A small reed-covered island in a man-made lake at Murphy Park, Taylor, Texas, dotted with dozens of white egrets, with trees and a water tower behind it under a blue sky.

Room on the Island

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Lens-Artists Challenge #414: Looking Back at #44–Harmony This week Ann-Christine revisits the Lens-Artists Challenge #44: Harmony. She’s given us more freedom to explore harmony beyond the color-harmony concept. Please see her post and photos for her take on the topic. … Read More

Black-and-white macro photograph of a shrimp plant flower cluster against a dark background, showing overlapping bracts with crinkled, paper-like texture, fine hairs along their edges, and a single curled filament extending from the tip.

A Heart with Two Valves — Shrimp Plant in Macro

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Whenever I photograph our Shrimp Plant (Justicia brandegeeana) in macro mode, I am surprised by what the lens reveals. Take the monochrome header image. Stripped of its color, the flower is all texture: the bracts turn paper-thin and crinkled, every … Read More

A female or immature Black-chinned Hummingbird perched on one leg on a blue-gray wire, its other foot raised over its wing to scratch its neck, against a soft green background of blurred oak leaves.

Acrobat on a High Wire

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Happy National Hummingbird Day! It falls on the first Saturday of September every year, and this year I have the perfect little bird to celebrate it with. For a few mornings in a row, a Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri) had … Read More

A Cooper's Hawk perched on a tree branch with one leg raised and its beak open, panting to cool off in the summer heat.

Raptor’s Rest — Beating the Texas Heat

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With temperatures constantly being over 100ºF (37.8ºC) the entire month of August — except for one 99-degree (37.2-degree) day — I have noticed that the raptors in our area have been spending more time in the shade. Even some vultures … Read More

Bald cypress trees along the Frio River at Garner State Park, Texas, their reddish trunks lit by golden light and reflected in still green water.

Best Ever: Nineteen Years Behind the Lens

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Lens-Artists Challenge #409: Best Ever Images This week, our guest host for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge is Steve Hyde, of Steve Hyde Photography Blog. Celebrating World Photography Day on August 19th, Steve thought this would be a perfect opportunity for … Read More

A Green Heron stands on a weathered log at the water's edge, enjoying the morning sun before beginning its grooming routine.

Morning Grooming

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Every morning, while sitting on the deck, I never know what is in store at the pond. Yesterday, for example, a couple of snapping turtles surprised me with their attempts at mating — I had never seen snapping turtles here … Read More

Red-bellied Woodpecker clinging to the side of a small blue bird feeder, stretching its beak toward a seed port, with green foliage blurred in the background.

An Acrobat at the Feeder

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In my ongoing struggle to keep squirrels off a bird feeder (yeah, probably a lost cause), I can report that for four days now I have not seen a squirrel attacking the feeder in its new location. Instead, I have … Read More

Close-up of a Western Ironweed (Vernonia baldwinii) flower cluster, its red-violet disc florets forming a fuzzy tuft of curled, thread-like styles, with a tightly scaled bud visible at the edge against soft green foliage.

A Fuzzy Purple Surprise — Western Ironweed Along the Trail

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A couple of weeks ago, I went on a short bike ride around my neighborhood. There are always interesting and sometimes unexpected things to observe. On this ride, I noticed several Western Ironweed bushes growing along one section of the … Read More

A Green Heron stands in shallow water at the edge of an algae-covered pond, its neck drawn low against its body in a classic crouched hunting stance. Morning light reveals the bird's iridescent green back and rust-colored neck. Teravista, Round Rock, Texas.

Two Years by the Pond: A Green Heron on Alert

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It has now been two years since we moved to Teravista in Round Rock, Texas. It has been full of good mornings on the deck overlooking our natural pond — some spent in quiet meditation, many more just watching whatever … Read More

A collage of six backyard birds — Northern Cardinal, Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks, Eastern Phoebe, Green Heron, Red-Shouldered Hawk, and Yellow-Crowned Night Heron — all photographed at the same pond within one hour.

One Hour, A World Apart

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Lens-Artists Challenge #402: Looking Back at #1 – Wonder Most mornings, I meditate on the deck facing the pond behind our house. It’s become a quiet anchor to the day — the water, the light shifting through the trees, whatever … Read More

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