IMPRESSIONS

When I go out in the world, camera in hand, the pleasures of the visual world are my subject. I usually approach photography with an open mind, not planning exactly what I would like to photograph. I find that this spontaneous approach is more creative and rewarding than simply taking straightforward photographs of, say, a mountain or a bird. Sure, I do that as well, but I don’t consider those pictures my best work.

I love finding a subject that resonates deeply with me; something where light and subject and mindset and photographic technique come together to illuminate the mystical and spiritual qualities of the world. My work follows the long history of artists and writers who strove to capture those elusive qualities: the Canadian Group of Seven artists who portrayed nature as an experience of immersive light and form; the Zen poets who spent summers working on fire towers in the west; the photographers Ernest Haas and Eliot Porter who used color photography to tell fresh visual stories about nature. All these artists used their imaginations and artistic skills to explore the world in new ways.

I print this series of photographs on Japanese Unryu paper. It is made from mulberry trees, and the fibers winding through each print lend a natural touch that perfectly suits the impressionistic subject. To see more of my photographs in this genre, and to see what sizes are available for ordering, go to Zen Impressions

RAIN FOREST AUTUMN

The Usnea lichen is the longest lichen in the world. I found this specimen in Olympic National Park, where there were hundreds of similar strands draped off the branches of a Bigleaf Maple, reminding me of the Spanish Moss of the deep South, though they are not botanically related. I returned to the location four days in a row, refining my vision of what I wanted to capture, and eventually the lighting was just right.

MOUNTAIN DREAMS

We camped overnight at Lake Stuart, at the foot of mighty Mount Stuart, one of the most imposing mountains in Washington State. The next morning, before the sun illuminated the surrounding mountains, I saw this blue mountain reflection with the light dawn sky along the edge of the lake. The thin horsetails and their reflections added a graphic element that I responded to with my camera. The composition has a yin/yang feeling that invites contemplation.

A SENSE OF FLOATING

On our October visit to Yosemite Valley, the Merced River was reflecting the golden cottonwoods, and this leaf floated on the surface, suspended between water and sky. Its golden color celebrated autumn in Yosemite, and the wet and shaded areas on and around the leaf reflected the vivid blue sky.

BLUE MOUNTAIN MORNING

I am drawn to simple and graphic compositions that distill a landscape to its essence. For this photograph I stood in an alpine meadow and captured the conifers silhouetted against one of the towers of Wiwaxy Peak. It captured a mood, not of bright sunlight but of a time during what photographers call the blue hour at dawn.

WINTER INTRICACY

I live in Michigan all winter, and one of the joys of the winter weather is the presence of winter fog. On days when there is snow or wet soil, and when relatively warm air blankets the landscape, fog forms, draping the landscape in mystery. This Sugar Maple tree is elegant in its form, and it almost seems to be weeping, with the tears of the more distant trees ringing a farm pond.

AROMATIC SUMAC

Impressionistic photography appeals to me more and more, in an age when hyper-saturated, incredibly detailed landscapes have become the norm. I’m looking for something different.

In this canyon the Aromatic Sumac leaves were shades of scarlet and orange and yellow, and note how I chose to photograph them by presenting a couple of sharp leaves against a pleasing out-of-focus blur of color. This is what portrait photographers strive for, and I think it works just as well in nature.

AUTUMN EMBROIDERY

One year I took a December walk along our lakeshore. The fog rested thickly upon the lake, and I was struck by the remnant autumn colors on this native Spirea, against the featureless expanse of fog.

One of the benefits of photography is the personal focus I can achieve in a Zen state while searching for photographs. The beauty of the world, with graceful branch lines and rich colors, reveals itself to my eyes in these moments of quiet but exquisite passion.

I intensified the colors a bit because I liked the look of the photograph that way. It is art, not a faithful rendering.

SMOKY SUN

We were on a long hike to Blue Glacier in the Olympic Mountains. On our fourth morning of the backpacking trip, we awoke to choking forest fire smoke. We didn't know where it was coming from, and we had 18 miles to hike back to the trailhead. We made it to the next campsite, and the following morning the smoke was even thicker, turning the rising sun a brilliant orange-red among the conifers. That's when I took this picture. As we approached the trailhead, we asked other hikers about the smoke and learned that it had blown in from other parts of the northwest, so we weren't in danger. It wasn't great for the lungs, but it made for an incredible photograph.

GOLDENEYE IN EARLY SNOWFALL

Before the high country lakes freeze over, female Barrow’s Goldeneyes spend their hours repeatedly diving to feed on aquatic insects on the lake bottoms. I have photographed these birds repeatedly, but this is among my favorite pictures because it captures the duck among the ethereal pattern of falling snowflakes. Soon the duck will have to fly far away, where it will spend its winter along the Pacific Ocean.

ZEN PINE

I loved the shape of this long Jack Pine branch, complete with cones, and I photographed it with the shimmering lake in the distance.

BUTTERFLY WAVES

While hiking a trail to Burroughs Mountain, we paused at a small lake to look for a Goshawk that had been sighted here. We failed to see the Goshawk, but I became intrigued by the life of the lake itself. There was a large population of Long-tailed Salamander larvae in the lake, which we had learned about while doing an amphibian survey in another lake at Mount Rainier during the previous year.

There were also several species of butterflies flapping their wings against the surface tension of the lake, creating little waves that rolled out from their struggles. This fritillary butterfly fluttered while I photographed the phenomenon; then I cupped my hand under it and lifted it to safety. I still don’t understand why so many butterflies die this way.

ON THE SHIMMERING RIVER

Snow still blanketed the riverbanks as American White Pelicans parted the sparkling sunlight on the river surface. These pelicans are a striking white color, and are known for trapping trout in an enormous pouch. For this photograph I lay down on the ground just above the level of the river surface so I could be eye level with this big bird. I incorporated the sun sparkles around the pelican into the composition because I loved the sense of the creature swimming through shimmering light.

ENTERING THE DREAM STATE

One of my recent projects is to photograph autumn leaves in a more impressionistic manner. The world is filled with sharp focus photographs, but I chose a more dreamy approach, in which the out-of-focus portions of the photograph are just as important in conveying emotion as are the points of focus.

Autumn color has always attracted me, as my brain seems to be hard-wired to love shades of scarlet and pumpkin and sunshine. These colors are so ephemeral, and they represent the plants as an explosion of beauty just prior to entering the long dream state of winter.

LUMINOUS AND ETHEREAL BLUES

Ice caves are ephemeral features in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, forming where water seeps through cracks in sandstone or limestone, then freezes when it reaches the cold air outside. Icicles form, mimicking cave formations of stalagmites and stalactites and columns. Except that these are translucent, and colored by minerals in the surrounding rocks. The ice can be blue or green or yellow or clear, often all in the same proximity, creating crystal ice palaces that appear and reappear each winter like a natural Brigadoon.

For this artwork I chose to combine different photographs of ice in a variety of colors, from two different locations.