Cliff Saxifrage is an extremely tiny wildflower native to the Southern Appalachian Mountains. It grows in the damndest of places, appearing along the margins of rock outcrops at high elevation. I've always smiled that such a dainty flower chooses to live in such an...
Anyone familiar with cloud, or temperature, inversions knows how hypnotic they can be. Warm air traps cooler air, the pressure and temperature difference bringing intangible elements of the landscape to life. A layer of misty fog seems to crawl across the lush,...
The Black Balsam area off the Blue Ridge Parkway is one that I'm pretty familiar with, but that I've also never much connected with. Not sure why. The Art Loeb Trail, shown here, traverses the crest of open, grassy balds. The views are gorgeous. The popularity of...
"A bird sitting on a tree is never afraid of the branch breaking, because its trust is not on the branch but on its own wings." --Charlie Wardle Despite failing more than succeeding at the business of photography, I've never questioned the "rightness" of the pursuit....
My favorite photo clients are those who can appreciate--and even enthusiastically embrace--the small. I know, I probably shouldn't say that. Sorry, not sorry :-). The Southern Appalachian Mountains are absolutely full of beautiful small botanical treasures, each...
I'm always nervous before leading a paid photography adventure. While I have no control over the weather--and the weather will largely shape the experience of outdoor photography--I still want to deliver the type of day that will inspire my clients to keep...
I love to witness sunrise from the Blue Ridge Parkway. Instead of posting up at a popular overlook, however, I've taken to the challenge of finding atypical views between the overlooks. This was between East Fork Overlook and Black Balsam in Western North Carolina....
If you've ever driven the southern Blue Ridge Parkway through Western North Carolina, there's one iconic rock that you'll likely remember: Looking Glass Rock. Standing nearly four thousand feet in elevation with a slick, bare surface of whiteside granite, Looking...
Whiteside Mountain in Western North Carolina's Jackson County has the highest sheer cliffs in Eastern North America at nearly 800ft. The mountain itself stands at just under five-thousand feet in elevation and the sheer faces point generally southward. Anytime I am...
The Chattooga River was designated Wild & Scenic on May 10, 1974. Fifty years later in May 2024, I found myself behind the camera on the banks of this beautiful river. The Wild & Scenic Chattooga River has long been a favorite destination: I was introduced...
Rich Cove Forest is where I lose time! Days seem to compress as I crawl about on hands and knees, finding endless combinations of herbaceous plants to delight me and the lens. Finding rich cove forest isn't hard if you've ever driven the Blue Ridge Parkway in early...
During winter 24' a strange 4-day stretch of weather left the Outer Banks shrouded in thick fog along the Atlantic Ocean. It stuck around all morning and into the early afternoon. I wish, in hindsight, that I had noted the unique set of weather conditions that...
While walking the beach one very cold and windy winter morning in January 24' I found this beautiful piece of black sea glass along Cape Hatteras National Seashore. It was wet, solid black. Not sure if it was a rock or glass, I held it up to the overcast sky and got...
I drove past this stack of crab pots day after day during the winter of 2024. My rental home was nearby and this area was a frequent way point for me to get eyes on the current environmental conditions. The visual pattern and colors of these stacked crab pots always...
It's general practice for me to be on location forty-five minutes to one-hour before sunrise. I can't know what's going to happen at first light. There's no app for that--and I wouldn't use it anyhow. Each morning I wake up and show up to read the conditions,...
Renting a home in the waterfront town of Manteo, North Carolina for several winters has been a wonderful experience. To be able to access subject matter without the car and at any time of day is beyond convenient; it's beautiful. The most obvious photo subject is...
When I parked at beach access ramp #4 along Cape Hatteras National Seashore on January 10, 2024 I had no ideas about what I might photograph, only that sunset might provide opportunity. What I needed was a walk. Walking clears my head and is often associated, for...
For several years I've been over-wintering in North Carolina's Outer Banks. There's a set of conditions that will always have me driving north towards this bright yellow Art Nouveau home at Corolla Historic Park: calm (no wind) and clear (no clouds). In my limited...
My mother always feared the Bonner Bridge! And for good reason. It was routinely ranked as one of the worst bridges in America. Like spoiled milk, the Bonner had long passed it's stated expiration date. By the early 2000's, the bridge--built in 1963--had long...
Hiding Among Tall Grasses Gray's Lilies are globally rare wildflowers growing within critically imperiled habitat. I travel to the grassy balds of the Roan Highlands to visit the largest known population of these wonderful Southern Appalachian wildflowers. Late...
2022: Year in ReviewFirst with the good. It was a tremendously productive year. I processed, catalogued, and keyworded over seven hundred new images. Nearly two per day on average. In the field, I connected more intimately with the landscape. I found new (and...
As February draws to a close, it's time again for me to turn my attention away from the coast and into the forest. Life is certainly on the cusp of popping out of the thick leaf litter once again. And decay. Mushrooms and fungi. Like the False Turkey Tail Mushrooms...
"And then, some morning in the second week, the mind wakes, comes to life again. Not in a city sense--no--but beach-wise. It begins to drift, to play, to turn over in gentle careless rolls like those lazy waves on the beach. One never knows what chance treasures...
When I was a boy--aside from the obvious ball sports like basketball and football--I spent my time with a bunch of matchbox cars that I liked to line up and organize every day. I'm not sure what I got out of that. I also had a bunch of marbles and crayons. I've...
As a kid, my family always went to the Outer Banks in the heat of summer. I came to love the Outer Banks during summer. First, it was simply spending all day long in the waves. Not coming out until my eyes were bloodshot and my skin sunburned. Then, it was...
The Scotch Bonnet is considered, by many, to be the holy grail of beachcombing finds in North Carolina. This little three-inch long, plaid checkered sea snail shell is quite a difficult find. Oddly enough, the Scotch Bonnet was deemed the official state shell of...
Did you know that sea pottery, or sea china, was a thing? I didn't! Sea pottery is shards of broken earthenware that has undergone the same process as sea glass: broken, tumbled, smoothed and spit back into the shell hash with the tides. When I first started...