Two Flower

Day 204



This is the second of three shots of flowers in the backyard. Nothing too exciting, but good to be taking shots outside rather than in my office late at night.

Flower Bath

Day 202



In the evening, after a rain is one of my favorite times to shoot. The interesting light and reflections can often transform a common scene into something more extraordinary.

Taking Off

Day 201



With the temperature in the 90's and the air at Code Orange, we decided it would be a good day for a 25 mile bike ride. By "we" I mean Shelley. I went along anyway, and it was not too bad on the way down. We covered the last 12.5 miles of the C&O Canal Tow Path, and arrived in Georgetown ready for a break. Going back was worse since it was hotter and slightly uphill. I was looking for any opportunity to take a break, and when I saw this heron I was off my bike before it even stopped. Heron is hero with an n.

Sluggish

Day 197



When doing some work in the backyard, I discovered this fellow slowly making his way to somewhere. He didn't seem to mind a supersonic (to him anyway) trip on my shovel to a nearby rock where he posed for some shots.

Easy Being Green

Day 192



Walking back into this house, I spotted this little fellow hanging out on a tree. Oddly, he had situated himself on the one part of the tree that was not green. Perhaps he was trying to stand out, and if so, I'm sure the local birds appreciated it.

Smells Like Summer

Day 182



There are certain scents that can take you back in time to the old days. For me, the smell of honeysuckle always reminds me of many childhood adventures playing in the woods around the house where I grew up.

Tiny Swallows

Day 180



We've seen that bird flying in out out of the bird house, and here are the reasons why. It is a bit surprising to me how cute baby birds aren't. They look a bit giant flies.

Peeks

Day 175



Remember that bird flying into the bird house last week. If you look closely enough, you may be able to see it here.

Sunken Barn

Day 173



On Saturday evening, I saddled up the Rockhopper for a bit of photo-riding. Earlier in the day I saw a local farm that had fields full of those big round hay bales. Hoping to capture these in the setting sun trailing long shadows, I rolled my way there only to see a tractor loading them onto a trailer. I continued on and passed another farm where the corn has as high as a sheep's ear (or something like that), and since no one was harvesting it, I got some shots.

Heading Home

Day 169



This is a bluebird house in the backyard, but this is not a bluebird. No, in fact, this is a tree swallow, and it is tending to a set of eggs that we can assume are future tree swallows. The practical joker in me wonders what would happen if I swapped the back yard tree swallow eggs with the front yard duck eggs. I am sure that hilarity would ensue.

Piano Recital

Day 167



My wife teaches piano, and today her six students and their families came to our house for a recital. I was not there, but I heard that it went very well. The reason I was not there is because my job with regards to recitals is to take both kids and the dog away from the house so they will not interfere with the art. So, this picture is from the C&O Canal Tow Path which runs along the Potomac River.

Hydrangea

Day 166



My wife just finished reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, which is apparently about how we should eat food that is grown locally. Because of this, we set out to some local farmer's markets. I was hoping to get some cool shot of stands full of colorful fruits and/or vegetables, or the like. There were none of these to be seen though, so I took this shot of these flowers that were on our counter. Good news is, they were grown locally - in our own back yard in fact.

Brown Duck

Day 157



If you remember all the way back to Day 155, there were two duck eggs under a Japanese Maple tree in our front yard. The next day there were three. This morning, we saw who was responsible. This duck mama was on her way back to the tree to lay egg number 4.

Future Ducks

Day 155



For the past few years, there has been a pair of ducks that live in our neighborhood. This makes no sense since the nearest body of water that is not a swimming pool is a couple miles from here. Several times this spring, I've seen this misguided couple in my yard and now we know why. Yesterday an egg was discovered under the small Japanese Maple in the front yard. Today there was another.

Window to Your Soul

Day 153



This is the view of Hunting Creek Lake in the Catoctin National Park. The light on the surface was a bit harsh by the time we arrived, but underwater it was very nice.

You Don't Stop

Day 152



There I was, in the Congo. Not really. We were camping in Catoctin Mountains in Maryland, and after many hours of rain, we hiked to the falls. Because of the rain, the woods were very lush, and with the humidly, it could have been a jungle.

Ka-Pow!

Day 148



This clematis plant in the backyard has been a fairly frequent subject of mine over the last couple of years. You may remember it from Day 102.

Duck Black (and Yellow)

Day 144



Four Roths from Illinois, one from Pennsylvania, and two from Maryland went to our nation's capitol today. On the edge of the little reflecting pond (the one outside the Capitol Building) we found a duck family. Being cool city ducks, they did not mind me getting really close for a photo-opp.

Leaving Home

Day 128



If you remember way back to Day 115 of this photo-a-day jaunt, there was a bunch of unborn Praying Manti dreaming of the day when they could venture out into the world and do whatever it is that Praying Manti do. Well, today was the big day. Somewhere around 100 of these little guys hatched into what had previously been a butterfly habitat. They were all quite small - each one could stand on a dime (and perhaps turn on one too, I suppose).

Purple Petal Power

Day 127



I tried to take another car shot for the May Challenge. Really, I did. Nothing I tried was worthwhile, so instead I ventured into the backyard with the tripod and a spray bottle of water. This was the result.