Florida swamp photograph on a postcard

River through marshland savannah swamp picture by SusansZooCrew

River through marshland savannah swamp picture
A gorgeous picture taken in a Florida savanna swamp, featuring a river of water through the marsh grass with trees and a gorgous blue sky in the background. Great poster image for any native florida scenery fans!

Fairgrounds Swings Stopped Against Grey sky

Fairgrounds Swings Stopped Against Grey sky by SusansZooCrew

Fairgrounds Swings Stopped Against Grey sky
The swings ride at a county fair festival sit against a grey sky. Great image of a midway ride!

Making a reflection

Florida Box turtle Photograph w Text by SusansZooCrew

A mirror isn't the only surface that can make a reflection. This quick photograph of a Florida box turtle was taken using a car hood as a reflective surface. Mr. turtle had gotten himself behind a pile of rocks and needed a hand, so we exchanged rescue services for a snapshot :).

Car hoods are just one reflection. Puddles of water, polished wood, hard plastic, a picture frame laid flat (using the glass), or any hard shiny surface makes a great reflection! Keep in mind that the color of the surface will reflect on the object (which can be used to a great effect!).

Impulse action shot-always bring the camera

Girl Running On Florida Beach by SusansZooCrew

Sometimes taking the camera along, even when you're just going to dinner with the family, gives you the chance to grab a great action shot.

We were out to dinner at a place on the beach and the kids wanted to run down the beach. Leaving the camera on full auto, I snapped several shots of them playing. This is one example of the action shots I managed to capture! A bit of erasing the edges makes this into a graphic for any beach fan. The stormy day ended up being a bonus as the grey skies make the pink shirt really stand out!

So always bring the camera......you never know when a photo occasion arises!

My favorite bonsai subject

About 5 years ago a friend of mine got me started in bonsai, using a plant called Portulacaria afra. You may have seen it under the name Elephant Food, or Elephant Bush, since elephants LOVE them!

Fastforward to now and I have a bunch of bonsai and future bonsai Portulacaria in my yard. It's a great outdoor bonsai, easy to care for and the only things that kill it are overwatering and freezing! Oh, and if an elephant or an errant goat get to them. Some of my plants have survived errant goats, but I doubt they'd survive an elephant :).

Here's a great resource, more information that you can scroll through in five minutes, all about the P. Afra! There's even information that I've sent the author, and I was glad to see he incorporated it into the giant website monograph.

Here's the link:

Portulacaria Afra Monograph

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A bonsai digital painting, Bougainvillea

Bougainvillea (or bougie for short) is either a favorite bonsai subject or a ignored bonsai subject down here in South Florida, depending on who you ask. When in full bloom, the bracts (which most people think are the flowers) come in dozens of shades of reds, pinks, orange, white, and I've even seen green and multi colored.

Personally I don't have much luck with them, I usually let them dry too much and then end up drowning them. I think after the few I have are make into "finished" bonsai, I'll leave them to others!

Here's a digital painting I did of a real bougie bonsai, the photograph didn't do it justice due to a distracting background:

Bougainvillea Bonsai Painting-old informal upright by SusansZooCrew