The Way We See It: insect

Showing posts with label insect. Show all posts

Sunday, February 24, 2013

The Butterfly Effect

Moon Tree Number II - Minnesota
Canon 5D mark II & Canon 50mm f1.4 USM

Most of my free time is spent at work, working on work or talking about work. My commitment to “the job” reflects the passion for the work I do. Twenty-one years later, I still believe that I can influence the future and make a real difference in the lives of the people I see each day. Teaching is one part insanity and one part naïveté.

I am delusional because I believe that what I do each and every day really matters. It’s a crazy thought when you go to work with the assumption that what happens today makes a difference tomorrow. Some call it the “butterfly effect;” a sensitive dependence on initial conditions which assumes that a small perturbation will result in large-scale changes to a future state.

Eastern-tailed blue butterfly ( Cupido comyntas ) - Wm Obrien State Park
Canon 5D mark I & Canon 100mm f2.8 USM

What is your motivation? If you work for the money, you will never know the pleasure in the work you do. My craft, photography, is not limited by the product. The picture is something to share, while the story in the image reflects the life that is lived. Like the work I do everyday, my art is my passion. Images are like the beat of wings in the still of the night that generate ripples in the air. Regardless of the stimulus, both will have unpredictable consequences. In this non-linear world where chaos rules, I choose to embrace the experience, and believe my actions can influence the future.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Tip #80: In Search of Simplicity

Widow Dragonfly (Libellula luctuosa) - Pine Point, MN
Canon 5D MarkII + Canon 100mm f2.8L Macro IS

As my worlds begin to collide, I now search for solitude and space. The split-personality that begins every September will soon merge into the “Me” I want to be. The bruce who was, is lost in the shuffle of expectation, obligation and responsibility. Students, polite with the newness and fear of their future, were respectful and dutiful. Nine months later, my act has grown tiresome and I am the used car man selling the unwanted wreck in a corner lot. A week stands between me and "Mr. L," it is a challenging time but I can see some light in a window at a distance.

Teak Shadow Dragonfly - Hacienda Baru, Costa Rica
Canon 5D MarkII + Canon 180mm f3.5L Macro

On October 19, 2011 I embarked on what I call “Project 101.” This is my exercise, a personal journey to reflect on my own photographic process by offering a few ideas to stimulate yours. So as I struggle to grade a mountain of papers and motivate the unmotivated, I suggest that you search for some simplicity in your life. Take a walk with a camera in a quiet place, find a pattern that strikes a chord and contemplate the elegance in nature.

I took a break from my mountain, I took a hike in the woods and I found the time to author this blog. Get out there and make some time to find yourself.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

INTP: Introverted - Intuitive - Thinking - Perceiving

Lone Yearling Buck - Tamarack Nature Center, MN
Canon 7D + 300mm f2.8IS L

Living a life of theoretical possibilities, where obscured patterns are made vivid, and logic trumps emotion. This is the loner that tolerates others but bristles with discomfort when forced to interact. We try to create large personal bubbles and process our realities in the comfort of our own minds. We like others, but can’t express the warmth they seek and thus retreat to the solitude of home and nature.

Where's Wilburrr? - Manning Trail, MN
Canon 5D MarkII + Zeiss 35mm f2.0

I do my best photography when I’m alone. While I crave the companionship of my wife and photo-friends, I am lost in my thoughts despite their presence. I envy those who thrive on personal interactions and can work a crowd with ease. To me, the noise of human banter is the distraction; big ideas are derived from the quiet of my thoughts, the melody in birdsongs, the repetition of falling water.

Burning off the Fog - Tamarack Nature Center, MN
Canon 7D + 300mm f2.8IS L

Siblings or Friends - Tamarack Nature Center, MN
Canon 7D + 300mm f2.8IS L

My students now visit me each day in their patterned entrance to their classroom. Enthusiasm emanates from their youthful exuberance as they excitedly recount their summer exploits. The noise is everywhere. It clouds the clarity I crave. I am distracted by my responsibilities and I feel the photographer in me giving way to my real reality. I am an introvert who now is a poser. I will act the role of the extrovert and pretend to seek pleasure from this noise. But every five days, I will seek the solitude of nature, ground myself in my photography, and purge my thoughts in this blog. ...end of summer 2011.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail - Tamarack Nature Center, MN
Canon 7D + 300mm f2.8IS L

Monday, July 4, 2011

Species Profile: Megalopygidae

Biodiversity is the scientific way of describing variety; it is a measure of the total number of distinct species in a defined area. Some biologists assess biodiversity by examining genes within a population, while others invoke the classical “species concept” as a way of defining the richness of life in an ecosystem. Regardless of the measurement tool, high biodiversity is a good thing and is cited as a positive indicator for environmental health.

Costa Rica and its tropical forests are known for its high species richness and biodiversity. Some regard the entire country as an ecological hotspot. With the Atlantic Ocean to the east and Pacific to the west, two distinct weather systems collide where the mountains bisect the country. Traveling east to west, the elevation increases along the Caribbean slope. The cumulative affect of oceanic air and elevation changes result in the formation of distinct microclimates that define multiple ecosystems within small patches of land. Like the Caribbean, the Pacific Slope is geologically diverse. As the mountains sink towards the ocean, the structure and diversity of the forests change. Geographic diversity and climate stability contribute to the staggering biological variety found across the country.