7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 7

It’s the last day of the Nature Photo Challenge. Thanks to everyone who photo’d along; I enjoyed the company – and you all shared some pretty incredible photos.

Day 7: Powderhorn Park at Night

Dark trees with bare branches spaced out among short pale green grass. A car and house and street lamps are peeking out in the background.The sky is artificially light due to light pollution and a low f stop setting on my lens.

Nature photos are a challenge for a 9am-5pm working Minnesotan in the winter time. I went out to Powderhorn Park borrowed some lamp light, and some help from my f/1.8 lens and a tripod to get a decent shot of these trees.

Reader Contributions!

From Giliell:

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Magnolia

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Mushroom hunt

From Pete M. in Pheonix, Arizona:

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One of my favorite birds, a Pied-billed Grebe at the city park I consider my home patch in Phoenix. This is an adult in its breeding finery.

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 7
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7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 6

My friend Ben challenged me to a 7-day nature photo challenge, and that seems like fun, so I’m going to take him up on it. If you want to play along, you can send me a photo at [email protected] and I’ll post your nature photo up here with credit in the form of name, nom de guerre, website, etc. and we’ll nature photo the shit out of this challenge.

Day 6: Wilted Sunflower

Photo is long and narrow, running along the length of a dry, brown sunflower with wilted leaves and pods

Reader contributions!

From David N:

An close up of a finch sitting among thin, bare branches. Snow appears as blurred streaks, and snowflakes rest on the finch's head. The photo is in excellent focus - the feathers of the bird are sharp and clear.

Here’s a finch from this afternoon, near one of 3 feeders. He’s just LOVING the shit out of the weather.

You can see more of David’s work at photosoutdoors.com

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 6

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 5

My friend Ben challenged me to a 7-day nature photo challenge, and that seems like fun, so I’m going to take him up on it. If you want to play along, you can send me a photo at bio_dork@hotmail.com and I’ll post your nature photo up here with credit in the form of name, nom de guerre, website, etc. and we’ll nature photo the shit out of this challenge.

Day 5: Winter Berries

Nature Challenge Day 5

Reader contributions!

From Phil H:

magpie

This is a magpie that was sitting in my grandparents’ nectarine tree yesterday. Not having much to do, and without anything worthwhile on the TV, we all went outside to watch it jumping around (originally it was much deeper into the tree) and calling out for a good half hour.

From Leslie P:

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I took this last winter of my car in Stamford, CT!

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 5

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 4

My friend Ben challenged me to a 7-day nature photo challenge, and that seems like fun, so I’m going to take him up on it. If you want to play along, you can send me a photo at bio_dork@hotmail.com and I’ll post your nature photo up here with credit in the form of name, nom de guerre, website, etc. and we’ll nature photo the shit out of this challenge.

Day 4: Sunset at Wood Lake Nature Center

Photo Challenge Day 4

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 4

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 3

My friend Ben challenged me to a 7-day nature photo challenge, and that seems like fun, so I’m going to take him up on it. If you want to play along, you can send me a photo at [email protected] and I’ll post your nature photo up here with credit in the form of name, nom de guerre, website, etc. and we’ll nature photo the shit out of this challenge.

Day 3: Rain Drops

A tight shot with depth of field out to there. Photo is comprised of a mess of bare, red-barked branches. In focus is one skinny branch with four raindrops hanging from it, surrounded by a tangle of nearby branches, some also with raindrops.

 

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 3

Drip…drip…drip

On the radio I hear MOTS interviews from San Bernadino residents saying that they’re shocked that a mass shooting occurred in their neighborhood. With so many mass shootings occurring on a regular basis around the country right now, how can we be shocked when it happens to us? Horrified, yes.  Traumatized, yes. But to be shocked is to be surprised, and I’m not anymore.

We argue about the definitions of terrorism and racism and pontificate on motives and mental illness, and in all of that talk we’re not making anyone less dead or safe from future attacks.

An article on stochastic terrorism made the rounds last week, and I find myself thinking about it a lot. It’s a concept that makes a lot of sense, and one that we learn from a very young age. It’s depressingly easy to verbally manipulate people into physically attacking other people.

A coworker says in all seriousness “I’d vote for Donald Trump before I’d vote for Bernie Sanders and watch him tax hard working American businesses out of existence.” I work with someone who is in a place where the idea of politicians – the US government – condoning humanitarian atrocities is a lesser evil than the idea of companies going out of business.

In line for coffee: A patron says that it doesn’t matter whether the terrorists in San Bernadino were affiliated with a larger organization; they were influenced  by  Muslims who spout hate speech against Americans, and that’s why Muslims are dangerous. I didn’t interupt to ask him whether he would apply that logic to the Colorado Planned Parenthood shooter and the violent rhetoric espoused by activists in anti-abortion circles; I’m pretty sure I knew what his answer would be.

Drip…drip…drip

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 2

My friend Ben challenged me to a 7-day nature photo challenge, and that seems like fun, so I’m going to take him up on it. If you want to play along, you can send me a photo at [email protected] and I’ll post your nature photo up here with credit in the form of name, nom de guerre, website, etc. and we’ll nature photo the shit out of this challenge.

Day 2: Squirrel at Dawn – Powderhorn Park

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7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 2

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 1

My friend Ben challenged me to a 7-day nature photo challenge, and that seems like fun, so I’m going to take him up on it. If you want to play along, you can send me a photo at [email protected] and I’ll post your nature photo up here with credit in the form of name, nom de guerre, website, etc. and we’ll nature photo the shit out of this challenge.

Day 1: Setting Sun Nature Photo

The sun has set. A thin strip of orange is visible beneath a blanket of black clouds. A dark blue sky still faintly touched by the last of the sun is at the top of the photo and is reflected off the still surface of a lake in the background bottom of the photo. Tall trees with bare branches an skeletons of low bushes are black silhouettes against the lake and sky.

This is the product of a Galaxy S4 – I am still amazed at what cell phone cameras can do these days. I mean, sure, it would be clearer with my Nikon and a tripod, but not bad for a handheld night shot.

This is the view from my the back of my work building. After nearly 10 years, the view remains a reason to get out of bed in the morning on days when the going is tough.

7 Days of Nature Photos: Day 1