Archives
A Sample of Pop’s “Bee” Images

Another Day at Work

Apis Workers' Party

Predator

Some of Your Beeswax

Sedum Bumbler

Look of Defiance

Chicory Bee

Bumbling Bees

Garden Cafe

Buzz By Here - To Infinity and Beyond

Pick Your Poison

Blind Side Attack

On a Mission

Honey Bee on Sedum

Covering the Cosmos

Center of the Cosmos

Three's a Crowd

Popular Spot

On A Pedestal

A Sample of Pop’s “People” Photo Collection

Big Harry Fireworks Display

To Impress the Girl

Different Perspective

Sweet Ride

Perfect Little Piggies B&W

Flipping the Light Fantastic

Festival of Flights

To the Crowd's Delight

Amish Go Round

Wondersome One

The Stars In Her Eyes

Tuesday's Child

Sleeper Hold

Considering the Next Move

Sugar and Spice

Front Porch Portrait

Caged Competitor

Early Adoration

Child In the Ligtht

Stroll Through the Weeds

Attention Grabbing

Eye Contact

On the Line

Eyes of Wonder

Rounding the Curve

Troubadours of Basin Spring Park

Down by the Creek

Sun Day

Catching Some Light

EAA Fireworks

Hear Me Roar

White

War Bonnet

Butterfly, Red, Leaf

The attention-grabbing, bold color and contrast on this small butterfly’s wings are clearly a work of God’s design and creativity.

Last month, during a trip to the Branson, Missouri area I spent a couple of hours at the Butterfly Palace.  They have a variety of winged creatures flitting around their man-made tropical environment. When in the area, I try to make my way there because I’m always sure to get some worthwhile images.

The detail in this butterfly’s wings is amazing. You can get a better view by clicking on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me (pops@popsdigital.com) for digital purchase and licensing options.

Prickly Poppy

Poppy, Prickly Poppy, Flower

This was a delightful find!  This is a prickly poppy.  I didn’t know this type of flower existed until I found this one by happenstance.

On our recent trip to Custer State Park in South Dakota, we had pulled over in the area of a small prairie dog town.  As I was trying to get some good photos of the prairie dogs, I noticed this white flower.  It was the only one in that area.  I believe I found this particular bloom at its peak.  We have poppies at our home in northeast Wisconsin but they are the large, redish-orange variety that have a very short blooming period in early spring.  Finding this delicate white flower on a prickly plant blooming in late summer was a nice surprise.

From the little I was able to find online, the prickly poppy is a beautiful wildflower that lives for only one growing season. It grows naturally in sandy, dry areas. New plants grow from seed produced the previous year. The papery white flowers bloom throughout the summer.  The plant has blue-green leaves and the stems are covered with sharp spines.

You can get a better view of the details in this flower image by clicking on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me (pops@popsdigital.com) for digital purchase and licensing options.

Finding Greenspace

Moth, White, Fern, Macro

I found this peaceful creature resting on a forest fern while hiking through Wisconsin woodlands. I believe it is a moth; I couldn’t tell you what kind.  It was quite small but easy to spot because of its light coloring on the dark green leaves. I truly enjoy the intricate markings of its wings.

You can view a larger, more detailed version of this image by clicking on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

Flipping the Light Fantastic

Fireworks, Airplaines, Night, Long Exposure
Talk about a wild ride!  This spectacular light painting was created by a pair of acrobatic airplanes flying huge loop-the-loops in the night sky while shooting fireworks off their wings. Though this long exposure image gives the impression of a colorful chaos, it is actually very graceful and beautiful to watch. This was part of the night airshow at the EAA’s AirVenture 2019.

Because this is a long exposure shot, the people on the ground have a ghostly/blurry quality to them caused by them moving during the 26-seconds the shutter was open. The airplane on the ground didn’t move, so it remains sharp.

The night, fireworks-enhanced air show has improved over the years. You can view some long exposure shots I took at AirVenture 2013 by visiting this earlier post – Pathway to Glory.

You can view a larger, more detailed version of this image by clicking on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

Three Amigos

Daffodil, Daffodils, White, Orange, Spring
I found these vibrant daffodils brightening up a small park in rural Kewaunee county, Wisconsin. This is a positive sign that spring has finally sprung in our neighborhood.

Near Bruemmer Park and Winter Park, on Kewaunee County’s highway F, is a small log cabin.  In front of this cabin is a boulder with a bronze plaque that is dedicated to the achievements of Ransom Asa Moore; dated 1929.  The plaque states, “As superintendent of schools of this county and as agronomist, and a builder of the Short Course in Agriculture at the University of Wisconsin, this tablet is placed near his birthplace and where in 1881, he first taught school.”

In this humble park area, there are a variety of daffodils that dot the park grounds in early spring. I usually try to make sure I stop by each spring to capture some of the beauty. There are other flowers that bloom through the summer, as well. I’ve used it as a setting for portraits in the past.

You can view a larger, more detailed version of this image by clicking on the photo. When you do, a full-screen version will open in a new browser tab.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

Springy

Flowers, Daffodil, Daffodils, Spring, MacroWhen the daffodils are blooming, you can be confident spring has sprung. I found these delicate beauties at a local park on a cool but bright spring morning.

This is a image that is worth viewing the larger version. If you have a large monitor you’ll see more detail in the petal’s texture and flower centers. To see the full-screen version, click on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

One-Eyed Snowy Owl

Snowy Owl, Owl, White, Bird

I spotted this snowy owl perched at the top of a power pole in rural Northeast Wisconsin. It seems to have only one working eye. These owls, along with their beautiful white plumage, have distinctively orange eyes. It also looks like it’s missing a beak, but it’s just hidden by the fine plumage around it’s beak.

I was on my way home in the afternoon when I passed by the owl a quarter mile from my home.  I pulled into my garage, grabbed my camera from the house and headed back; hoping it wouldn’t fly away before I got back to take photos. Thankfully, it was still there when I returned and was willing to sit while I snapped a few images.  Most of the time it seemed uninterested in me and rarely looked my way. It stayed in place long after I was done and back home.

I took this image at some distance but I really don’t have the kind of lenses that could capture a clear, sharp photo at this distance on a dreary winter day. When shooting, I was far enough away I didn’t notice the problem with its left eye.  I thought I noticed the left eye was not open as wide, but didn’t realize the real problem until I could view it enlarged on my computer screen. This isn’t a bad image for the screen, but it wouldn’t make a great large print.

You can view a full-screen version of this image by clicking on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

Soft Touch

Flower, Green, White, Leaves, CyclamenThis is a flower that seems to bloom backward. The flower head is pointed down (notice the downward direction of the buds to each side) but the petals turn up. This plant is part of the Cyclamen genus.

I’d like to tell you that I took this photo of an exotic plant in some exotic foreign land but, alas, it was taken in the kitchen of our home. I was working on my camera, making micro-adjustments to the focus of my various lenses. It’s a process of fine tuning the auto focus function to account for the minor differences in lenses.  Even lenses of the same brand and model can have minor differences. The camera will focus each of them the same so focus could be off…usually just a bit and mostly unnoticeable, but still off.  Of course, we’re typically wanting a very precise focus on most of our images so tweaking settings to get it as close to perfect is a worthwhile endeavor.

So, after making my micro-adjustments, I just snapped a few photos to test the focus accuracy. This is one of those test shots. The plant is one my wife keeps on a cabinet in front of a window in our kitchen. I focused on it, taking advantage of the pleasing green of our lawn outside the window as the background. Of course, the lawn is out of the range of focus so you’re not seeing blades of grass; you just see a solid green background. You’ll also notice a kind of cross-hatch texture in the background. That effect was created by the window’s screen.

Sometimes, if your looking, you’ll find “interesting” and “exotic” in the most common places.

To view a potentially larger, full-screen version of this image, simply click on the photo.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

Bride and Bridesmaids

Flowers, Daisy, Daisies, White, Yellow
Sometimes, it’s the simple beauty that most easily captures me.  Pleasing colors. Interesting shapes. A bit of texture. Uncommon perspective.

I found this collection of flowers while on another photographic mission.  I was out early one morning to snap some photos of a couple of tall ships that were docked in the Kewaunee harbor.  I parked my car in a lot near by and started working.  At some point, I looked back and noticed a beautiful flower garden surrounding a nearby home. These flowers – the white one, in particular – immediately caught my eye.

I took quite a few photos of the ships, but this one may be my favorite of the morning.

You can see a much larger version of this image by clicking on it.  When you do, another browser tab will open.

All of the photos I post are available for purchase. If you’d like to buy one, click on the blue “Buy this Online” bar below for a variety of print and frame options or contact me for digital purchase and licensing options.

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Spring Bloomers

Dicentra Cucullaria, Dutchman's Breeches, Wildflowers, Macro
These are one of my wife’s favorite wildflowers. She can’t help but comment on how adorable they are. They are Dutchman’s Breeches. (Dicentra Cucullaria)

These unique wildflowers get their name from the shape of the flowers. They resemble pantaloons hanging upside down and slightly inflated.  The yellow adornment at the bottom of the flower resembles a belt on the pantaloons.  (I think they look more like old-fashioned bloomers.  That’s why I titled this image, Spring Bloomers.  That, and because they bloom very early in the spring.)

In our area they begin to show up in early May. The flowers are approximately 3/4 inch in length and white to pinkish in color. The blooms dangle down from thin stalks rising from the lush green plant. According to Wikipedia, Native Americans and early white practitioners considered this plant useful for syphilis, skin conditions and as a blood purifier.

You can view a larger version of this image simply by clicking on the photo.

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