I think out of all the photography I did, this Arizona sunset was the definitive moment of my 2025. Prior to it, I had lost the spark. The entire time I was in AZ, I felt the creative juices flowing & I think it carried through once I got home. I can't wait to go back in May.

Happy Solstice! Axial tilt is the reason for the season.

Sunsets on the north shore aren't easy to come by, but when you get a good one it's worth the wait.

To those unfamiliar, The north shore of Lake Superior gets frighteningly cold. The lake is still holding onto enough heat to remain liquid, and the results are referred to as sea smoke. This is my favorite time to photograph the shore, as the light is absolutely stunning.

When things are dark, like the world often has been the last decade or more, it is crucial to lean into those little sparks of that bring joy. It's not the darkness that makes the night sky beautiful, it's the light.

Saturday evening I hiked up Palisade Head in the subzero temps for sunset. The lighting was amazing, but coolest of all was watching the shadow of the cliff extend across the water towards Shovel Point!

I hope that when I inevitably die from choking on gummies bears, people just say I was killed by bears and leave it at that.

I've been asked a number of times over the years about making puzzles from my photos & yes, I can do that. It's just not something I offer upfront. However, my son asked me to get him a Bentleyville puzzle when we were there & I decided to get him one, but custom! fineartamerica.com/featured/dul...

Not sure what the plan for tomorrow is yet, but you can bet it looks a little bit like this:

I’m pretty sure that I saw the shipping deadline for the holidays is tomorrow, Dec 12. So if you’re looking for a calendar or three, I’ll be shipping tomorrow! www.flowstatephotography.com

Clouds just won’t cooperate, but the lights are out of you have clear skies where you are. During an intense substorm earlier they were caught on camera in Mississippi!

I sure do wish the sun would break out so I could take advantage of all this pretty, fresh snow like I did on this day!

So, I just booked a Memorial Day trip back for my wife & I as a holiday gift.

Please read this. Not for me, but for small-platform creative people who deserve that you do. It matters. johnpavlovitz.substack.com/p/please-do-...

I keep looking back at my favorite photos from 2025 & the ones I made in AZ in January are right up there with my favorite work I've ever done. Sedona is just such a vibe. I'd love to go back with more time to explore.

I was having a bad day today. Definitely a case of the Monday’s at work. Having trouble tracking down a snowblower part ahead of the next storm. You get the gist. Then I got an email. I sold some images to be installed at a cancer center in Des Moines, IA awhile back.

From a photography persective, 2025 has been an odd one for me. I spent a lot of time trying new things with very mixed results. Part of that was to just keep myself out there. I had vehicle & health issues making travel difficult. The lack of snow, the smoke & the excessive rain all contributed.

The only ice we need in Minnesota. Our Somali & other immigrant neighbors are not “garbage” as the felon in-chief calls them. The lies that him, Emmer & our not-so-friendly neighbor Noem are trafficking are dangerous. Minnesotans will not tolerate it. We take care of our neighbors.

I need a photo trip. I have a flight voucher that I need to at least have booked by the end of the year, but not sure quite where to go & money is tight for vehicle rental and lodging… that makes it tough.

Maybe this will finally be the winter we get the big ice piles on the shores of Lake Superior again… please?

Any wacky radio station glitches going on tonight? Last night was fun

Transitioning

This must just be streaming plays and not downloaded plays because I listen to the downloaded playlist when on long roadtrips through areas with poor signal. That playlist is mostly all time favorite albums, so I think they would be on the lists, if not up top.

The Timberwolves won and Cities 97 looped the same 3 seconds of a song for 2 hours. It’s a good night.

An hour + later & It's still going! 😂

I sure hope I have another chance to take a crack at this part of Montana again next year.

Hey team, My calendars are still for sale and if you want one of Minneapolis OR Midwest Landscapes, please snag one! That said, I know that sales are down for a bunch of our favs this year and I wanted to highlight both @flowstatephoto.bsky.social and @bryanhansel.com. Links to their work below.

Happy Small Business Saturday! I took the last few days pretty much away spending Thanksgiving with my family, prepping photos for my small display at Red Raven in Crosby & going snowboarding today with my son.

Happy Buy Nothing Day! #optoutside

August’s calendar photo. Calendars have arrived & will be shipping soon! Anyways, Black Friday has never sat well with me. A day dedicated to trampling each other over material goods the day after giving thanks for what we have. What are we even doing?

30 seconds of sunset from atop Palisade Head from this past weekend.

This is the July calendar photo. When I had people vote for the calendar images over on facebook, this one surprised me a bit. I feel there were stronger images to choose from. I obviously feel it's good enough to put out there for a vote. It does fit the calendar well though, so good job voters!

My son & I went to the North Shore for some hiking. We had to adjust plans & expectations since it's still deer hunting season. Who knew? I got some pretty cool shots while keeping an 8 year old from hurting himself while trying to climb everything in sight. It was a win for both of us.

We had a really wet spring and early summer. It seemed that if it wasn’t smoky outside from the wildfires, it was raining and storming. This was around sunset after a well-timed storm. The entire sky glowed. There are are two paddleboarders off in the distance. Did they find the pot of gold?

The May photo from my calendar is one of my 2 or 3 favorites in the batch this year. One of my favorite parts of my 100+ days of kayaking project was watching the loons & other wildlife. It was an absolute honor to get good use out of my wife's grandpa's 150-600 lens for him.

The April calendar photo was done on an end of season snowboarding trip to Lutsen. We stayed in Grand Marais & one of the mornings we left early to catch sunrise & do a quick little hike. After all, water levels were perfect for this shot.

This is the January image & one of my favorites in my calendar. I was in Duluth for an event & before I headed to it, I went down to Park Point for sunset & a full moonrise. I was drawn to the floating ice for a foreground & those puffy pinkish orange clouds.

The March photo in my calendar was a fun one. We were on our way back from a family gathering & I knew there was a good chance for northern lights. We got into some dark sky & sure enough there they were. I pulled over at a little roadside park along the Mississippi River & set up.

This is the February photo in my annual calendar. There was no snow on the ground for most of the winter last year, so I didn't a whole lot of frozen scenes to work with. I really love the colors of the waves, rocks and the spray here with that beautiful Lake Superior sunset in background.

I decided that rather than culling any more photos I enjoy from last week's huge auroras, for now I'd just upload the rest to my website. Enjoy! www.flowstatephotography.com/Aurora-1111-...

This is one of my favorites.

Wrote a thing over on my substack, inspired by, but not at all about the Dave Hause song. open.substack.com/pub/flowstat...

“Only love can bring the rain That makes you yearn to the sky Only love can bring the rain That falls like tears from on high Love, reign o'er me Rain on me, rain on me Love, reign o'er me Rain on me, rain on me” -The Who “Love, Reign O’er Me”

Epstein survivors just dropped a powerful message for Congress, and it hits like a warning: no more waiting, the truth is coming, ready or not. Watch till the end @housedemocrats.bsky.social @houserepublicans.bsky.social

Out of 600+ aurora photos from last week, I've culled down to 76 so far. Evenyually I'll get down to a reasonable number & share the batch, but for now occasional individual shots will have to do. How are we feeling about panoramics?

I got a good way through culling & editing finally last night. I still do have a ways to go, but I’m pretty happy with how my shots turned out. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with the X class flare the sun popped off this morning. Could it be a good Saturday night, too?

The shapes and colors seen in a corona are amazing. As I was watching this one, it literally looked like a butterfly slowly opening & closing its wings before morphing into the next shapes.

"Collective effervescence is a sociological concept coined by Émile Durkheim. According to Durkheim, a community or society at times comes together and simultaneously communicates the same thought or participates in the same action." - Wikipedia

Keeping with the Lake Superior theme, but on a much more celebratory note. I was much colder than the surfers out on this -24° morning, but I was having such a good time photographing them that it didn’t matter!

"Those who have never seen Superior get an inadequate idea by hearing it spoken of as a lake; Superior is a sea; It breeds storms and rain and fog like a sea. It is cold, masterful, and dreaded." - Rev. George Grant, 1872