Gull flying away with lunch on a Rhode Island beach #birds #photography #gull #nikon

Definitely one of my favorite recent photos—a fierce deer/goose rivalry #birds #deer #photography #nikon

A double-crested cormorant takes flight. They're not as waterproofed as other water birds so they use the open water to run and gain lift during takeoff. #birds #photography #cormorant #nikon

Today I saw a HUGE number of large milkweed bug nymphs feeding on a milkweed seed pod. The larger black spots near their head are their wings beginning to develop. #macro #photography #insect #nikon

Turkey vulture circling high above Lake Estes on a recent trip to Estes Park, Co. I'm always in awe seeing these amazing birds in flight! #birds #vulture #photography #nikon

Deer nose and tongue close-up #deer #photography #wildlife #nikon

Early morning head shot of a gull on the beach #birds #gull #photography #nikon

A great egret that had no interest in sticking around for a portrait session #birds #egret #photography #nikon

Near where I saw the egret yesterday I saw this double-crested cormorant. Their bones are denser than those of ducks and their feather are not as waterproofed, so they tend to sink a bit under the surface when they swim. And they have such incredible eyes! #birds #cormorant #photography #nikon

I've been returning frequently to a particular spot where I've seen lots of herons lately. This is the closest I've been able to get to a great egret, and I got lucky with a nice reflection through the duck grass. #birds #egret #photography #reflection #nikon

Two cormorants from my forest trip today, and I couldn't have asked for a better pose. #birds #cormorant #photography

It's nice when insects look at the camera during a photo shoot. #insect #macro #photography #grasshopper

Here's a gray catbird from my forest trip today. It's definitely a little surreal to hear their call, which sounds like a cat meowing, in the middle of the woods. #birds #catbird #photography

I saw lots of milkweed plants yesterday covered in large milkweed bugs, including this one head-on standing on the surface of a seed pod. #macro #photography #insect #milkweed

These little birds are tougher to photograph in flight compared to the herons I saw on this trip, but after lots of attempts I managed to capture this barn swallow banking on a turn overhead. #birds #barnswallow #birdsinflight

I was happy to see lots of big birds yesterday, including several black-crowned night herons and great blue herons. I caught this one taking off, legs and feet covered in duckweed. #birds #photography #heron #birdsinflight

I've wanted to get a photo of a popping water balloon for a while now. I enlisted a couple students to help this week, and eight balloons later, finally captured this balloon mid-pop at 1/6400 of a second. #photography #highspeed #balloon

I walked through a field with lots of milkweed today and saw a few of these large milkweed bugs. Despite their name they’re not actually very large, but this one was kind enough to sit still for a quick photo. #macro #photography #insect #milkweed

I was looking for a old photo and found this one from about 3 years ago, from sunrise at a nearby harbor. For whatever reason it didn't stand out to me at the time, but I really like it. #sunrise #harbor #boat

Cone flowers are blooming all over the place right now. They're such an incredible combination of colors. #flowers #nature #macro #photography

I surprised this deer on the trail last week in the early morning, who proceeded to jump into the forest before turning and keeping an eye on me from a distance. #wildlife #photography #deer

Yesterday was my first time seeing a brown thrasher. They have amazingly long tails and bright yellow eyes, and this one seemed to be in the middle of an existential crisis. #birds #photography #wildlife

I’ve hoped to see an indigo bunting for a while now—I was happy to finally see one today. Their blue plumage is even more brilliant in person. #birds #photography #wildlife #birding

Here's an amazing little bird called a common yellowthroat. I didn't know they existed until I saw this one on a recent trip. #birds #photography #birding

I'm still going through photos from my recent Wisconsin trip. Here's a tree swallow, one of dozens of these birds I saw right from the parking lot. Their feathers are an incredible shade of iridescent blue! #birds #photography #treeswallow

A couple weeks ago I wasn't seeing a lot of birds so I switched to carrying my macro lens a bit more. Here's one of my favorite close-ups from that time. #macro #photography #flowers

I present to you the most judgmental barn swallow in all of the Midwest. #birds #barnswallow #photography

I watched a variety of birds fishing around the marsh and managed to get lucky and get a photo of one close to the surface seemingly looking at his own reflection. #birds #photography #reflection

Baby barn swallow whose full colors haven't quite come in yet, looking at me with slight suspicion. #birds #photography #barnswallow

Here's a turtle I saw who was completely uninterested in any kind of photo session #wildlife #photography #turtle

Bobolinks are such beautiful and unusual birds that they always seemed kind of like mythological creatures to me. After years of photography trips I finally encountered one. I didn't get a clear photo but I managed to get a short video that includes their incredible call. #birds #birding #bobolink

Yesterday was my first time encountering the orange hawkweed flower. It’s an invasive species in Wisconsin, but one of the most stunning flowers I’ve ever seen. The colors are almost neon in direct sun. #photography #macro #flower #wildflower

I spent several hours this morning in Wisconsin at Horicon Marsh, the largest freshwater marsh in the United States. I got tons of photos and videos. First up is a head shot of this barn swallow. #birds #photography #swallow

Here's another one of my favorite macro photos from last week. This is the nymph form of a boxelder bug, something I had never seen before. The adult is mostly black with orange markings, but the nymph is very tiny and a brilliant red. #macro #insect #photography

Last week I was happy to see one of my favorite birds, the eastern bluebird, for the first time in a few years #birds #photography #bluebird

One thing I like about macro photography is capturing different perspectives of everyday things. Dandelions are so common we often don't notice them, but I think they're actually amazing little flowers. Here's a tiny bee posing inside of one, both covered in pollen. #macro #photography #insect

Northern flicker in some early morning light #birds #photography #woodpecker

It looked like this gray catbird was getting ready to take off so I held down the shutter button for a few seconds and was pretty happy to end up getting lucky with this one. #birds #photography #blackandwhite #silhouette

Close-up of some super-tiny wildflowers. Could someone help with identification? #flowers #macro #bloomscrolling #FlowersOnFriday #floralFriday

Close-up of a wildflower I saw yesterday #flower #photography #macro

I haven't encountered a lot of insects yet this spring, but I saw this bee fly this morning stopping on some bright yellow flowers long enough for a photo session. #macro #insect #beefly #photography

I saw this palm warbler recently. He sat in shadow for a while but finally stuck his head on into direct sun to pose for this photo. It's always great to encounter these little guys during spring migration. #birds #warbler #photography

I've seen gray catbirds before, but didn't realize they got their name because their call actually kind of sound like a cat. I heard a mewing sound from a tree and got confused until this one appeared from behind some tree blossoms and gave me a nice pose. #birds #photography #catbird

One of my all-time favorite photos I took a year ago today, from a sunrise over Lake Michigan. #birds #sunrise #photography

I can't believe it took me this long to realize I could peel googly-eyed apples to give them different hairstyles. #googlyeyes #apple #photography

I was out yesterday to take photos of flowers, but also saw this insect I've never encountered before called a black scavenger fly. #photography #insect #macro

I took this photo of a chipmunk eating something the other day. I'm not sure it it will come through clearly on this post, but if you look closely, you can see me reflected in his eye, to the right of the tall tree. #wildlife #chipmunk #reflection

Blue jays are another common bird I've never gotten a clear photo of until last week. I never realized how beautiful the pattern of shapes and colors is on their tail and wings. #birds #photography #bluejay #birding

I saw a branch that seemed to be floating down the river at a strange angle, but when it got closer I discovered it was being carried by a swimming beaver. #beaver #wildlife #photography

After seeing the occasional oriole over the years I was happy to finally get a clear photo of one yesterday. It's amazing to see such bright orange feathers among the trees. #birds #oriole #photography #wildlife #birding