It was a windy day Monday. The tall grass was bucking back and forth and I got lucky here. If I had to guess I would say this is the moment just before flight. 5.29.13

How time flies. The last photo I posted of Hazel she was bald and just getting teeth. She has plenty of hair and teeth now and a mind of her own. And, dimples too.

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I am totally in love with this flower. I have no idea the name of the bush. It is growing wild at Silver Creek wildlife preserve just outside of Mascoutah, Illinois. Saw no birds, but did see these blooms. 5.24.13

We have wonderful blue skies with puffy white clouds for about 2 hours here in STL. Now it's back to drab dreary skies. I snapped this off around noon. What a difference an hour makes in the weather around here. 5.22.13

5.21.13 May God help those who had their lives turned upside and sadly those who lost loved ones in the awful storm that tore apart Moore, Oklahoma yesterday. May their faith give them strength at this time.

I don't know what kind of plant this is but it has very interesting blooms. I added a texture by Kim Klassen in processing.

This little house wren has built a nest in this bird house hanging in the back yard. Hope to get some shots of fledging little wrens soon. 5.19.13

The American Dream. Things have changed a lot since this house was built. I wonder what the next 50 years will bring. 5.17.13

Thanks to all who take the time to post comments.

Finally the weather warmed up enough for the azaleas in the front yard to bloom. Spring was definitely late this year. Now it's summer already with a record-breaking high yesterday of 93. Its over 90 out there today. The plants will love it. 5.15.13

This house reminds me of the Old South. It is right off highway 50 in Lebanon, Illinois and I think it used to be a bed and breakfast. I know I would enjoy spending a couple days there. 5.14.13

Trying to get a jump on posting today. We are having a wonderful spring day here in the Midwest. Looking forward to having something in the backyard to shoot besides birds. 5.13.2013

Another gloomy day here in the Midwest. Out of the last 5 days we have had one day of spring-like weather with some sunshine part of the day. This being said, I figured might as well go gloomy all the way. I like to walk through old graveyards and read the tombstones. It reminds me to be thankful that I am alive. So here you have it. 5.10.13 Have a great weekend all!!!

I am fond of the color orange. I saw this plant at a local nursery and couldn't resist. I am hoping it likes it's new home in my backyard and I will get many photos of it hopefully including a butterfly or two. I added a couple simple textures and there you have it. 5.9.13

This photo was taken less than a month ago. What's weird is it is almost May and still feels like early March. Spring where are you? 04/28/13. Have a great weekend.

Wednesday was a great birding day for me. I got this shot of a red-tailed hawk and earlier in the day saw the norther flicker. The sky was pale blue so I added a couple of textures and voile. 4/26/13

You can imagine how absolutely thrilled I was to be rewarded for sitting out in the cold wet and miserable weather on Wednesday by spotting a norther flicker scavenging around in the underbrush of my backyard. it was working over the old logs I have along the edge of the creek and being rewarded too with an occasional bug of some sort. You can't really tell by this photo but it was a quite large bird (woodpecker to be exact) and did not seem to be disturbed by the noise of my shutter. Thankfully. Anyway, I hope I haven't overdone the processing here. What do you think?

Cabelas is quickly becoming my favorite place to shop. Went there Monday and was lucky enough to buy everything on my list and then some. 4.24.13

Spring in downtown St. Louis, MO. No sunshine any where to be seen. Blah, blah, blah. The grass is greening up nicely, but oh how I wish for some warm sunny weather. 4.23.13.

Carolina wrens are so much fun to watch. You have to be on your toes if you want to photograph them because they are so fast.

Have a safe and restful weekend. 4.19.13

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Chipmunk comes to mind when I see this.

Finally seeing some vague signs of spring here in the St. Louis area. We are back in the 40s today and wishing it would warm up a bit. I used PhotoSketcher to rework this photo in a painterly fashion. It is free software and with a little practice I think a person can get pretty good results with it. 4.12.13

I processed this image with OnOne software Perfect B&W. It was kind of a bleak day, bare trees so I thought black and white would work. Best viewed in larger sizes. 4.10.13

Busy today with all things outdoors. It has been so nice the last couple of days here in the St. Louis area. No time for sitting at a computer. Thus, a quick shot of Max and here you go. 4.8.13 Thanks for all your kind comments.

Something different--my photo converted to a "painting" by free software called PhotoSketcher. Not bad. 4.7.13

The last snow photo of the year. Surprisingly, the big snowfall came early spring and didn't last long. I intentionally processed this with a blue tinge to it. So glad we have blue skies again. 4/6/13

Alton, Illinois in the background of the lock and dam just outside Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary. One side of the bridge is in Illinois and the other Missouri. You can see part of the Clark Bridge on the left. 4.5.13 Have a great weekend.

This is a composite of images. I finally got the opportunity to shoot sandhill cranes last fall at Jasper-Pulasky wildlife refuge in Indiana., but overall I didn't get anything that great. Since Randy has been in the hospital all week, I have had more time than usual on my hands. Hence, more time to play in Photoshop. This is the image I created last night. 4.4.13

I paid $500 for CS5 and I finally decided it is time to learn it. I ran across another photographer online by the name of Jessica Drossin. She has inspired me to work with textures. This is one of my favorites so far. Hope you like it. Thanks for everyone's comments and encouragement. 4.3.13

I was outside with Max and saw this jet overhead. I snapped a few shots with my 500 mm but didn't think they would be very good quality. I was surprised at the detail and played around in Photoshop. This is 3 different shots of the same jet. Anyway, it was fun to make and I like it. Hope you do too. 4.2.13

Taken at Our Lady of Snows. 4.1.13

I am really scraping the bottom of the barrel to come up with an image that isn't of a bird. I am a sucker for the red, white and blue and intentionally oversaturated this just because. Anyone can tell me what is missing in this picture?

At last we are having a day with warmer weather, and the birds in the trees are so happy. 3.29.13

Snow day!!! What fun Max had running and jumping in the snow. I didn't last long and I'm sure spring is just around the corner. 3.27.13

This is what my bird blind looked like the day after the blizzard. Lots of wet heavy snow just crunched it. It was kind of slippery as well. I fell down three times trying to get in it after I got it back up. Finally had to put an old welcome mat down in front of the opening so I would have something for my boots to grip. Fun in the snow.3.26.13

The snow we got over the weekend was absolutely beautiful and a record breaker. The roads weren't that bad where I live and so I got out in the middle of it all and drove along some country roads. I have driven by this old barn and tree many times and finally got the shot I was hoping for. I used OnOne Perfect B&W plugin to convert to black and white. 3.25.13

I am really digging this background texture. I really like this and hope you do too. Getting ready for a snow storm on 3/24/13, that's weather in the Midwest.

Another blah day in the Midwest. Tried to spice this up with textures.

Along the bluffs near Mississippi River just outside of Modoc, Illinois. I edited this with a couple textures. 3.20.13

I am really scraping the bottom of the barrel to find a new daily. Where is the spring weather??? This is a shot from South Padre Island from Spring 2012. Sure wish I was there.

This building in on the Wash U campus in St. Louis. I have no idea what it is but it looks very official, kind of like a government building to me. I made this photo and decided the wind was too chilly to be wandering around outside today. 3.18.13

Still trying to find my niche in photography. I do enjoy photographing these huge glass buildings accented by whatever the weather happens to be that day. I think I'll do more of this.

Lunch cajun style.

A little advertising today. At some point I would like my photography business to at least break even. Marketing is not my forte. 3.15.13

Have a great weekend!!

Green jays taken near Mission, Texas Spring 2012. I sure wish I could make another trip this spring, but it's not looking too favorable. I had never seen these birds before and was amazed at their vibrant colors and beauty. 3.14.13

I'm late posting this, but hey at least I'm posting something. This is a shot from my trip last spring, taken in Corpus Christi, Texas. I played around with some textures and such.

Thanks for the comments on my train tracks shot.

Sometimes I go out shooting, come home and download my images, go to work and never go back to those photos. This shot is a perfect example of that. How could I overlook this sunset?? Taken Summer of 2012. Forgotten until Winter 2013.