Click HERE for the full Grotto gallery

Two different B&W conversions of the same photo.

Christmas lights reflected in a puddle of water on a rainy night. I knew there was a reason why I hadn’t taken them down yet.

The old St. Joseph’s Hospital in Ottumwa, Iowa.

I used the Wheeler Lightroom preset, BLACK, as a starting point for this B&W conversion.

Sparks from a campfire. I shot this one last summer.

My neighbors’ excellent Christmas lights.

I’ve got quite a backlog of photos to post, so stay tuned for some more new stuff…

The constellation Orion, on his way to the southern hemisphere.

42 mm
ISO 400
F/2.8
10 seconds

2001-2012, RIP Hunter.

The Nishnabotna river, south of Malvern. I used the Wheeler Lightroom preset Night Grotto for the color effect.

Found along the banks of the Nishnabotna river. I used the Wheeler Lightroom preset, Burnt Sepia.

Pokey and a stray cat.

My neighbors’ Christmas lights. It’s great to be shooting outside at night in late November and not be freezing.

A burning pile of sticks.

The lunar eclipse from early this morning. Conditions were perfect – clear & calm with temps in the low 30s. The Cold Moon was full at 2:14 AM CST. The coyotes were howling and several times I heard the echo of an owl hooting in the slough down across the highway. I even saw a shooting star. Very satisfactory for an event which has not occurred in the last 456 years.

Raindrops on the hood of my wife’s car.

The USAF Thunderbirds performed at the Defenders of Freedom Airshow at Offutt AFB, on August 28-29, 2010.

I’ll be adding a Thunderbirds gallery to the main site soon.

Dolly posing for a portrait.

A couple shots from when I burned weeds the other night.

“Help !! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.”

I was burning last year’s sunflower stalks when I made this photograph.

Another one from last weekend.

Water spills into a pool from a culvert near my house on a sunny afternoon.

Another shot from when I burned weeds last month.

The snow drifted so deep we had to dig a trail for the chickens. Sadly, all but two chickens were killed by raccoons over the summer.

Inside the snow cave.

An early spring sunset in southwest Iowa.

Pokey resting in the grass.

This was the first Monarch I saw last spring. I posted an open-wing photo last May. I’ve wanted a photo of one of these tattered travelers for a long time.

The lens was partially obscured by a tree branch blowing in the wind. That’s why it looks green. Not exactly the effect I was going for, but I like it anway.

Terry, crowing his little heart out. He’s a nice rooster. He hardly ever attacks people, and even then they’re mostly just scared. Mostly.

I thought it was a puffball growing by my compost bin – until it popped and there was nothing inside. I’ve never seen anything like it.

A strange little puffball-type mushroom I found in my yard. If you know what it is, let me know.

I found this one when I was out mushroom hunting last May. It appears to be from the previous summer.

May 2007 was a very photographically diverse month for me – a grass fire, flooding, fighter planes, plus all the usual stuff. And I almost got a funnel cloud too !!

The Avery Pyramids were constructed in 1939 by Axel Peterson, editor of the Avery Boomer newspaper. They are located in Hickory Grove cemetery in Monroe county, Iowa.

A mean looking katydid in my yard.

The catbirds are always pestering me when I’m out with the camera. I’ll pick a shady spot to hold still for a while and I usually don’t have to wait long for the harassment to begin.

I got some fantastic photos of the Avery Pyramids in July. Some great bird & butterfly photos as well. I had a hard time choosing which ones to include here.

A shot of my 20D & Sigma 80-400 EX OS lens from inside the blind looking out.

I’ve been wanting to get a shot of this old pump, but the background just did’nt work for me. Zero visibility solved the problem.

Tip of the Day: When it’s foggy, turn your automobile’s headlights on.

Tip of the Day for Old Farts in Pickups: When it’s foggy, stop at stop signs.

😉

An old ruin I drive past all the time.

Last night’s almost full moon. I’ll try to get out tonight for some moonlit shots.

Canon EOS-20D
Sigma 80-400 4.5-5.6 EX OS + Sigma 2X TC

I shot these early this morning.

I shot this ten minutes after the sun rose on a very cold morning in early March. It was -9° F / -23° C by my thermometer.

Davies Amphitheater at Glenwood Park. I entered this one in the chamber of commerce photo contest.

Another photo I entered in the chamber of commerce contest.

One of several photos I submitted to the Glenwood Chamber of Commerce photo contest.

I shot this one handheld with my 20D and Sigma 80-400 EX OS.

ISO 1600
1/20
F/4.5
80 mm

Another shot from Indian Hills in Ottumwa.

Same fountain, different angle.

ISO 100
2 sec.
F/8
200 mm

The fountain at Glenwood Lake Park.

ISO 400
1/13
F/2.8
70 mm

The spillway at Willow Slough. It was very loud.

Iowa Air National Guard F-16s south of Malvern on Memorial Day.

Pokey with her ducky.

His full name is Chicken Terry Yocky. He is a nice rooster.