this is a closeup shot of a copper snake chain necklace. the islands of gold are parts of corroded copper links that are kept bright by constantly rubbing against the skin. the aqua river is the remaining part of the copper that goes down into valleys between chain links where the corrosion has gone untouched and turned a beautiful blue-green. the chain of this necklace measures 0.045 of an inch in diameter and this photo captures an area equivalent to the thickness of a credit card.

fresh young bamboo stalks growing in eastern Chinese forest

winding access path between fields of rice in Chinese countryside.

Having such a small body and graciously long wings, the Tiger Longwing doesn't flap quickly like most butterflies. Instead, it creates a very elegant slow-flutter to navigate through the rain-forest foliage in Brazil. It's motion is very different from what i'm accustomed to in the northern hemisphere, and i found it quite mesmerizing.

yes, this is real. i was hiking through a desert (with a load of camera gear of course) and saw this little cactus growing on top of a rock. it was too unique and charming to pass by without taking this photo opportunity.

this is an extreme closeup shot of a silicon wafer that has shattered. like most hard & brittle materials, the broken fragments have scalloped patterns along the shattered edges (like broken glass). this particular fragment's pattern resembled a lightning storm and shows off an area of 0.0055 x 0.0037 inches (averaging out to the thickness of a sheet of paper).

Delicate Arch, one of the most photographed natural arches in the country, and is even the state icon appearing on nearly everything throughout Utah. It is quite massive and resides on the edge of a steep canyon wall that quickly slopes more and more, making the hiker uncertain just how far beyond this landmark they can travel before footing will give way.

a Cinnamon Fern in bloom