ain’t no tiny baby girl no more, and that means I’m getting old…
Wanna know something else? I have a 21-year-old son whom I haven’t seen since he was 2. He has no memory of me whatsoever. He is coming out to meet us for the first time this April. You have no idea how flippin’ excited I am!!!
Thanks for taking the time to read!
One of My First Shots
A long time ago, or so it seems, I took the plunge and invested in a mid-range DSLR camera. My best friend John was thrilled. Within 2-3 days of getting my box in the mail, John took me to one of his favorite locations in The Alabama Hills to try it out. Those first few images were rightly crap. Poor composition, no subjective connection, and only moderately acceptable exposures. But on that first day, I learned and re-learned some fascinating aspects of photography that were forgotten in the maze of years.
I went back through the files from that first day, and actually found one that was fairly reasonable. So I took it into Photoshop CS4, and reprocessed the original file…
Southern Inyo Mountains
I was feeling a little nostalgic, and missing my recently deceased best friend, John. I’m always gonna miss him, but he will always guide my feet and my exposures in this gorgeous little valley that we both loved so much. Thinking back on that first day shooting, I couldn’t help but process this one with a little sense of nostalgia, and an antique flare of it’s own. It was only a few years ago, but it really does seem like a lifetime…
Thanks so much for taking the time to look!
The Morning After
Man, it’s days like today when I almost wish I didn’t have a regular job. Days like this are made for photographers, custom-built for stunning imagery. Days like this…I have to work. And since I have to work, I can’t go out shooting and capturing these perfect combinations of light, atmosphere, and drama. So…I grab my camera for a couple of very quick snapshots from the front porch before heading off to work…
In Memory
I lost my best friend this morning. It’s very difficult for me, as John was my best friend, my mentor, and a very strong influence on my life, my photography, and my state of mind. Anyone that has read this blog has seen photos of him, and photos of me taken by him. We spent as much time together as possible over the last few years. He was instrumental in helping me form the Eastern Sierra Herpetology Club. In fact, it is no exaggeration to say that without his support and confidence…it wouldn’t exist.
He was also a HUGE influence on my photography and my love of the Eastern Sierra. He was a fantastic photographer in his own right, and with his help and guidance, he showed me the way to become a halfway decent photographer for myself. I always had a love of photography, and I can remember trying to develop that love ever since I was a youngster. John was my reason for investing in a digital SLR camera, and his confidence in my abilities gave me the freedom to explore my own creativity, and to try and develop my own style…which I’m still working on…
The last two months have been really difficult as he was battling stage 4 terminal cancer. We knew he was going to die, we just didn’t know when. None of us could have imagined how fast it would happen. But the pain is gone, and John is happy again. He can now look down on his mountains, and see the Eastern Sierra which he loved so much. I know he is watching me, and while every click of my shutter will seem hollow in comparison to our times together, I rest assured that he will be with me as I walk these hills, deserts, and mountains over the coming years. He will guide my compositions, and correct my exposures. He will always be there.
Here’s to you, John Ivan Atwood. Your strength, support, confidence, and encouragement have gotten me this far. I will take you with me for the rest of my days.
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- John I. Atwood
Rest in Peace, my Friend.
Do Overs…
Remember when we were kids? Like most photographers, I always save my original, straight from the camera files, just in case I ever want to re-visit them. Over the last couple days, I have done just that. So here are some older shots that I have recently re-worked to what I believe are better results. I hope you enjoy!
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- Storm Over Wheeler Crest
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- Sunrise over Mono Lake
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- Peace in the valley
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- Convict Lake II
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- Convict Lake
Blue Jays in the Yard
These birds are loud, cantankerous, and slightly offensive with their behavior, at times. But they are always beautiful, and their brazen attitudes make them decent photo subjects. These two were romping in the front yard, picking at peach pits…
Couple of ornery Blue Jays
This little guy got curious, and came in fairly close, letting me get a couple really decent shots of him…
Watching me...
Getting braver...
What are you?
You can almost see the quizzical nature of his glance, as curiosity wins out over fear, and he comes up to check me out. Really cool birds…as long as I’m already awake…
Thanks for taking the time to look!
My First Wedding
Man, Wedding Photography is tough! Don’t let anyone ever tell you that shooting weddings is an easy gig…it isn’t. But it’s fun, and when you know the bride and groom personally, and consider them friends, it makes it all worthwhile…
The Bride
Contemplating
The Couple's First Dance
Forever
With This Ring
True to You
Obviously, this isn’t all the photos. But most of them were posed shots of friends, family, and the wedding party. These ones were my favorite candid shots. Hope you enjoy!
They’re Eating My Peaches!
But they are beautiful, so I’ll let it slide…
"I'm watching you watching me!"
Contemplating the risks of movement
Hmm...Is that a threat?
Better safe than sorry!
I had 2 beautiful peach trees this year. This small tree that produces large numbers of small-ish white flesh fruit, and a much larger one that produces smaller numbers of large, ultra-sweet yellow flesh fruit. We managed to harvest about 5 dozen white flesh peaches before the birds got to them. We only maneged 4 yellow flesh peaches…
But the birds and the bees are happy as you please, and all is as it should be.
Thanks for taking the time to look!!
Up, Up, and Away!!!
Sometimes, you just gotta put the chores aside and get out there to play with the kids. It’s not about doing anything constructive, or trying to accomplish something. You let the kids be kids, and somehwere, somehow, deep inside your soul, you feel something of your own kid waking up to laugh with them…
What do you do when you don't have a mulberry bush? You go 'round the fence post
Rosie Posie getting airborne
She always told me she wanted to fly...
I hope you enjoyed them. I know we did!!
Thanks for taking the time to look.
Wounded Coachwhip
I got a call about 2 weeks ago. A friend of mine caught a Red Coachwhip (Masticophis flagellum piceus) in his backyard, and wanted to know if I could help it. It had a small, but fairly deep skin injury. Kind of looked like he got stuck on a thorn, and it ripped him open, and pushed the skin up underneath itself. So I brought this thing home to see if I could help. He ate a live hopper mouse straight away, so the first hurdle was past…getting him to eat.
I pulled the flapper out using tweezers, and tried to let it heal back down in place, but it didn’t work. After 3 days, it was dry, and curling back underneath, so I moistened it with some betadine, straightened out the flapper, and cut it off.
This morning, he ate a frozen and then thawed hopper mouse, which is a fantastic sign of recuperation and adapting to captivity, and the wound is showing signs of healing.
You can see the wound site there below the markings on his neck...
Closeup of the wound
You can see in the closeup that the remaining healthy skin has started to heal and form scarring where it has re-attached to the underlying flesh. You can also see signs of scale definition beginning to re-develope in the flesh, itself. Luckily, it wasn’t an injury that was deep enough to cause muscle damage, and while it will be a decent scar…he should have a complete recovery, and make a fantastic addition to the collection. It is, afterall, illegal to release them from captivity once they have been captured…
Thanks for taking the time to look!
Walk Around Lake George
I drove up to the Mammoth Lakes Basin yesterday, and took a quick walk around Lake George, just to see what was happening. There were a TON of wildflowers in bloom, but the mosquitos were so forceful…I snapped quickly and kept moving. So I only have a couple decent photos to share…
Lupine...with a friend
Leopard Lilly
That’s about it. Like I said…there were loads of flowers…but even more mosquitos. Maybe next time will be better…
Thanks for taking the time to look!
Some Random Stuff…
Well…I’ve been a long-standing advocate for photo editing software that is NOT produced by Adobe. My entire photographic “career”, I have avoided purchasing the likes of Photoshop, Photoshop elements, or any of the Adobe Creative Suites. Sure, they are fantastic programs with fantastically deep levels of manipulation and control. However, I have never had a need for so much depth and power. And the cost has always been preventative.
Well, a good friend of mine upgraded from CS2 to CS4 last week. So he gave me his copy of CS2. So I figured I would learn how to finally use my camera to it’s fullest potential, shoot in RAW format, and use a powerful program for processing. I still find I don’t need all the extras and depth, and I find myself wondering when I will ever use the heavy manipulation processes. But I’m a wannabe geek, so it’s fun to play around…
Itty-Bitty Feeding Frenzy
Water Cascade
My Girl, Nina
Caught in the Act
I don’t know. I don’t think the program is that much better than the Corel Paint Shop Photo Pro series. Sure, it has more power. But will I ever use it? I don’t know. But it sure is fun to play around…
Thanks for stopping by!
Playing with Fire…
So…we went camping. I posted a bunch of photos from our various day hikes along Bishop Creek yesterday when I got home. As promised…here are a few of my favorite shots of the campfire. All were shot at ISO 400; f/2.8 and about 1/400. Handheld, manual focus, manual exposure to get those really deep silhouettes and prevent blown highlights.
These last two are my favorites of the group, as they actually have some abstract form to them…
Dancing at the Gates of Hell
Phoenix Rising
Thanks for taking the time to look!!
Bishop Creek Canyon
I went camping with my daughter, my girlfriend, and her daughter up in Bishop Creek Canyon over the weekend. It was quite nice to get outta town and get out with a camera in hand…
Looking east
Baby Mountain Gartersnake that Annette spotted--Thamnophis elegans elegans
One of the many species of blue damselfly
Butterfly taking a morning "coffee break"
Mother Nature's Garden
Orange Mallow
Mojave Prickly Pear Blossom
Not sure on an ID for this Damselfly yet...
That’s about it for now. I took a bazillion pictures of the fire last night, too, but I haven’t processed them yet.
Anyhow…I really enjoyed the weekend. I hope you enjoyed seeing the photos!
Beautiful Buzztails
I went out to my friend’s house today to look at his albino rattlesnake collection. What a spectacular treat. Some of these are incredibly rare…
Northern Mojave het. albino--Crotalus scutulatus scutulatus
Albino Northern Mojave--Crotalus scutulatus scutulatus
The albino Northern Mojave, above, is 1 of only 6 in existence, including the original wild-caught female. The original albino animal was caught near Ridgecrest, CA in 2001, as a sub-adult. The above animal is one of 5 albino F2 offspring from that female produced in captivity.
Albino Prairie--Crotalus viridis viridis
Western Diamondback--Crotalus atrox
There are several different types of albino in Western Diamondbacks–
Amelanistic--"regular" albino
"Bubblegum" Albino
"Caramel" Albino
There is also a hyper-melanistic morph–
Black Diamondback
And as is par for the course in the world of reptile breeding, they have started to combine these traits-
Caramel + Black
Above is a combination of the Caramel albino gene and the Black gene. These are incredibly rare at this point, I’m told…
Oh…I also managed to get a shot or two of an ACTUAL Panmint Alligator Lizard. A little while back I mis-identified an Alligator Lizard as a panamintina but I was wrong. As luck would have it, a friend of mine caught an actual panamintina and invited me over to get a shot, since I’m likely to never have the chance again-
Panamint Alligator Lizard--Elgaria panamintina
And here it is curled next to a Southern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria multicarinata)-
panamintina on the left; multicarinata on the right
ASll in all it was a really fun afternoon. Thanks for taking the time to look!!
Couple More Water Abstracts
Ok, see…I had a plan. I haven’t been able to get out for a day of just shooting in over a month. I’ve been hiking, surveying for frogs, poutting up fences, planting flower gardens, and playing with the kids. But I haven’t just taken a day to go out and shoot. Today was supposed to be that day.
My plan was to get up before sunrise, get some landscapes at dawn, survey for frogs and shoot macros in the early day, go out to a friend’s to shoot albino rattlesnakes in the afternoon, sunset shots with my daughter, then off to bed. But that didn’t happen. I ended up babysitting my girlfriend’s daughter today. It’s fine. She is a fantastic girlfriend and a great little kid, so I really don’t mind.
But I gotta take some pictures or I’m gonna go mad…
And who would have ever dreamed that a kitchen sink would make a good photo subject?
Thanks for taking the time to look! I can’t wait to get out for some real shooting soon, though…
Abstract: A First For Me
Abstract photography is not my strong suit. It sits below portraiture on my Chart o’ Skills. I haven’t tried too many because I don’t quite understand them to a comfortable extent. This is a conundrum because in order to get a stronger grasp and deeper appreciation…I need to shoot them more. C’est la vie…
Of course, with moving water and a 105mm macro lens…abstract just sort of happens on it’s own…
Bubble and Boil
Double Helix
The Eye
I really had a good time shooting and processing this series of water abstracts. I could have spent several mnore hours shooting, but alas…I was at work, so…I had to get some actual work done. But I think I might be playing a little bit more with abstraction. Especially if it involves water…
Thanks for taking the time to look!
My Baby Graduated…
…From Kindergarten. Ok, so it isn’t High School. But still, it is a HUGE stepping stone…
She's a Dancing Queen
Just before class started
She finally spotted me...
"Are these real flowers?"
Yes...it's real, baby...
Me and my Baby Girl. I couldn't be prouder.
It was really fun and really emotional. She is growing up so quickly. Sometimes I just wish I could slow her down for a bit, but…time cannot be saved…
Thanks for taking the time to look!
