this was captured at the International Rose Test Gardens in Oregon where they have thousands of well cared for roses.

you probably noticed there is something rather funny about these strawberries, and that is that they are really a small part of a lantana bloom. lantanas are a cluster of tiny flowers that make up a larger bloom measuring about an inch across. this shot captures part of three of these tiny flowers that have not yet opened. their petals are folded in an uncommon way somewhat resembling an envelope. the clear balls appearing as dew, are actually oil from the flower's scent glands. the width of this photo captures 0.0642 inches which is the thickness of 2 credit cards.

from time to time, i see a shot that just shouts "tropical" and i capture the moment just for that reason.

When one gets a camera close enough to a drip of water, the whole surrounding world can been seen within. This makes for a rather unique and interesting image that is sure to start conversation. Seeming to be an eternity, I v-e-r-y carefully moved my camera around to capture the surrounding patch of daisies and early morning sky inside this water-lens without the slightest disturbance to the delicate drop. After a few micro-adjustments to the position just right, the sun glistened on the edge of the drop and made a wonderful sparkle highlight.

I was camping out on one of the lower peaks (about 8500 feet) in the Andes Mountains. It was a wet and somewhat tropical area and had a light rain most of the night. As daylight started making itself known, the remaining rain clouds started dissipating and swirling about the neighboring peaks. Once again, I grabbed my camera gear and prepared for a moody shot. The sunlight was peaking out here and there, clouds blowing by and changing each second, I just had to wait for everything to come into balance and squeeze the shutter's release cable. The dark neighboring mountain peak intertwined with scattering clouds created a mysterious and suspenseful image, expressing the drama in the air this morning.

hiking through Waimea canyon on Kauai

closeup of a tortoise emerging as desert temperatures become more tolerable just before sunset in Arizona