Maryland's first studio portraits

Maryland didn't appreciate being photographed in the studio.  I had to move quickly from one prop to another while she whimpered for me to stop!  Though she doesn't look her happiest in these images she still is such a cute little puppy!  Lord willing, she'll be more cooperative in future sessions! :)

A puppy named Maryland

Meet Maryland, our new Rat Terrier puppy.  She was just over 6 weeks old in these portraits taken when we arrived home with our new baby girl!  In deciding on a name, I wanted to name her a state since she is an American dog breed, and what more fitting than the state that I was born in!  Charlie our other Rat Terrier didn't know what to think on her arrival; but he has adjusted very well.  Mind you she is a little scared in these images since she is in a new environment, but she is a pure bundle of joy!  Hope you enjoy puppy photos because I'm afraid I'll get obsessed in capturing her in this cute puppy stage!

I shot a buck and a doe...

...and I shot them within seconds of each other!  Maybe not with a gun but with my camera. 😆

When I looked out my kitchen window a couple days ago, I saw something different in the pasture.  After I saw it move, I realized it was a deer.  I readied our Canon 5D Mark II camera with our 400mm lens and was hoping I could capture the deer on my way out of our driveway.  To my surprise, I discovered she wasn't alone; there was a buck too.  From the warmth of my car😁, I shot my first buck since we have been living in the country since 2009.  Here are the best shots of the buck and doe!  Enjoy!

Goodbye wildflowers... catch you in the Spring!

It's been a busy summer and I didn't photograph as many wildflower images as I had hoped.  I did, however, take advantage of a nice evening last month to capture some late blooming wildflowers in our yard to include a cute image of a yellow and black bug on a red rose from our knockout rose bush.  I love our knockout bushes; we get to enjoy the roses all summer long!

Not all of these are wildflowers but weeds, but pretty weeds they are!  Our Geary County Extension Agent just had an article in the newspaper about these plants with the red berries.  He warned about getting rid of them as they will take over and choke out undergrowth!  Also, the red sumac leaves are gorgeous when backlit and are another plant that will take over a pasture!  Nonetheless they are pretty and I have included them here for you to enjoy!

October snowfall in the country

Because there's nothing as serene as seeing the countryside covered in a fresh sheet of snow! - Anonymous

On the way to town this morning, I captured this scene with my iPhone.  I don't like the cold weather, but I love the snow!  This image brings back good childhood memories of snowy winters in my hometown of Baltimore!

Drama in the skies...

Who doesn't love drama in the skies?  From a distance of course!  It's a bit scary to be out in bad weather but it was hard to let these dramatic scenes pass by without capturing them.  Since the sun was setting the sky reflected some awesome colors.  My favorites taken from our front porch on this late day in June are provided below.  Enjoy!

Harvest time, prairie wildflowers and butterflies

This year was my first for capturing golden wheat ready for harvest.  It was the same time wild prairie roses bloom along with the milkweed and blue sage wildflowers.  The pearl crescent butterflies took advantage of the milkweed plant and didn't mind being photographed, letting me get real close to them.  My favorite images captured on this beautiful day in June are included below.  Enjoy!

Wildflowers backlit during the "golden hour"

My favorite time to photograph outside is during the "golden hour."  The following flowers with their identifying comments below were photographed using the sun as a backlight during the "golden hour."  Enjoy!

The next three images are purple coneflowers.  My favorite is the second image with its colorful background.  Shooting with a wide aperture lens when backlighting makes for beautiful background colors!

These daisy fleabane wildflowers are so tiny and so much in abundance!

This daisy fleabane image was taken from above in the warm light of the "golden hour."

This unique milkweed is called green comet; very fitting name, isn't it?

A bumble bee feasts on this milkweed called spider antelopehorn inflorescence.  What an interesting name!

A caterpillar on the milkweed plant, same type as above.

Last but not least is this cobaea beardtongue wildflower!  You can see it's furry tongue sticking out of the flower!