I found this young Great Horned Owl in early spring while it was still cool on most days. She took to me well and never seemed to mind my presence when I came by her section of woods. In this shot she's about six weeks old and loosing most of her puffy baby feathers. This is certainly my favorite of all animals and it was a pleasure coming across one in the wild.

a grouping of vibrant hot-pink oriental day-lilies

This beautiful moment was captured on Navajo's land in Arizona. With permission from the Native Americans, I visited their sacred and amazing canyons. It's a bit windy topside so there is a constant shower of sand pouring in. In just a few minutes, piles of this ultra-fine sand begin to build up on our shoulders, pockets, and equipment making the day-long adventure quite memorable. When the sun is at its highest, it illuminates some of these sand showers to appear as magnificent beams of light.

Lake Michigan lighthouse in northern Indiana

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

i just couldn't pass up a side trip to Mars to grab a couple of surface shots! Or maybe i just happen to be inside a volcano crater and the surrounding red-rock landscape looks much like a Martian world.

close-up shot of Niagara Falls (Canadian side)