butterfly vertical

butterflyvertical
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

In my front yard. What could be easier than that? I use my camera bag to carry around all the things my pockets would usually have, that way I have to take my camera almost everywhere.

Broken Fence, Revolutionary War Cemetary, Hilton Head Island

fencerevcem
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

There is an interesting cemetary that I pass every day as I drive the dogs to the beach. I made a mental note to come back during the day when the light is better as it is on the west side and the setting sun is behind it. I was surprised to find out that the graves are of people who lived and who fought in the Revolutionary War. There is a large mausoleum there and these broken pieces of fence were leaning up against it with ivy growing next to them.

eliot at the beach

eliotbeach
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

This is Eliot at his happiest. He mopes around the house all day, mostly sleeping, limping like he couldn't walk 5 feet. When the late afternoon comes, he senses it's time and starts following me around and generally making a pest of himself. Then the car ride to the beach, and the dog who could hardly walk romps up and down the beach, retrieving sticks or a ball that is thrown in the water, sniffing everything, greeting every other dog that is walking on the beach, finally in his element.

heron in flight

heronflight923
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The heron, its long wings flapping in flight, crosses the blue sky, so graceful in the air, so still while it stands on the land.

heron landing

heronlanding
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

Landing or taking off, this heron is as graceful as any ballet dancer, posed as if leaping off tiptoes into the air.

branches sunset

branchessunset
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

A beach is a gathering place for everything that is tossed around by nature, from shells to seaweed to horseshoe crabs to branches to all the flotsam and jetsom that the sea accumulates and then tosses up onto the shore. The beach is constantly changing, constantly reinventing itself, tides change the beach, wind changes the beach, rain changes the beach. It is never the same, always new, always photogenic.

Driessen Beach, Hilton Head, SC 9/23

driessenbeach923
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

Walking on this beach is a meditation on the roar of the surf, the feel of the sand beneath my feet, the wide expanse of sea and sky. The dogs walking along besides me, Eliot bursting into the surf when the mood hits him. I am lucky to be here, privileged to share this moment with the herons, the gulls, the pelicans, the small birds who work the sand right before the tide for their food, the beautiful beach stretching for miles in either directions, the dramatic clouds an inspiration to anyone with a camera.

heron

heroninflight3
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

Magnificent bird
wings spread over the surging sea
looking for dinner

heron preparing to land

heroninflight920
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

This is why, if you can, you should always have your camera with you. Though I walk on Driessen Beach every day, many days the camera never comes out of the bag. But once in a while, I can run off 3 or 4 shots that I would regret not taking if I hadn't taken my camera with me. This is one of them.

Great Blue Heron in flight

heroninflight2
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

This magnificent bird rules over both ocean and lagoon. A common sight down here in South Carolina, it is a wonderful vision in flight.

calla lilly

callalilly
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

While white is the dominant color of this flower and of this picture, it is the dramatic yellow stamen erupting out of the middle of it that attract attention.

Sea Grass and Fence

grassfence
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

A composition of diagonal and oblique lines.

Weston, window

westonwindow3
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

With an only slightly willing model (whose name is Weston), and great light streaming in the window making very interesting shadows, this caught my eye. Weston moved but I told him to come back and lie there and for once he listened to me.

house Beaufort, South Carolina

housebeaufort
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

How many people have stood on this porch and watch their family, friends, neighbors go by. How many times have they nodded hello, or called out to a friend to ask them how they were doing, how's the family, the kids. These old buildings have memories, and they have character, something that many new buildings seem not to have included in the plans.

sunset Driessen Beach, Hilton Head, SC

sunsetdriessenbeach1
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

On the East Coast as we all know, the Sun sets in the West. I don't get up early enough for sunrises. But on barrier islands like Hilton Head, the sunset bleeds over to the East, creating some very nice "sunset shots."

heron in reeds

heroninreeds
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The heron and egret, and I don't know the difference between the two, were very elusive and almost non-existent birds in Delaware and Maryland, where I last lived, but down here in the Low Country of South Carolinal they are almost like the pigeons of New York City, almost everywhere, but unlike the pigeons they are spectacular every time I look at them.

double butterfly

doublebutterfly
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

While waiting for my wife who was shopping in a store, I noticed the butterfly activity around some bushes in a shopping center in Hilton Head. As I almost always carry my camera with me now that I am retired, I was able to take some photos of some very attractive butterflies. Interestingly, the bottom of their wings were more colorful and interesting them the top.

wall ivy Beaufort, SC

wallivybeaufort
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

Eventually
the plants win and buildings don't
nature takes the game

sunset Driessen Beach, Hilton Head, SC

sunsetdriessenbeach8
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The setting sun casts
a long burst of red blossoms
across the night sky

butterfly

butterfly7
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

One of nature's gifts to our eyes, the butterfly.

calla lilly abstract

callalillyabstract3
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

Photographers owe a debt to Georgia O'Keefe for showing us how sensual the inside of a flower is.

sunset, Sedona, AZ

sunsetpanoramic-copy
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The magic of the red rocks of Sedona. The sun setting, a fleeting moment to catch the right light. 3 pictures merged into one to make this panorama.

wall Beaufort, SC

wallbeaufort
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

Everything decays sooner or later. Paint peels, wood rots, vegetation creeps in. It makes for an interesting still life, nature always wins out, sometimes it just takes longer.

Driessen Beach Clouds, Hilton Head, SC

DriessenBeachClouds
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

I am constantly in awe at the vistas that I see at this beach. The sky is open, the clouds are close, the beach displays them like a new coat it is proud to wear. The camera to my eye, everywhere I look is another photograph, instead of having to search for a photograph, I am in the enviable position of having to decide which spectacular view to photograph.

osprey, Driessen Beach, Hilton Head, SC

ospreydriessenbeach
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The osprey watches
it dives to its prey below
its grasp is fatal

sunset, Bluffton, SC

sunset3
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

At the end of day
the sun sinks low in the sky
everything is red

Heron Close Up

heroncu
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

With my 28-300 lens and the fact that this heron is used to being around fishermen and cadging food from them, I was able to get fairly close to it. They are very elusive birds who usually fly away if you get too close to them.

clouds

clouds
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The skies down here seem more dramatic, more open. The sky's color is more blue, the clouds stand out more against the sky, when I walk the beach everything is open, there are no buildings to intrude, to block my view of the sky.

Flower Abstract

blkeyedsuzie3
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

The jumble of curves, the pale yellow petals reaching towards the end of the photograph, a macro lens changes everything.

dramatic clouds, Driessen Beach, Hilton Head, SC

dramaticclouds
Originally uploaded by fauselr.

As I am on Driessen Beach almost everyday because of walking the dogs, it has sort of become my muse. The dramatic skies, the long stretch of the beach, the quiet and emptiness of the time of day when we walk the dogs there, combined with the joy and sheer good luck I feel at being there inspires me.