Sunrise on the river is one of my favorite ways to start the day. When the water is calm it’s hard to image a more peaceful place. Approaching the river fills me with a sense of wonder and a profound appreciation of what lies ahead. Soon I’ll be out there among the herons and geese.
Tag Archives: still
Little Blue Heron

This Little Blue Heron perches above the water, watching intently for any motion below.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Reflections
I had some other ideas for this week’s photo challenge but I was walking through the woods and the reflection of the trees in this stream caught my attention. Perhaps too literal a treatment of this week’s theme but I liked the color and the stillness of the water at this spot.
Resting White-Tailed Deer
About a week ago I visited the Big Meadow section of Shenandoah National Park, specifically looking for deer. As I walked through the meadow I noticed this White-Tailed Deer watching me. I was able to get much closer, the deer in the park are quite used to people, but I like this image of the meadow with the deer resting in it.
Perfect Camouflage
A tiny Cricket Frog sits still, assuming its nearly perfect camouflage will keep it safe. I never would have seen it had it not hopped right in front of me as I walked down the lakeside trail.
Five-Lined Skink 1
This Five-Lined Skink frequently hangs out near the gap in this brick wall. I see it quite regularly and was able to get close enough to take a few good photographs. Five-Lined Skinks are common in Central Virginia. You can usually find them on old logs or on rock piles. They never seem to stray far from good hiding places.
Rose Buds
Sun, rain, plant, earth, and gardener all played a part in producing these magnificent buds. How many hours of sunlight, drops of rain, atoms of nitrogen, and beads of sweat have gone into them?
King of the Mud Puddle
Walking in a park near the James River on spring afternoon, I stopped to see if there might be anything interesting in a large puddle adjacent to a small pond. Sitting, quietly a few feet from the trail was this red toad. It remained so motionless as I photographed it, I began to think it might be a toy frog somebody put there as a joke.
Colorful Fungus on Log
This fallen log, in Pocahontas State Park, near Richmond, Virginia, forms the basis for quite an ecosystem of colorful fungus and lichen.