I traveled to South Dakota and visited several parts of the State. My first stop, Badlands National Park. I had a beautiful view from my campsite. I hit the popular trails but what I enjoyed the most was hiking the back country. I got my best shots at the scenic overlooks and pulling off to the side of the road to explore an area.
My second stop, Mount Rushmore National Memorial. I spent several hours in the park and attended the Evening Lighting Ceremony. The sculpture is amazing!
My third stop, Spearfish Canyon in the Black Hills. I traveled the scenic byway and made several stops along the way. I spent time by the fast moving stream that runs to the side of the byway, very serene area. The byway ends at Roughlock Falls, a stunning waterfall.
I met two photographers along my trip. I really enjoyed talking with them and they both gave me great tips to improve my photography.
This was a fantastic trip! All of South Dakota that I traveled was beautiful.

I traveled to the Ozark Mountain Region in June and discovered many images to photograph. I explored the area of Ponca, where I stayed in a secluded cabin and hiked three trials. My first hike was Lost Valley Trail. I hung out at Eden Falls and got some great shots. For the most part I was the only one in the area which made it that more special. My second hike was a trail that took me to Steel Creek. My final hike was Whitaker Point Trail. The trail ends at Hawksbill Crag, a rock formation that extends out over the valley. The entire area is beautiful!

I have been waiting on significant snowfall to capture and got my chance with a Christmas Eve blizzard that was topped off with a few more snowfalls that shortly followed…total snowfall 11 inches. I went out on two consecutive weekends and thoroughly enjoyed stomping around in the snow! I was walking in snow and drifts from my shins to my knees, it varied from place to place. I went back to a couple of places I have shot before in the spring / summer and found a completely different atmosphere. I then headed west and found the snowdrifts I was looking for on the side of the highway…caught them just in time before the big melt. Everywhere I went the snow was so beautiful.

As I noticed all the soybean and cornfields in the area I thought capturing images of the farmers harvesting those crops would make for good photos shoots so I set out to find the harvest in action. It didn’t take me long to find my first shoot…a combine harvesting a soybean field right next to a country road. I started getting shots and was close enough to the action that I was sprayed with soybean dust from the combine…I was hooked! I introduced myself to the farmers so they knew what I was doing there and they were very receptive and explained the harvest process to me. They told me where they would be the next day…I found them on that Saturday and got some more harvest shots.

I wanted to find farmers in the cornfields so I headed out after work on a Friday and found my second harvest shoot. Again, the farmers were receptive and this time invited me to ride along in the transport truck that was being filled with corn by the combine in front. The driver of the truck was a young man here in the United States from South Africa. He was here farming for six months and was headed back home after the corn harvest. I was able to get a few good shots from inside the truck but the ride was bumpy so that limited my shooting. I stayed in the cornfield until sundown getting shots. The hike back to my car was filled with an orange and dark blue sky on the horizon and a full moon starting to shine and as I stood in that cut corn field I felt so serene…it was beautiful!

My last shoot of the harvest season was west of town and I captured the shot I had envisioned from the beginning…a combine in the field on the horizon at sunset. What a perfect way to end my harvest adventures!

I have seen the Flint Hills while driving on Interstate 35 and marveled at its beauty but I wanted to get into the heart of the hills so I did some research and found the Flint Hills Scenic Byway. I spent two days photographing the Flint Hills and Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve which allowed me to discover its core beauty. The grazing cattle were a little curious of me and my camera which was interesting. On my next adventure to the Flint Hills I’m going to capture images of the annual Spring Burn.

I was on a bridge overlooking the creek and in the distance I spotted a doe drinking from the creek. I got a few shots with my wide lens but wanted to zoom in to get some better shots. I had to change out my wide lens to my zoom lens and only hoped the doe would not dash back into the woods. After changing the lens and to my surprise the doe was still drinking from the creek so I proceeded to get some zoom shots…I was pleased! The doe then went into the woods only to make its way towards the bridge. I watched it walk through the woods until it came to a stop on the trail just 20 feet from where I was standing on the bridge. The doe looked directly at me…I couldn’t believe it! I got several more shots before it turned around and darted down the trail and into the woods. That experience was exhilarating!

Over the Memorial Day weekend, Gardner was the host of  the Kansas City Hot Air Balloon Invitational and I thought this would be a great opportunity for a photo shoot. Friday night I packed up my camera and headed out. It was cloudy to start with partial blue skies and the sun did eventually prevail. I was amazed at how fast the balloons are inflated. Up they went one by one, it was quite a site! I had to be quick with my shots because the balloons fly away rapidly. The shape of the balloons was more evident when they flew directly overhead…those shots ended up being my favorites. I went back to the Invitational on Saturday night looking to get shots of the Night Glow event. The balloons are inflated in the dark illuminated by their burners. Unfortunately the weather was not cooperating so the Night Glow was canceled.

A flock of geese were gathering at a pond in Gardner so I went there after work on a cold January Monday. I couldn’t believe how many geese were on and around the pond…it was quite a site! I was able to get fairly close so I started shooting my camera. Their movement was based on how close I actually got to them. When I got closer they would move forward…when they ran out of ground they would either fly onto the pond or up in the air. It was like an air show…they would fly around the pond at different angles either landing on the water or the brown grass below them. I got shots of the geese in the air, on the grass and on the pond. Part of the pond was frozen so I got some shots of them standing on the ice. I had so much fun on that Monday that I bundled up and went back Tuesday after work! It was so cool to gauge my reaction to the geese and see them act and react to me being around them!

I’m not a storm chaser per say but I do look out for severe weather in Gardner and find a spot where I can capture a storm coming into the area. I usually get a small window of opportunity before I’m forced back in my car by rain. I have shot some huge wall clouds sometimes coming at sunset which makes for spectacular colors in the sky. It is interesting to see the sun coming through those clouds or illuminating around them. I get the feeling of adventure when I’m standing in a field with the wind blowing, huge clouds, dark sky around me and lightning in the distance. As I start shooting the thought of a tornado coming out of those clouds is always in the back of my mind. The shot I spend most time trying to capture is lightning. I have always been fascinated by lightning and I was able to get several shots during spring / summer. My best lightning shot was featured on KMBC-TV 9 on their weather segment. Lightning is a tough part of Mother Nature to capture but well worth the effort when you get a good shot. The look of each storm is unique and you can’t beat the occasional rainbow that shows up!