Monthly Archives: October 2010

Tennessee Nature Photographer: Happy Halloween

It is a tradition, not long standing, but now a three year tradition. For the past three years I have gone to a pumpkin patch with my friends, the M’s. They have two adorable kids. If you follow this blog you see lots of photos of Jackson and now he has a baby sister. This year also the F family joined in the fun. The day was windy, dry and dusty. Not the prettiest but the photos are really some of my favorites, conjuring up images from the early twentieth century.

Caroline, Jackson and Charlotte searching for THE perfect pumpkin.

Mom taking a photo of her enchanting child.

One of my favorite images ever.

And this one too.

The Great Pumpkin!

young love

Optimal viewing for the pumpkin cannons

the littlest pumpkin

Tennessee Nature Photographer: Hello Sunshine Yello

New images from the Angel Trumpet Tree. Yellow landscapes. Yellow sculptural beauty.

And some abstracts using yellow from the petals…

And a little sea shell inspired

Tennessee Nature Photographer: The Private World of the Spider Lily

Did you know that the Spider Lily is not a member of the Lily family? It is actually a member of the Amaryllidaceae family, also known as the Amaryllis family. The Spider Lily is more directly related to Daffodils than Lilies. This lovely plant resides in my neighbor’s yard. I have been watching it for a few weeks and the other morning the light was just right to get up close and personal with this lovely.

Tennessee Nature Photographer: Autumn Cold Front

From this past week at sunrise a cold front blew through complete with thunder, rain and falling leaves. Beautiful light over the lake!

Leaves floating through the air. Pretty soon only the lines of the trees will be seen against the wintery, silvery sky.

Stormy Sunrise.

Tennessee Nature Photographer: Garden Spider, Hydrangea and Morning Glory

A collective set of photos taken the past week or so…

The pretty purple morning glories somewhere on ninth street in Old Hickory and a garden spider, Argiope aurantia, also called the writing spider or banana spider just outside the Mayo's. I call him Fred. Isn't he beautiful against the blue sky in the morning light?

Morning glory black and white study.

The royal, majestic and abundant purple morning glory.

Love the color of these. Hydrangea are beautiful in this state.

So many spider webs around. This one had a feather. This morning when I went out on my deck, just before dawn, I counted about 25 spiders doing their thing!

Along the brown/orange and green palette, we have Slim Jim in the grass in the early morning light.

Stray Dude in his best Buddah pose.

Tunnel Spider web. I have never seen a tunnel spider, that I know of, but I can only imagine that if I put my hand near the "tunnel" I would probably never see it again!

A holly hock leaf used as a canvas for some critter to create art!

Tennessee Nature Photographer: Hummingbird: Cat Present

This morning I witnessed Nibbles the cat catch in his mouth a flying being. When I saw this poor winged thing on the door step I thought, “did you bring me a hummingbird moth?” It was not a moth or butterfly but an actual hummingbird. I couldn’t believe it! I was a bit distraught because the poor thing was in shock, breathing heavy. From having experienced this type of cat present before and getting knowledge from Walden’s Puddle, a local wildlife rescue, I located a little box. Then I gathered some newspaper and scooped up the little bird and put her/him in a quiet, cat free place in the box. About 30 minutes later I went to check on the bird and when I touched him he turned his head back toward my finger. I knew he would be okay. Got out my camera and took some photos and with a little assistance the little bugger made a shriek and flew away to a tree. Probably won’ t leave the tree for awhile. Anyway here he is just before he left his temporary nest. Never before have I been this close to a hummingbird. He is absolutely beautiful. His body is maybe two inches long with a wing span of about five inches. Such a soft, sweet little miracle. Thank you Nibbles and thank you for not really harming him.

such a beautiful color palette!

Just before I cut away one side of the box to try and get a profile shot, he flew away to his tree!

Nashville Nature Photographer: Moon Flower

Related to the Morning Glory, this beauty blooms when the moon comes out and stays open until the sun is too bright. Each blossom opens only once to a spectacular star shaped, soft, white, pillowy flower. In the beginning it starts as a sculptural bud with the look of the staircase at the Vatican Museum. Once it blooms it falls upon itself turning brown and falling off the stem with stamen still in tact. If you are lucky you will see the Sphinx Moth, aka the Hummingbird Moth, pollinating this sweet smelling, gorgeous vine. One night at dusk I saw at least twenty of these workers making magic. Sadly, I was without camera and when I went back the next night only one showed up briefly. I will not give up!

Nashville Family Photographer: Brilliant Wedding Celebration in Leiper’s Fork

Wedding celebrations are few and far between for me. This just makes those few that I accept so much more special. Months ago Anna’s sister, Wendy, wrote me and asked if I was interested in shooting Anna’s wedding in September. You see three years ago I photographed Wendy and Will’s wedding and this year they have been blessed with an adorable child. I really enjoy this family and their friends. The majority of the guests were from across the pond. Their closest friends camping in really nice RV’s on the family farm. So many super cool details thanks to the work of Elizabeth James, Nashville’s premier wedding and event planner.