the exotic blooms on this particular tropical vine last only a day. After just missing a couple of openings, a gardener friend and I was pulling shifts going to check on it's status twice a day. Finally, late one morning, the magnificent passiflora opened to display it's unparalleled details. Immediately, I load up an excessive amount of gear so that nothing would warrant a second trip and spent several hours more than adequately capturing the moment on film. As the day progressed and the sun started getting low, the entire wonder began to close only to fall off the next day; but on film it lives on.

This is a straight-down shot of a young corn lily plant (Veratrum californicum) common in moist meadows along the west coast. The accordion-shaped leaves look just like my camera bellows, but the plant is quite poisonous. In fact, if animals eat the foliage, their offspring can be born with cyclopia (one large eye in center of head).

sunny day following a heavy snow in northern Indiana

looking directly at an enormous wall of ice as it crumbles into the sea. the ice is under intense pressure from the weight of the ice above and from the relentless pushing of new ice forming in distant mountains. this pressure causes the ice to be abnormally dense, and gives it an obvious teal colour. very loud cracks and pops can be heard as it continues being shoved downhill.

Meet "Crusty" the sand crab on the coral-sand beaches of Guam. He was kind enough to not move while I setup my gear in very close proximity and capture this macro shot.

This is the remains of Bristol Lake in the Mojave Desert. After the water evaporated and lake bottom began to dry, the variations in temperature caused the drying surface to crack and the soft elements underneath to ooze out between the cracks, forming little walls. The surface is extremely hard and rock-like and the jagged walls are strong and sharp.

evening sun peeking through the sides of a Banyan tree forest immersed in a picturesque swampland

following a simple trail through an Oregon woods, i enjoyed the surrounding environment of wildflowers, boulder outcrops, and thick forest. About a half-an-hour in, i came across Proxy Falls in early afternoon light peeking through the trees and in a few minutes found a good location to begin the camera setup process. While immersed in the constantly changing light readings, i heard another hiker nearby, but was only moments away from capturing this shot so i didn't break my concentration. After i captured the event, i was greatly surprised to notice a small crowd of 8 other hikers with cameras and tripods all encircled behind me shooting over my shoulders. I learned they were on a guided photo tour group and this was a good stop.