White Sands

White Sands, New Mexico. The sand here is super fine and cool to the touch. The dunes go far out into the desert, with only the mountains in the background to give away that they do eventually come to an end. The day we were there was overcast, but the few times the sun shone on the dunes it reflected off brilliantly.

Lagoon

This lagoon lies in the middle of a park in Northern Arizona. Its a peaceful place to walk around, and nearby flows the Verde River if you want a different view. Whats the name of this park? Why its the Dead Horse Ranch State Park, of course. Gotta love the name.

Vulture

Sitting in the back of the same exhibit where I took the shot of the giraffe, there was a vulture patiently waiting. He never moved the entire time we were there, and when I came back later that day, he still was at his log.

Phoenix Zoo, Arizona

Glass Sculpture - Garden Fountain

The blues and white of the sculpture really stand out against the deep green of the gardens surrounding it. Add to this the intricate design, I just really loved this fountain. This was at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Atlanta Georgia.

Yellow Rose

The yellow rose. It stands for many things, but most traditionally it is known for a sign of friendship. I had a hard time picking a picture today, which is partially why I delayed this post. I can think of nothing better to share with you all then a symbol of friendship.

This was taken in Phoenix, Arizona.

Sea Otter

This was taken at the San Diego Zoo. The sea otters are always a blast to watch, and this little guy kept swimming around and then coming back to get another look at us.

Walk in the Forest

The path from the top of the Snoqualmie Falls to the bottom is heavily wooded. It had just rained, as was very common for Washington, and the leaves kept dripping moisture onto our heads. It was a beautiful walk, I wish we had such lovely areas so close to town in Phoenix.

Rainbow

Yesterday I went for a walk through our neighborhood. Its been pleasantly overcast and rainy for the last few days, not common weather in Arizona. As we were leaving the neighborhood we looked up and saw a beautiful, nearly complete, rainbow spread across the sky.

This was taken in Gilbert, Arizona.

Camouflage

I never would have seen this guy if my brother hadn't pointed him out. Hidden within the branches he blended in perfectly. Nature's camouflage.

Taken at the Tonto Natural Bridge - Northern Arizona.

Woodland Shade Garden - Hydrangeas

The Woodland Shade Garden is a welcome relief from the sun during the hot Atlanta summers. Here is a hydrangea just nestled in the shrubs as you walk through the woodland paths.

This was taken at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens.

Peek a Boo

This one is back at the Phoenix Zoo. They have an exhibit with herd animals, so everywhere you look something different is going on. One spot I looked and a baby giraffe was having lunch with its mom. He kept hiding his head, but at one point his curiosity won out and he peeked out at the crowd. I don't do many in black and white, but this one really seemed to work.

Arizona Monsoon

My favorite part about Arizona summers is the Monsoon Season. The rain is very welcome as it is a significant amount of our annual rainfall. The thunderstorms are what most people remember as they produce some beautiful lightning shows.

This was taken at Papago Park in Phoenix Arizona.

Falls Park - Greenville S. Carolina

Falls Park lies right next to downtown Greenville, S. Carolina. They have a suspension bridge that spans the Reedy River and gives you a wonderful view of the falls.

Seattle - Butterfly

This was taken in Seattle WA at the Pacific Science Center. They have a butterfly house where you are surrounded on all sides by a lot of different species of butterflies. I loved the brilliant flowers in this shot, although I wish the butterfly was a little sharper in focus. I have a lot better luck on these shots with my new camera, this was taken with my old Canon A80.

Cooper River Bridge - Charleston S. Carolina

This is a newer addition to South Carolina, opened for use in July 2005. It is the longest cable span bridge in North America. It was built to replace an aging truss bridge. When I took this shot it hadn't yet been in use for a year, and some of the shops in town were selling small pieces of the old bridge to tourists.

I loved the combination of the steel gray of the bridge with the overcast sky. This was taken as we were driving over the bridge, and don't worry.. I wasn't driving when I took it!

Carlsbad Caverns

Carlsbad Caverns lies in southern New Mexico. On the left hand side you will see a lions tail stalactite. This place is huge, and definitely something to see if you get a chance.

Tonto Natural Bridge

In Arizona, just 11 miles north of Payson, lies the Tonto Natural Bridge. This is 180 feet high and 400 feet long. At the top it is 100 feet thick. The small creek up above cascades down to a small waterfall.

School of Rays

This was taken at the Georgia Aquarium located in Atlanta. I have only had one chance to visit it, but I would go back in a heartbeat if I got the chance. This was looking up towards the top of one of the exhibits. I have never seen rays swim in a school like this.

Eiffel Tower

My first day in Paris we walked down to the Eiffel Tower. I had seen it all my life on tv and in movies, but its so much different to see it in person. As we toured the city over the next week, most of the time you could see it in the distance. It really dominates the landscape and becomes part of the daily life. Seeing this was the perfect way to start my stay, and on the last day we returned to say goodbye.

Hummingbird

I went to the zoo yesterday with a friend, took a bunch of pictures. But my absolute favorite of the day was this one of the hummingbird. We had stopped to take a short break and let my friend charge his camera battery. Looked up, and there was this hummingbird. This was taken at the Phoenix Zoo.

Clouds in the Trees

The drive up to Mt. St. Helens crosses over the Toutle River. The weather that day was raining and overcast. The clouds came down so low you could see them settling into the trees just above your head. The downside was they closed the observatories 2 days prior. The upside however, was we had the entire park almost completely to ourselves.

Candid Moment

In between taking staged photos of this newly engaged couple, I snapped one while they thought we were taking a break. The plastered on smiles were gone, replaced by genuine tenderness of a shared moment together. The banister from the stairway gave it an almost antique look.

This was taken last year at the Tempe Marketplace in Arizona.

Squirrel Monkey

Sometimes the difficulty of getting a shot adds to the enjoyment after. This is one of those shots. When you enter the Monkey House these squirrel monkeys are all around you. They are jumping from tree to tree and even along the path in front of you. I kept training my camera after one and then the next hoping to capture the moment. This little guy stopped for just a second, but in that moment I was able to snap this.

This is another taken at the Phoenix Zoo - 2008.

Double Dare

Think you would have the courage to cross this? The only way is to hold on tight to the cables on either side, and balance as best you can since as tilts slightly. As you are doing this, keep your eyes glued on the shore ahead. If you look down all you will see is the swift current pass beneath your feet. Eventually curiosity will take over and you will glance down. Once you look down you see through the bridge as if it wasn't there at all. You are immediately under the illusion that it is the bridge being swept down the river and you are being taken along for the ride. As you tear your gaze from this sight, it continues for a few lingering seconds as your eyes readjust. Good luck!

Dragonfly

Took me forever to get this shot as dragonfly's do not like to sit still for long. Someday I will have to go and get an actual SLR camera, but in the meantime my Canon PowerShot A650 has been a lot of fun. I love how the color of the dragonfly stands out from the reeds in the background.

Monets Lily Pond - Giverny - 2005

50 miles outside of Paris lies the Village of Giverny, best known as the home of Monet. Here you can walk his gardens and visit the lily pond he painted so often. Its a very peaceful place to visit and you can see just where his inspiration came for creating such beautiful art.

Korean War Memorial - D.C. 2006

A past job had me traveling over parts of the U.S. and one of my stops was in Baltimore. While there, I spent a day with a co-worker at the D.C. National Mall. The memorial that sticks with me the most even to this day was what they put together for the Korean War. At first you walk up and all you see is a collection of statues marching through the grass. Upon closer look you see they are troops in full battle gear as if they were heading through the jungle. Behind that you see a reflective wall with faces carved into it. As you walk down the wall, the eyes follow your progress.

As I was admiring the faces, my co-worker Nick asked me to take a step back and see the whole picture. It was then that I noticed the statues were reflected on the wall with the trees in the background. I felt as if they were forever patrolling the forests and guarding us. It really was powerful tribute to the men and women who fought in that war.

Blue Ridge Reservoir

This lake is long and snaking along the canyon floor. Another of my dad's finds, I really want to go back and camp here again. Very serene get away.

Phoenix Zoo - 2008

Earlier this year I went with some friends to the Phoenix Zoo. I was driving them nuts trying to get the perfect picture of the tiger, when he got up and started walking around his pen. This is nothing out of the ordinary, till he got to the center near the largest tree. He took one look up the tree and jumped straight up the trunk onto a large branch. He spent about 15 minutes exploring the tree and seeing just how high up he could get. Finally he grew bored of his tree and decided to jump back down. Really made me think about what it would be like to walk around in Africa and look up and see a tiger in the tree!

San Diego - 2004

To start this page off right I need to include one of my favorite pictures. In 2004 my family went on a trip to San Diego, while there we took the Dolphin/Sea Lion tour. Seeing the dolphins so close was a truly awesome thing. My camera was a little slow at the time, so I really had to try and plan each shot, I have so many of just one or two dolphins, but this one got so many in one shot I just fell in love with it.