Trees

California Pepper Tree

The leaves and red berries of this Pepper Tree were photographed in San Timoteo Canyon on my hike there a few days ago. These trees are common in California, although they originated in Peru. They are fast-growing and long-lived, up to 200 to 300 years. 4/23/19 Judith Sparhawk

Up Close & Personal of a Joshua Tree

Yesterday I posted the image of a Joshua Tree covered with flower spears. I promised to show more detail, so here is one showing the bud coming out, and one showing the flowers at the ends of Joshua Tree branches. I believe that the brush of dry stems is the leftover flower stems from a previous year--thus several stages of growth and bloom. I decided to show both today, as I will be off the grid for a day or two, and wanted to follow up on yesterday's shot. Clearly I don't have arctangent's skill in collage! 4/7/19 Judith Sparhawk

Joshua Trees Gone Crazy!

I made a birding and photo trip out to the desert yesterday, and among other places, went by Black Rock Campground, part of Joshua Tree National Park. The effect of an extra rainy winter was in evidence, with blossoms all over the Joshua Trees. In drought years the trees look dry and quite unhappy, sometimes hardly blooming at all. This spring they are covered in blooms, and there was even some green ground cover between the trees. Stay tuned for a closer look at this interesting tree and its blossoms. 4/6/19 Judith Sparhawk

Eucalyptus Beauty

Los Angeles Arboretum.

Eucalyptus Trees

These special Eucalyptus trees were at the Los Angeles Arboretum. I loved the colors of the bark. They were called Eucalyptus deglupta or Mindanao Gum, native to New Guinea and the Phillipines.

The Aspen Grove

~ This dense grove of aspens was in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was post-processed to bring out the details.

Color Close-Up

This Liquid Amber leaf was so pretty, I just had to zoom in and get the details of the veins.

Delicate Pink

This spray of flowers was from a large tree just covered with these delicate blooms. It was at the Los Angeles Arboretum.

Flowering Cherry ~ This cherry tree was in the Japanese Garden at Descanso Gardens in La Canada-Flintridge, California.

Cherry Blossom Time ~

Gold in the Tree

I don't know the name of this tree, but it has very interesting spiky golden flowers, and tends to grow quite skinny and very tall. When it is in bloom it attracts many types of birds--warblers, orioles, tanagers, vireos. Although this tree was down the street from where I live, I recall sitting across from this type of tree in San Diego one time, and saw 10 species of birds flitting around in the branches and flowers. 6/7/19 Judith Sparhawk

Jacaranda Time

Usually I think of May as the blooming time for Jacaranda trees around here. This year, with our cooler-than-usual spring, the Jacarandas are now starting to bloom, with their beautiful purple flowers. As time goes by, all of the ground under the trees will be covered with fallen petals, carpeting the earth in purple. 6/8/19 Judith Sparhawk

In the Leaves - Judith Sparhawk

When h8king in Caroline Park, I ran across these very pretty leaves from a type of eucalyptus (or gum) tree. It is the the type that grow over so much of Southern California, but seem to be related to them. I really liked the soft colors and shapes of the leaves, and their purple stems. 6/14/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com

The Tallest Manzanita Ever - Judith Sparhawk

When hiking in the Idyllwild area of the San Jacinto Mountains, I saw quite a lot of flowering Manzanita plants. I always think of them as bushes, or shrubs, but I ran across this one that could definitely be called a tree rather than a bush. I liked the reddish trunk and branches, as well as all the flowers, against the blue sky. Above and through the Manzanita, you can see a Ponderosa Pine, to give some perspective as to size. 6/3/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com

Coral Tree Ablaze - Judith Sparhawk

When visiting in San Diego I saw many of these Coral Trees, all in bloom, all near the beach area. They are such a brilliant red color they were hard to ignore. This particular tree was huge, probably 30 feet high, with a very wide canopy. 4/27/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com

Black Rock Canyon - Judith Sparhawk

After birding at the preserve in Morongo, I drove the 25 miles to Black Rock Canyon Campground. I found NO birds there this time, but I did hike around a bit with my camera. This campground is part of, but separate from, Joshua Tree National Park. I did like the Joshua Trees and the cactus plants there. 2/18/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com

Mother Nature's Still Life - Judith Sparhawk

When walking in the snow in Forest Falls, I ran into this sight, and couldn't resist taking a shot. It really truly was just like this--I didn't arrange it. I figure Mother Nature knows best. 2/9/21 www.sparhawkphotography.com

The Color of Thanksgiving - Judith Sparhawk

I know we've seen a lot of fall color on this site, but when I was out walking on Thanksgiving morning, on the sidewalk outside my condo complex, I saw all these Sweetgum leaves. I was struck with the variation of colors, so picked some up, brought them inside, and had a quick photoshoot while dinner was cooking. This is a zoomed in version of the leaves, which shows the veins and textures. 11/29/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

Autumn Gold - Judith Sparhawk

Most of the trees nearby have barely begun to turn, but on my little patio I have 3 small volunteer Liquid Amber (Sweet Gum) trees than have popped up in other potted plants. The cold snap we had earlier this month spurred these little trees into fall colors. This view was taken from my livingroom window today, looking out onto the patio. 11/20/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

Eucalyptus in Bloom - Judith Sparhawk

On election day I went for a morning walk, to get my mind off of what might be happening at the polls (I had already voted by mail). I walked around the local park and noticed the blooms on one of the huge eucalyptus trees there. It seems like those trees have flowers on them almost all year around, and hummingbirds are often zipping around them. These blooms were low enough for me to shoot them with my G12 camera. I liked the red stems to match the flowers. 11/18/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

Aspen Gold

OK, OK, I admit I cheated on this one. I sure haven't been able to go anywhere to get fall color, so I pulled out this old shot of a small grove of aspens, photographed by the Saskatchewan River in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The river runs through the city, and has forested areas along part of the river. This view of the aspens was within view of the downtown skyline--amazing but true! 11/6/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

Orange Blossom Time - Judith Sparhawk

This is the time of year in Redlands that the orange trees are blooming and the wonderful scent is in the air. Admittedly, many of our orange groves have been lost to development, but there are still orange trees around. On a recent walk I stopped to smell the flowers and snap a pic or two. I liked this view looking up into the blue sky. 3/25/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

Among the Aspens

This shot was taken several years ago in the East Sierras, near North Lake, one of the lakes high above Bishop, CA. The morning light was coming through the leaves, giving a warm glow to the trunks of the trees. 2/10/20 Judith Sparhawk

Silk Floss Tree & Visitor - Judith Sparhawk

I often walk to the community park up the street, which has quite a few Silk Floss Trees, which bloom in the fall with large, lush pink flowers. I was photographing the flowers the other day, and this Anna's Hummingbird photo bombed my shot. The Silk Foss Trees grow quite tall--up to 60 feet for older trees. After blooming, they develop large seed pods with the seeds embedded in a white fluffy silk. Older trees often develop conical prickles on their trunks. They are native to tropical and subtropical forests in Argentina & Brazil. 11/5/20 www.sparhawkphotography.com

The Big Old Tree - Judith Sparhawk

In that I'm mostly in the house all day, when I finally get out for my walk, I've taken to carrying my Canon G12, which is compact enough that it doesn't weigh me down, does zoom in pretty well for a small camera, and can shoot in Raw. This big old tree is in the park up the street from where I live, and as many zillion times I have walked past it and noticed the branches that grow every which way, I've never photographed it until this week. It is getting its new leaves but is not fully leafed out, so the branches show up more than they will later. The bark looks like a Sycamore, and the leaves resemble that species, but I'm not sure I've ever seen one with branches quite like this. 3/29/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

One Lone Pinecone - Judith Sparhawk

I ran across this old photo of mine taken at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Gardens in Claremont, CA. They had sponsored a calendar competition one year, asking for photos taken in the garden. This was one of my entries (back in film days), which ended up being selected as First Place, with a quite nice cash prize. I was surprised that with all the pretty flower shots that were entered, my old pinecone took top honors. The comment was, "It was so different". It was fun seeing my work in the calendar. 3/3/20 www.sparhawkphotography.com

Eucalyptus Abstract

On a recent hike in San Timoteo Canyon the other day, I noticed the trunk of this eucalyptus tree, and zoomed in on it. There are a few eucalyptus groves in the canyon, and although they are not native to the US (from Australia, mostly), they have been a part of the California landscape since the 1850's, and have become a California icon. This one is likely a Blue Gum--I liked the bark patterns on the trunk. 10/14/19 Judith Sparhawk

Sunset in the Forest

Playing with colors in this forest image.

Early Morning in the Forest

Adjusting the colors in this forest image.

The Golden Forest

Playing with colors in this art project of bare trees in the forest.

Morning Reflections

A painterly version of this photo from Morro Bay last January. I liked the curve in the road and the morning light.

The Big Tree II

I was playing around with the image of the big old cottonwood tree from Whitewater Nature Preserve, and tried a couple of monotone filters. I think I liked this one best, and maybe even better than the original. Just trying it on for size, so to speak. 1/25/20 Judith Sparhawk

The Big Tree

I went birding at the Whitewater Nature Preserve the other day, and although I was disappointed by how quiet the bird life was, I enjoyed some of the scenery. This very large Cottonwood tree was still covered in golden leaves, and I liked the sunlight and the angle of the large trunk. This is a painterly version of the scene that afternoon. 1/18/20 Judith Sparhawk

Inside the Eucalyptus Grove

A few days ago I posted an image of the trail heading into the grove of eucalyptus trees in San Timoteo Canyon, out of Redlands, CA. This shot was taken inside the grove, showing the trunks of three of the trees. This is a filtered version. 2/6/20 Judith Sparhawk

Trail Into the Eucalyptus Grove

When hiking through San Timoteo Canyon out of Redlands, CA, you pass by or through two groves of eucalyptus trees. This was a trail in dappled light, as it leads into the grove--a painterly version. 1/29/20 Judith Sparhawk

Dazzle Me with Color - Judith Sprhawk

I have a show coming up in January with the theme of "Dazzle Me with Color". As I was looking through my photos with this in mind, I started playing with color and filters. I'm not sure I'll be using this, but it was fun seeing what happened to the leaves I picked up and photographed on Thanksgiving Day. 12/15/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com

Old Growth Forest

A visit to Hartwick Pines State Park isn't complete without a walk on the Old Growth White Pine Forest trail. It is the largest stand of first growth White Pines in Michigan. This park was the starting point of our search for the Kirtland's Warbler. Michigan, June 2019

Jack Pine

My biggest target bird for the Michigan trip was the Kirtland's Warbler, which will only nest in Jack Pine forests, from 5 to 15 years old. This is a view of a Jack Pine near where we were lucky enough to see this warbler. Michigan, June 2019

Trail in the Forest

A view of the Old Growth Forest in Hartwick Pines State Park. Michigan, June 2019

Around the Next Curve

The trail through the Hartwick Pines Old Growth Forest. Michigan, June 2019

Old Growth Forest Relic

A view in the old growth pine forest at Hartwick Pines State Park. Michigan, June 2019

Pines in the Rain

Heading out on a rainy morning for a little birding between the raindrops, so to speak. The forest was filled with so many unfamiliar trees. This pines of some kind looked great with raindrops on the tips of the needles. Michigan, June 2019

Lupine by the Old Stump

~ This old tree stump was at the edge of a meadow in Yosemite. I liked the way the lupine looked around it. I saw at least 6 types of Lupine while in the park, all sizes and colors, from pink to blue to purple.

Old Bristlecome & the Moon

~ I knew there was supposed to be an almost-full moon that night, but the cloud cover was pretty thick, so I didn't know if I would see it at all. Finally it showed itself, came up through the clouds, and made its appearance for about a minute or two before it again slipped behind the clouds.

Bristlecome Pine

~ Visiting the Bristlecone Pine National Park in the White Mountains, east of the Sierras, I photographed many of the old gnarled trees. Some of the trees in this park are up to 4000 years old or more, and are amazing in that they can live and grow (slowly) at over 10,000 feet elevation, in poor soil and under harsh weather conditions.

Walk in the Redwoods - Judith Sparhawk

Reading about the on-going wildfires in California, where over 1 million acres have burned since the middle of summer, my heart ached for the northern California forests. It made me go back to older photos from a trip to that area many years ago. This shot is of a walking trail through the redwood forest at Prairie Creek State Park. It was early morning, still shaded on the forest floor, with light coming through the trees. 10/3/20 My website: www.sparhawkphotography.com