I was fortunate to have three experts who let me pick their brain and quote them for the article.  Dr. Cherie Buisson shared her expertise regarding shelter medicine.  Martha Boden, CEO SPCA Tampa Bay offered her insight as a shelter administrator.  Dr. Emily Weiss, Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist and VP of Shelter Research and Development for ASPCA offered expertise on matching people with puppies.  I can’t thank them enough for their time and assistance.

While I didn’t write about photography, a few of my photos were published along with the article.  I was so happy the editors chose to include Nikki’s story, along with a photo of Nikki and her beautiful mom Kelli.  Also included was a photo of Mare, my brothers puppy (who is now a very large dog), and a photo of my husband with a mixed breed puppy from the Humane Society.

The day we were there, the light was quickly changing from sunny to heavy overcast and everything in between.  This was both frustrating and fortunate.  I was already going back and forth between “seeing” this place in black and white and color.  Some scenes just scream black and white while others simply must be in color.  For me, going back and forth can be mentally chaotic.  If I didn’t have such a short time to photograph this place, I would probably have just stuck with one or the other.  With only one evening to shoot, I had to do my best to maximize my opportunity.  Couple that with the constantly changing light and my head was spinning (all in a good way of course).

And the color version of this same scene…

I will definitely be visiting Dead Lakes again!

[Nerd Alert} What goes largely unnoticed are the beautiful long leaf pine forests and Pitcher Plant bogs found in a number of locations, particularly in Santa Rosa County.  A  favorite area of ours, for viewing Pitcher Plant bogs, is Black Water River State Forest.  Part of the fun is finding the bogs.  They are almost never in plain view from the road.  Looking for seepage slopes in areas where there has been a fairly recent burn was our strategy.   We were not disappointed!   We found a number of fabulous bogs, each with it's own unique look and collection of Pitcher Plants.

The Pitcher Plant bogs are home to a number of different carnivorous plants.  While the Pitcher Plants stand out the most, there are other meat eaters (insectivores), including sundews and bladderworts.  With the Pitcher Plants, insects crawl inside the pitcher.  A series of downward pointing hairs prevent them from crawling back out.  They eventually end up in the water collected in the pitcher where they become bug stew.  Inside each one of those beautiful plants, a deadly drama is playing out.

Sarracenia flava (Yellow Pitcher Plant)

Sarracenia flava (Yellow Pitcher Plant)

Sarracenia flava (Yellow Pitcher Plant)

Sarracenia leucophylla (White Topped Pitcher Plant) Sarracenia Flava (Yellow Pitcher Plant) and plenty of Sundews that can't be seen but trust me they were there.

Sarracenia leucophylla (White Topped Pitcher Plant) Sarracenia Flava (Yellow Pitcher Plant)

My husband getting in on the action with his point and shoot camera.

Sarracenia leucophylla with blooms, Sarracenia flava in the background

A hybrid of some sort, possibly flava x purpurea but am not sure.

Sarracenia flava. The silvery threadlike plants are Drosera filiformis var. tracyi (Threadleaf Sundew). The little hairs on these plants exude a sticky fluid that captures and absorbs small insects. Yummy!

Sarracenia leucophylla and bloom, back-lit by sun.

Densly packed Sarracenia flava in the low angled light before sunset.

Sarracenia flava-last light of the day

Last Sunday we got to Trout Creek Park along the Hillsborough River just as the park opened.   The mouth to Trout Creek is just a stone’s throw across the river from the boat launch.  I was so excited as we started making our way up the creek.  As described, the creek was narrow and twisty and did indeed have high banks.  Right away, I  was seeing areas where gators had clearly been basking.  The vegetation was all matted down and there were clear slide tracks from the gators sliding into the river.  Since it was early and the sun wasn’t shining on the banks yet, they weren’t yet basking.

Paddling up Trout Creek

Once I stopped looking for gators,  I started really seeing the landscape.  It was gorgeous!  The narrowness of the creek made for an even more intimate experience.  Because the current was almost non-existent, duck weed covered nearly the entire water surface in some areas.  It was like a green carpet laid out before us.  It also obscured the snags just below the surface of the water which made for a slightly bumpy ride.

Cypress on Trout Creek

Trout Creek

We paddled for about half a  mile before we came up on a large Oak that had fallen across the creek.  Our way was completely blocked.  We considered hauling the canoe up and over the fallen tree, or pulling it up on the bank and going around the tree.  The thick Poison Ivy covering both the banks and the tree convinced us to just turn around.  Next time I’m wearing long pants and will take a shirt with sleeves so we can haul over and continue up the creek.

Once we paddled back to the Hillsborough, we headed up-stream.  The current was a little stronger so I actually had to work a little.  Of course, I still managed to put the paddle down to photograph some of the Roseate Spoonbills and other wading birds hanging out in the area.  It had been so long since we paddled this section, I forgot how beautiful it is.

Great Egret

Roseate Spoonbill

Roseate Spoonbills

Roseate Spoonbill

White Ibis with Roseate Spoonbill in background

Little Blue Heron

While we didn’t see any gators at all in Trout Creek, let alone “really big Gators”  We did see quite a few baby gators as we headed up-stream on the Hillsborough.

American Alligator

Siblings

When it was time to head back, we turned the canoe and let the current take us back to the boat launch.  We did head back up Trout Creek to see if the sun, now overhead, brought the “big Gators” up on the banks.  No luck.

I can’t wait to go there again.  Next time, we’ll go late afternoon.  Surely that’s when the “big Gators” will be basking in force along the creek banks!

Thanks to Linda for giving the LMEimages gift certificate to Sherry and Ron AND for helping with the photo session!  I truly enjoyed spending the evening photographing Fortunato and getting to know his wonderful people!  Fortunato does indeed have the right name!

Here are some of my favorites from the session.

I knew when I shot this I wanted it in black and white

In addition to pet portrait sessions,  I’ve been doing a lot of landscape, seascape, and wildlife shooting.  I spent time working on an article submission for Puppies USA.  I also spent several days in South Florida, exploring Big Cypress,  Fakahatchee Strand, and Rookery Bay.  While there, I was awarded honorable mention in the Rookery Bay Photo Annual,  juried by Clyde Buther.

However, for this blog post, It’s all about dogs!  Here are photos from a few of my favorite shoots this month.

My dog Nikon accompanies me on a lot of portrait sessions.  While he’s not normally on the set while I’m photographing other dogs,  he does often stand in while I set my lights.  He definitely earns his kibble!

My Trusty Canine Assistant

My cousin has become a Florida winter resident.  So has her wonderful dog Karma.  While they were here,  I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to photograph Karma.  Her sweet face is irresistible.  Here are some photos from her studio portrait session.

Karma the Goldendoodle

This session was done at my home.  Of course, at least one of the cats had to get in on the action.  I was amazed how Karma totally ignored the cat and stayed focused on me.  Admittedly, I was holding a treat and Karma is very food motivated.  I think the term her mom used was “food whore”.  My cat Jetty is equally motivated by food.  With the offer of a treat, all apprehension about hanging out next to a strange dog that could swallow her whole,  disappeared.  She even stole a few morsels from Karma.

Karma and Jetty

Before it was all said and done, all the dogs got in on the action.

Karma, Comet, and Nikon

A few days later, we took Karma to Ft. Desoto Dog Beach for some fun in the sun.  It ended up not being too sunny but that didn’t matter.  Karma brought her own personal sunshine to the shoot.

Karma at the Beach

Karma Playing Catch

Thursday of last week, I photographed three dogs.  All of them brought a lot of energy to the set.  We had a blast!  Petey was up first.  He was absolutely adorable.  He is probably the most bouncy dog I’ve ever met.  I loved his wiry coat, his assertiveness, his sweet little kisses, and especially watching the pure joy he exudes when he plays.

Petey Has a Brief Moment of Calm (I love his little white mohawk)

It didn’t take much to get Petey airborn.

Petey Gets Lots of Air.

I think it would be fair to say that Petey’s mom spoils him.  The first thing she did when she arrived for the session was buy Petey a new squeaky toy.  Petey seemed to like it a lot!

Petey and His New Squeaky Pumpkin Toy

Next up was Astrea.  She is such a beautiful pup.

Beautiful Astrea

Sadly, she was recently diagnosed with Lymphoma.  However, on this night,  she was happy and full of  energy.

Doing the Happy Dance

One of Astrea’s favorite toys is a plush green turtle.  She really loves playing with it!

Astrea With Her Plushy Turtle Toy

Astrea’s housemate Sin also came along for the shoot.  I’ve photographed Sin before and she never fails to make me smile.  She’s such a goofball.

Sin Smiling For the Camera

Sin wanted in on the action too.   She seemed partial to this plushy toy that has a very loud squeaker.

Yes. She Caught It.

Next up will be a post on some Florida landscapes and wildlife.

If you can’t make it to the reception, the exhibit will be up from February 2nd through March 31st.  Stop by and support the artists and Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Here are the photos I’ll be exhibiting.

Fog-Fisheating Creek

Little Blue Heron

Here’s an article about the exhibit  in Life in Naples magazine.

Audubon’s approximately 13,000 acre Corkscrew Swamp Preserve, near Naples is an absolutely amazing place.   The preserve is home to the largest remaining old growth Bald Cypress stand in North America.  It also hosts the largest nesting colony of Wood Storks in the US.  The benefits of the preserve certainly don’t stop at it’s boundaries.  The preserve is a critical connection for the flow of water to coastal habitats as well as a corridor for the movement of wildlife such as the Florida Panther and the Florida Black Bear.

A 2 and 1/4 mile boardwalk trail will take visitors through Pine flatwoods, wet prairie, marsh, and the spectacular Bald Cypress Swamp.   In the swamp,  the variety and sheer density of ferns, bromeliads, and even orchids is breathtaking.

Corkscrew Swamp Boardwalk

Early morning light illuminates Royal Ferns, Strap Ferns, Leather Ferns, etc.

The lobby of the Blair Audubon Center was displaying photographs from the 2009 Florida Forever Calendar, published by LINC to promote awareness of the Florida Forever land acquisition program.  It was great seeing all the photographs presented in this larger format.

Not far from Corkscrew is Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park.  The strand, running north to south, is  about 20 miles long and five miles wide.  It includes swamp, prairies, tropical hardwood hammocks, pine rock lands, and native groves of Royal Palms, all connected by a slow moving, shallow slough.  It’s the main drainage slough for SW Florida’s Big Cypress Swamp.  At it’s southern end is one of the world’s most productive estuarine ecosystems.  One of the most exciting things about visiting Fakahatchee Strand is the possibility of seeing Florida Panthers or Florida Black Bears.  It’s the only place I’ve ever personally seen a Florida Black Bear in the wild.  Other endangered animal species that might be seen here include Indigo Snakes, Everglades Mink, and Diamondback Terrapins.  I don’t doubt the State Park brochure that boasts 44 native orchid species and 14 native bromeliad species.   For those that don’t want to brave the heat, the biting insects, or the wet terrain, Janes Scenic Drive, an 11 mile road (unpaved) provides easy access for viewing some of the marvels of Fakahatchee Strand.  Tram roads from the area’s logging days provide relatively easy hiking (and even biking) for a more up close and personal view of the strand.  For the adventurer, not afraid to get a little wet, a swamp walk is probably the best way to experience this magical place.  If you only have a little time,  there’s a boardwalk into Fakahatchee Strand off of Tamiami Trail.

One of my favorite sights-canoe, bikes, time for outdoor adventure!

Janes Scenic Drive

Ludwigia submerged under flowing water

More Florida fall colors. This might be my favorite photo from the trip.

Red Shouldered Hawk

A rather smug looking Alligator.

Driving out of Fakahatchee, just as it was getting dark, we came across two snakes crossing the limestone road.  The snake on the left is clearly a Water Moccasin (Cotton Mouth).   I’m not 100% certain but I think the snake on the right is a Mangrove Salt Marsh Snake.  The color and markings of this snake are incredibly variable making it tough to make a definitive ID.  If any of my herp friends can verify this snake’s ID from my technically poor photograph (using a weak flashlight as a light source), I’d be grateful.

Water Moccasin (Cotton Mouth) - Mangrove Salt Marsh snake (?)

For the end of our trip, we decided to head over to the east coast and paddle the Loxahatchee River.  This was our first time on this river and we weren’t disappointed.  The river is a Federally designated “Wild and Scenic River”.  It starts out as meandering fresh water creeks and as it gets closer to the Atlantic it transitions to a tidal brackish estuary before ultimately flowing into the bay and the Atlantic.  We didn’t have the luxury of a shuttle service for our trip so we did an out and back paddle, launching from Riverbend Park.

Cypress and Palms along the banks of the river

Stangler Fig encircles a Cypress trunk

This is the second of two blog entries from our recent South Florida trip.  The first entry is here