OK, so it’s a play on the song, but it still rings true. When I am out in nature, I am seeking not only photographs, but the love that is out there in nature. By love, I mean that connection to natural things around me. I celebrate the sounds of babbling brooks, the light pouring through the leaves, the frost on dormant plants, the freshness of a crisp autumn day, as well as the bears running after the salmon, the elephants rejoicing in the waterhole. The photographs I make are all gifts that remind me of those experiences, images that I can return to to feel the love, so to speak. And sometimes, I find special gifts, like these hearts of nature – here in the cottonwood leaves of Capitol Reef National Park, and in the Presque Isle River in northern Wisconsin.
They are like little rewards to showing up and being present, and open, to what’s around me. And a reminder that life is good!
P.S. Check out my latest book, Expressive Nature Photography.