Animal Tracks

 Check out a couple of my photos in the Animal Tracks photo gallery this week on msnbc.com.

What nice talons you have...

A wild red-shouldered hawk displays its impressive talons while perched on a utility wire along a rural road near Roseburg, Ore., on Tuesday, May 31, 2011.  Red-shouldered hawks typically wait on a perch and swoop down on prey.

Check out more of my animal and nature picture. Reprints are available from the galley...

Wet and windy

I spent a couple of wet and windy hours on the beach near Winchester Bay, Oregon today.  Even a day with nasty weather is a good day on the beach.

Amphibian afternoon

 The rough skinned newt is know for its extreme toxicity.  There is no known antidote for the tetrodotoxin found in the newt's skin.  A similar toxin is also found in the Japanese puffer fish.  According to the National Park Service, a single rough skinned newt divided up and eaten can kill 17 people.

 I had a few hours this afternoon so I headed out to a couple of my favorite ponds.  It was a rainy day, but the amphibian seemed happy as clams.

 A Pacific tree frog climbs through tall grass growing near one of the ponds. Also known as the Pacific chorus frog, the little tree frogs are the most common frog found on the west coast of North America.

A full-grown Pacific tree frog is about the size of my finger tip.

Dr. Dolittle

 I went for a short walk near my home this evening and saw a skunk, a turkey, an owl, and six lizards. Sometimes I feel like Dr. Dolittle. No owl photo because  I only had my 105 mm lens with me and the owl was roosting high in the rafters of our barn.  I think the skunk may have kits in its den.

Blue tailed skink.

Western fence lizard.  Also know as a blue belly.

Probably my favorite photo from the walk.

Ambush

A large predatory spider grasps a bee after an ambush attack on a thistle growing on a hillside near Kellogg, Oregon on Tuesday, May 24, 2011.  I know some people hate spiders (and photos of spiders), but I find them amazing.

Garden wasp

A wasp clings to a flower bud growing in a botanical area at River Forks Park near Roseburg, Ore., on Friday, May 20, 2011. The insect appeared to be feeding on the flower.  I love the super saturated colors in this shot. Shot with my new 105mm f/2.8 micro Nikkor lens.

 Check out my wasp photo on Zuma Press and on msnbc.com Animal Tracks.

Skeleton doll portraits

Photo shoot with Christiane Cegavske's latest one-of-a-kind skeleton doll. Check out her etsy page to learn more about her creations.

Christiane is also an amazing painter and stop-motion animator.  Check her out here.

The details in her work are amazing.

Salmon migration

I put together my first timelapse movie today. The movie is made up of 1531 images streamed together. It's bouncy and fun. I'm really happy with the result.

You lookin' at me?
Spring Chinook salmon in the viewing area at the Winchester Dam fish ladder on the North Umpqua River last night. If you're in Roseburg, now is the time to see the Spring Chinook.

Some of the fish don't make it to their spawning grounds and are caught by anglers.

OMG!

OMG!  It's my photo in the June, 2011 issue of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.  A similar photo also ran in the Wall Street Journal.  I took the photo a few months ago at a gas station in Yoncalla, Oregon.

Itsy bitsy spider

The itsy bitsy spider climbed on the watery sprout. Shot with my new 105 f/2.8 micro Nikkor.  I love this lens!

Aaaaaa-chooooo!

 Grass pollen wafts from grass growing in a field. The allergy and hay fever season is in full swing as grasses and trees produce their annual loads of pollen.

 It's  good thing I don't have hay fever.

Zuma Press featured one of my pollen photos in their Pictures of the Day gallery.

ZUMA Pictures Of The Day: News, Sports, Celeb images and more

ZUMA Pictures Of The Day: News, Sports, Celeb images and more

Check out my pollen photo on today's Pictures of the Day on Zuma Press.

Rare orchid

 A wild calypso orchid grows in a heavily forested area on our ranch near Kellogg, Oregon. The orchid is also know as the fairy slipper or Venus's slipper. The species range of the calypso orchid is circumpolar. They're found is the northern United States, Canada, Scandinavia, Russia, and Japan. The species is considered threatened or endangered in several U.S. states and Sweden and Finland. It is virtually impossible to cultivate the calypso orchid due to a specific beneficial fungus associated with its roots.

 My mother-in-law, who grew up on the ranch, says she grew up calling the little orchids "lady's slippers".  She said as children they would pick bunches of the flowers.

Cats, cats, cats

I know the world has more than enough cute cat photos, but here are a few more.  Enjoy!

On the forest floor

A wild morel mushroom grows in the Umpqua National Forest near Glide, Ore., on Monday, May 9, 2011. Edible morel mushrooms, with the distinctive honeycomb-like upper portion, are highly prized by gourmet cooks, particularly for French cuisine.

You sometimes see some interesting things if you slow down and look down while hiking in the forest. I first spotted the snail, but soon saw the mushrooms and more snails.

A large Pacific sideband snail crawls slowly over a mossy log in the Umpqua National Forest near Glide, Ore., on Monday, May 9, 2011.  The Pacific sideband snail thrives in the moist forests of the Pacific Norhtwest.  It feeds on fungi and vegetable matter.

Looks like items from the menu at a fancy french restaurant.

Turtle dreams

A great blue heron takes to the air near a sunbathing western pond turtle in a wetland in Roseburg, Ore., on Friday, May 6, 2011. Nikon D3s, 600mm f/4, 1.4x converter.

Killer in red

I found this rather angry looking spider on a crimson clover this afternoon near our home in rural Douglas County, Oregon.  She was waiting for a meal to land and I was getting in the way. 

Portrait of an artist

New portraits of my lovely and talented sister-in-law Christiane Cegavske. She's beginning work on a new film project and needed a updated head shot.

Short video explaining Christiane's new project...

High school prom

Teens dance the night away at the Glide High School prom in a ballroom at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore., on Saturday, April 30, 2011.  About 300 students attend the rural southern Oregon public high school.

I set up my studio lights and backdrop for portraits. 

I'm a commercial, portrait, wedding, and editorial photographer based in Roseburg, Oregon. I'm available for weddings, senior portraits, and special events.  Check out my website to see more of my work.