Along came a spider

A small spider climbs on a grape leaf dripping with dew on a cool summer morning in a vineyard near Roseburg, Ore., on Thursday, June 28, 2012.

Japanese tsunami dock on Oregon beach

The Wall Street Journal has picked up several of my images of the Japanese tsunami dock on an Oregon beach. See more of my dock photos and a short video. 

Bloomberg also picked up one of the photos. 

An eye for whimsical moments

I'm featured in a Q and A on robgalbraith.com today. My work with msnbc.com is what got their attention. They also published a nice gallery of my nature and photojournalism. 

Rob has an amazing website with volumes of useful information about photography and photo gear.

Transforming dragonfly

 A newly transformed dragonfly (below) clings to a reed growing in a pond in a rural area of Douglas County near Elkton, Ore., on Tuesday, June 26, 2012. Dragonflies spend their larvae, or nymph, stage as aquatic insects. When ready the dragonfly emerges from the water to shed its exoskeleton (above) and transform into a flying insect.
 

Photos taken on the same pond, but probably not the same individual.

Like cats and dogs

William and Sweetie mixing it up in the orchard last night . They were just playing and no noses were scratched in the making of these photos.

Day is done

I found this little gem last night just as the last color was fading in the western sky.  

Handheld at 1/20 Sec., f/36, ISO 1250 and fill-flashed with my trusty Nikon-SB600 on a synch cord held off to the left.

Blade Runner

A immature grasshopper clings to a grass leaf in a pasture on a ranch near Roseburg, Ore., on Saturday, June 24, 2012.

At this time of year in southwestern Oregon, the grasshoppers are about one-half inch long.

A grasshopper appears to clean its claw while climbing a grass stalk.

Photos shot with Nikon D4 DSLR, AF-S Micro-Nikkon 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED lens, and a Kenko 36mm extension tube. Amazingly Nikon does not make an AF extension tube. 

Cute little vermint

Yesterday afternoon I found an adorable young gopher while clearing up an old woodpile. I was a little afraid he would bite me, but he took a nap instead. He fell asleep in my hand. I released him in a safe location nearby. 

Let there be light

Success!!! I finally figured out how to light this glass vase. The curves made for very distracting reflections. I ended up using two Nikon speedlights and two Alien Bees.

My photo on Natgeo.com

It's my photo in the Daily Dozen gallery on the National Geographic website. Viewers can rate the images in the slide show.  The winner of the people's choice award gets a brand new car (I wish).

Dainty deer

Oh, deer!  It's my photo in this week's Animal Tracks gallery on msnbc.com.

I don't normally talk tech, but I shot this photo with my 600mm lens and 1.7 teleconverter.  It was in dim light and I was bracing the lens and camera against my car window frame.  The shutter speed was a slow 1/80 sec., and the ISO was 2000.

My photos in the New York Post

 The New York Post picked up a couple of my photos in their Weekly Animals Gallery this week.  My work is represented by the photo agency Zuma Press.

Season of the fawn

Every year at about Father's Day the local black-tailed deer have their fawns.  I woke up early and went hunting with my camera. A saw four fawns, but could only get pictures of these two.

Deer fawns are born nearly scentless. With their camouflaged coats and lack of odor, most predators have a difficult time finding them in tall grass.

Shooting art glass

I spent most of yesterday shooting art glass for a new customer in Roseburg. Oregon. They plan to use the photos on their website and for other promotional purposes.

Shooting glass in the studio is a real challenge.  The shape, color, reflections, refractions, and level of clarity of the glass make for a complicated lighting situation.

I'm far from an expert at photographing glass, but I've got the general idea and I'm working on my technique

If you like the work you can visit them in Bandon, Ore., or check out their current website.  I didn't break a single piece...yet.

Dance of the Mosquito Larvae

They wiggle, swim, and dance. It's a timelapse video of mosquito larvae. The movie is made up of several thousand individual still images strung together into a time lapse sequence.  

Enjoy!

My photo on National Geographic website

It's my photo of the massive Japanese tsunami dock, via Zumapress.com, in the daily news section of  the National Geographic website.

Nestlings

Two newly hatched American robin chicks, and an unhatched egg, sit in a nest tucked under the eves of a picnic shelter at River Forks Park near Roseburg, Ore., on Wednesday, June 13, 2012.  Ornithologists believe there are about 320 million individual American robins in North America.  Only about 25% of the young robins will survive their first year after hatching.

I luv rainbows and cats

The last couple of evenings I've been taking walks near my home in southwestern Oregon.  With the late sunsets and pretty light, my photos are looking like scenes from greeting cards or inspirational posters.

Band promo photos

Promotional band photos with Roseburg's Mile Post 8 last night in historic Oakland, Ore.

 I used a two light setup with a little help from the sun.

These guys are great. If you get a chance be sure to check them out.

Purple eyed deer?

The bloom of a purple thistle obscures the eye of a deer in a thicket of wildflowers at a nature area of a city park in Roseburg, Ore., on Monday, June 11, 2012. The deer munched on daisies for a while before ambling off into the thick brush.

I normally hate it when something gets it the way of my subject, but it kind of works in this situation.

Little suckers

Mosquito larvae float at  the surface of water in a jar on a ranch near Roseburg, Ore., on Sunday, June 10, 2012. The larvae were captured from a cattle watering trough on the ranch. Mosquito larvae breath through a tube extending from their abdomens. Due to the many diseases and parasites they carry, some scientists have declared mosquitoes to be most dangerous animal on earth.

My mosquito larvae photobomb the normally cute and cuddly Animal Tracks gallery on msnbc.com this week.

Book cover

It's my photo on the cover of what looks like a very interesting book.  It's published by Speedwell Press.

Tsunami dock washes up in Oregon: video

I made a short video of a crew cleaning invasive species from the massive Japanese dock which washed onto the beach near Newport, Oregon.

Massive Japanese Dock Washes Up In Oregon

See UPDATED PHOTOS of the removal
Newport, Oregon, U.S - Tourists watch as workers from the Oregon Department of Fish Wildlife and Parks use scrapers, torches, and their hands to clean and kill invasive sea creatures and plants from the hull of a large floating dock on Agate Beach near Newport, Ore., on Thursday, June 7, 2012. A massive dock from Japan floated across the Pacific Ocean after the Japanese tsunami of March 2011 and washed ashore on Oregon's Agate Beach. 

Tourists fight the wind while checking out the Japanese dock on the beach near Newport, Ore.

 A worker uses a torch to hopefully kill off any invasive species left on the hull.

 Scraping off the thick layer of clams, barnacles, mussels, and plant matter is difficult, but important to protect local flora and fauna.

My photo are available through ZUMAPRESS.COM or from me directly. 

 Discover.com used one of my photos of the dock on their news page today.

Feathered friends

A pair of wild waxwings share a small fruit in a bush at a park near Roseburg, Ore., on Wednesday, June 6, 2012. During courtship male and female cedar waxwings will sit together and pass small objects back and forth together.

I'm fairly sure they're cedar waxwings, but I could be wrong.

Transit of Venus

Thick clouds are seen as the transit of Venus takes place across the face of the sun as seen from Roseburg, Ore., on Tuesday, June 5th, 2012.

 Shot with my Nikon D4, 600mm f/4, 1.7x teleconverter. Shot at 1/8000 sec., f/40 at ISO 50.

The sun sets as the transit continues.

Senior party photo booth

My portable photo booth was a huge success at the Glide High School Senior Partly last nigh in Roseburg, Ore.

The party had a Western theme.  Which was great for props.

The stick on mustaches were a big hit.

The photo booth is available for parties or just about any event.  I'm based in Roseburg, Ore., and I'm able to travel to any location within Oregon.  The cost is $550 for three hours unlimited prints with web gallery.  Travel charges may apply. For wedding reception I also provide a guest album. Check my website for more details.