Best of Photos

Hadza Man, Tanzania

Long vistas and the dry season withered vegetation enable keen eyes to spot game miles away. From a wind-bowed tree on a ridge, a man named Mahiya peers across rough Tanzania terrain where Hadza bands range.

Elephant, Kenya

A rainbow streams over a lone elephant as it walks in Samburu National Reserve, a little-known jewel of northern Kenya that teems with wildlife.

Elephants, Namibia

This shot was taken just before the rainy season in Etosha National Park, Namibia, during an internship for the World Wildlife Fund-Namibia Chapter. The elephants were in the process of chasing away all the wildlife in the area from the watering hole. Then the dominant male proceeded to lead the charge on the parked vehicles as you are observing now. I like this picture because there is so much motion and you feel alive when being chased down by elephants

Giraffe

Giraffe in tall grass

Zebras, Kenya

Zebras huddling together

Moose, Snake River

Two moose finish their last meal of the day as the sun sets along the Snake River in Wyoming.

Fishing, Celebes Sea

In Semporna, many Filipinos and Malayu who traditionally fish for a living have erected hundreds of these homes in the Celebes Sea.

Hanuman Temple, India

Image was shot in Hampi, India at sunset of a very small Hanuman temple at the edge of town. Was able to balance the low light of the temple with the setting sun and silhouette the trees.

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Best of June

Bering Sea Sunset

Water from the Bering Sea crashes on the rocks of Margaret Bay in Dutch Harbor, Alaska.

Stone-Marked Grave, Libya

Carefully chosen light and dark stones mark the isolated grave of a herder who died between 5,000 and 3,000 years ago. As rainfall dwindled, the inhabitants of Libya remote Fezzan region congregated around scattered oases.

Waikawau Bay, New Zealand

This photo was taken at Waikawau Bay, Coromandel, New Zealand. After a gorgeous drive up the coast I was greeted with this scene. It kind of reminds me of the symmetrical paintings I did at primary school where you painted one side then folded the paper in half. The weather always seems to provide unique opportunities up this end of New Zealand.

San Luis Valley, Colorado

Southwestern farmers have long shared community-operated waterways, or acequias, like the 150-year-old People Ditch in Colorado San Luis Valley.

Basalt Pinnacles, Scotland

On Skye Trotternish Peninsula, basalt pinnacles loom over the Sound of Raasay. Rising from the debris of an ancient landslide, they bear witness to the geologic upheavals that shaped these lands.

Sheep, Scotland

Tangles of seaweed lure a flock of sheep from Iona green slopes down to the beach for a mineral-rich graze. In Gaelic this stretch of coast is called Camas C

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Photos of Argentina

Horse Ranch, Argentina

Men and horses pause near El Calafate, a town just beyond Lake Argentina in the southern reaches of Patagonia. With its stunning backdrop of Andes peaks, the town is one of the country

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Landscape Photos

Fireflies

I was spending the Fourth of July back in Nebraska, in the farmhouse where I grew up, and there were more fireflies that summer than I did ever seen. I went out to the dirt road behind the house and shot this using a long exposure, just after sunset.

Palouse, Washington

Sunrise lights up the verdant hills of Palouse, Washington, beneath the watchful gaze of a lone early bird.

Lake of the Moon, India

The azure waters of Chandra Tal

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Nature Landscape

Tundra Landscape, Russia

Rolling off Kronotsky Volcano, an autumn storm billows toward the tundra. This vast tweed of feathery grasses, red bearberries, and green crowberries attracts grazing reindeer, berry-picking bears, and curlews that swoop in by the thousands to strip the bushes of their fruit.

Painted Hills, Oregon Sunrise

Sunrise on the Painted Hills at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Painted Hills, Oregon. I had to travel three hours on very rural winding country roads in the dark, with steep drop-offs to get there for this opening shot of the day!

Storm Clouds, Grand Canyon National Park

Storm clouds clear to reveal frosted cliffs near Point Hansbrough in Arizona Grand Canyon National Park.

Big Cypress Reservation, Florida

In the green firmament of a slough, galaxies of duckweed are stirred by slow moving waters. Florida Seminole call this section of swamp the Jurassic.

Los Angeles Wildfires

From the view I had at the location, it looked as if there was a freeway leading directly to the hills of fire! It was amazing to see how life continued on despite the growing fire.

Mount Rainier, Washington

This image is of my wife on the summit ridge of Mount Rainier crater. I love the interplay between the mountain, sky, and human in this image

National Performing Arts Center, Beijing

China National Performing Arts Center hosted its first concert in 2007.

Storm Clouds, South Dakota

Large powerful storms can be nearly a daily occurrence during the summer months on the South Dakota plains. This one felt very mysterious as it filled the sky with dark, heavy clouds and thunder that shook the ground. It was as if two worlds were colliding

Posted in Landscape, Nature

World in Focus Galleries

Haw Creek Falls, Arkansas, at Night

Bathed in moonlight and swollen with floodwater, the rush of Haw Creek Falls in Arkansas announces the return of spring. To minimize maintenance, there are no bridges along the trail. In some places you can hop from rock to rock, says Tim Ernst, one of the trail pioneers. In others you have to get your feet wet and feel how cold the water really is

Right Whales Swimming

A century ago only a few hundred right whales survived in the Southern Hemisphere. But international protections are working, and the southern rights future, says Oregon State University biologist Scott Baker, looks good.

Toad River Valley, Canada

Like curtains drawn across the landscape, the walls of the Toad River Valley yield to untracked forests and pure lakes in northeastern British Columbia. Years of compromise and careful planning defined the enormous Muskwa-Kechika Management Area here, where competing interests

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Nature Power

Icebreaker, Antarctic

U.S.S. Atka stands off Crater Hill on McMurdo Sound in mid-March; she kept channels open for evacuation of the last summer residents.

Flag-Footed Bug and Passionflower

A bird zeroing in on a flag-footed bug perched on a passionflower might see the flutter of red “flags”

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Nature

African Elephant, Ngorongoro Crater

An African elephant crosses the lush green of Tanzania Ngorongoro Crater.

From the upcoming National Geographic book The Image Collection, due fall 2009. Shop for other photography books from National Geographic.

Northern Spotted Owl

A tagged northern spotted owl swoops toward a researcher

Posted in Landscape, Nature

Nature Photos

Green Lake, Mount Abu

I was travelling across Rajasthan when I saw the lake in Mount Abu covered by an extensive green layer. The mother and her girl were dressed in such nice colors that harmonized so beautifully with the color of the lake.

Curled Fern Leaf

This unfolding fern leaf looks a bit like it rolled up into a ball.

Lily Pads, Venetian Gardens

This Photo was taken at Venetian Gardens in Leesburg, Florida, just after a thunderstorm. The dark sky leaving the area shows a three-foot diameter water lily with new collected water. A dragonfly came to drink the freshwater in the safety of the center of the lily. On the third trip to the water, I was lucky to catch it in full flight

Posted in Landscape, Nature
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Nature & Weather

Tundra Landscape, Russia

Rolling off Kronotsky Volcano, an autumn storm billows toward the tundra. This vast tweed of feathery grasses, red bearberries, and green crowberries attracts grazing reindeer, berry-picking bears, and curlews that swoop in by the thousands to strip the bushes of their fruit.

Nichols Bridgeway, Chicago

The Nichols Bridgeway extends over the world largest green roof to Millennium Park.

Thunder Lake, Minnesota

Sunset flares over Thunder Lake, one of 14 small lakes on the Red Lake Reservation managed by the tribal fisheries department. It feeds Red Lake, sacred to the Chippewa and once again thick with walleyes

Posted in Landscape, Nature
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