Today (13-April-2017) — New Jersey

One of my indoor cacti started blooming last night. The flower is bright red. It looks like there will be four more flowers. I am going to try to do a time-lapsed video as they open. I will also put the plant outside in the sun tomorrow to see if the local bees find it. Otherwise, I will need to try to manually pollinate the flower.

Cactus in Bloom. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/16, 1/30 sec) and SB-900 flash. (David J Mathre)
Cactus in Bloom. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/16, 1/30 sec) and SB-900 flash. (David J Mathre)
Cactus in Bloom. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/16, 1/30 sec) and SB-900 flash. (David J Mathre)
Cactus in Bloom. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/16, 1/30 sec) and SB-900 flash. (David J Mathre)

[contact-form][contact-field label=’Name’ type=’name’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Email’ type=’email’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Website’ type=’url’/][contact-field label=’Comment’ type=’textarea’ required=’1’/][/contact-form]

Two-Years Ago (17-May-2014) — Texas

South Texas Birding Photo Safari with Jason Odell Day 2.

Mexican Ground Squirrel with a Barrel Cactus Fruit at Campos Viejos Ranch in Southern Texas. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 180, 200 mm, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec).

Mexican Ground Squirrel with a Barrel Cactus Fruit at Campos Viejos Ranch in Southern Texas. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 180, 200 mm, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec). (David J Mathre)
Mexican Ground Squirrel with a Barrel Cactus Fruit at Campos Viejos Ranch in Southern Texas. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 180, 200 mm, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec). (David J Mathre)

Monday (09-May-2016) — New Jersey

Indoor Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Having Trouble Getting Close Enough to Suck Juices From My Cactus. Indoor Spring Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D810A camera 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 800, 60 mm, f/5.6, 1/60 sec).

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug climbing a cactus. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D810A camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 800, 60 mm, f/5.6, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug climbing a cactus. Image taken with a Nikon D810A camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 800, 60 mm, f/5.6, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)

Thursday (18-June-2015) — New Jersey

Backyard Late Spring Nighttime Nature in New Jersey.

Firefly Trails. I had seen the fireflies in the Yucca flowers during the day so set up a camera to see them at night. Composite of 311 images (~156 minutes) taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 200 mm f/2 VR lens (ISO 400, 200 mm, f/2.8, 30 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 8, and composite processed in Photoshop CC.

The amazing thing — the deer haven’t eaten the Yucca flowers yet!!!

Firefly Trails in the Yucca flowers Composite of 311 images (~156 minutes) taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 200 mm f/2 VR lens (ISO 400, 200 mm, f/2.8, 30 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 8, and composite processed in Photoshop CC. (David J Mathre)
Firefly Trails in the Yucca flowers Composite of 311 images (~156 minutes) taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 200 mm f/2 VR lens (ISO 400, 200 mm, f/2.8, 30 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 8, and composite processed in Photoshop CC. (David J Mathre)