23: the story in each photo

Dear Friend,

In 10 days, (on August 19^th), the whole world will celebrate photography and photographers.

World Photography Day began in 1839 in recognition of the Daguerreotype, a photographic process that ‘fixed’ an image, allowing it to last beyond exposure to light. If you’d like to know more, please watch this video: The Daguerreotype. (Link follows this blog/letter).  

What are your thoughts about the importance of photography in the world?

For us, the story in each photo is a big part of capturing moments as we document and share our travels with you.

Frank and I celebrate his journey with photography pretty much daily. He has a propensity to get out and be in nature with his camera, and he does so with the intention to share what he has seen. Digital images can be manipulated, of course, but Frank’s objective is to simply present exactly what he saw and felt.

The following photos are accompanied by Frank’s narration of each:

"There is a strong relationship between all of these animals and the habitat they live in. As usual, the photos that we post on the blog are taken just days before posting. These are some of my favorites that I photographed this week.

The petroglyphs depict an ancient roadmap of the area where and when you will find creatures, like the pronghorns, migrating through.

I chose this photo because it shows the relationship between the petroglyph and the landscape.  I knew, from seeing the grinding stones on and around the grounds, that this is a place where ancient peoples used to prepare meals and also left directions to where, when and what food could be found.

This bird, a young Western Meadowlark, is always singing. It puts a smile on my face to hear its song.

Late one afternoon, I found this little friend, a female Greater Sage Grouse, slowly walking in the tall grasses lit by the setting sun. We were both in no particular hurry and we hung out together for a little while.  

This is a Common Nighthawk I photographed last night with the last rays of sun. I was so happy to get a photo of this busy bird. When they hunt, they zip around the sky so fast catching insects.

And then, right below the Nighthawk, was this proud Pronghorn. It was a great honor to have that time visiting this friend at its home at dusk.

I was searching for some wildflowers on a hillside that was covered with large holes.

As I stepped, I was worried about disturbing any burrows underground and this little Golden Mantled Ground Squirrel popped up with a mouthful of thistles. It posed for its photo before darting off into another nearby hole.

This was taken five days ago at Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. These two little ones were hoping to get a quick drink as their Mom paused before pressing on across the desert in the heat of the afternoon. It’s nice to see these little fawns. On this refuge, there are now over 1700 pronghorn, 40% of those are the young pronghorn.

When I take a portrait, it’s very important to me to have one on one communication with my subject. I need time to get on their wave-length. I feel that this is a true portrait of a pronghorn. We spent around 40 mins conversing out in the late afternoon sunlight. It was a hot day, in the high 90’s. We said 'farewell' to each other as he made his way down to a grassy lakebed to rest. What makes this photograph unique is that wild pronghorns are usually very spooky and skittish. It was a very special visit!

For the last 46 years, my goal in Nature and Wildlife Photography has been to bring photos back from these adventures to share especially with folks who haven’t yet been able to make the journey. Nature photography was how I started in my early 20s, then became a commercial photographer as a professional career, and now I've come full circle back to my original passion."

Thank you for being here, it means a lot to us and we want you to know that we appreciate you! Tracks by the Post started out as just a blog/letter, documenting our journey on the road. The addition of photography (especially by Frank) has made it possible for us to also share the beauty in our natural world along the way. Yay, photography (and Frankie)!

When you have a moment, Drop Us a Line, we always enjoy hearing from you!

Wishing you and yours a peaceful week sprinkled with many beautiful joys.

Gently Be,

Leslie and Frank

PS: Here is the link to Photographic Processes | The Daguerreotype on YouTube.

Pps: Happy News: If you are interested in owning prints of Frank’s work, we’ve unplugged from automatic fulfillment and have opted to communicate directly with YOU!

Visit fbphotoPRINTS for more information.