occasionally when an Eastern Redbud tree (which has pinkinsh-purple blooms instead of the more typical red blooms) gets rather old, clusters of blooms squeeze out from every part of each branch, limb, and trunk. it's a great find if you happen to find one during the right moment of spring (then it's just a matter of getting the camera equipment up in the tree).

although passing for the scales on a blue dragon, this is actually an extreme close-up photo of the iridescent stripe on the wing of a Mallard Duck. the feather starts off with a main shaft (or quill) with hundreds of branches (barbs) protruding from the side. zooming in on one of these barbs, there are again hundreds of protruding tiny branches (barbules) on each barb. this photo captures approximately 4 of these barbules and their scale-like shapes. each of these 'squares' measure around 0.0012 inches across (less than the thickness of aluminum foil).

east end of Glacier National Park

When I first saw these celosia flowers in China, I couldn't resist taking the time to find one with just the right form and available light to capture a couple shots.

like most things we get our hands on,.. we photograph it. this is a closeup shot of a synthetic-foam brush and after we zoomed in, it became quite clear on how it holds paint so well. the foam strands (connected together like a web) average around 0.0027 inches in diameter (size of a human hair).

This scene has summer fun and relaxation written all over it. It was late June and a perfect day for the season. Climbing down the steep embankment, I was actually standing in several inches of water to get a good view of the mountain peak framed nicely between the nearby trees. I waited for the ripples I created to disappear, and adjusted the tripod rather low to capture the stones just below the water's surface. The way the water refracted from being able to see the bottom of the lake, which slowly faded into the reflections from the far shore, was a nice bonus.

this is a shot of the massive amounts of water going over Niagara Falls (Canadian side).