Silver Creek Brown Drakes

In addition to opening day on Silver Creek, the Brown Drake hatch has also started on the Creek. The next 6 to 7 nights should be fantastic and if you have the chance to check it out, it's quite the phenomenon.

Here are a few images from the last couple of days on Silver Creek:

Spring Lupine

We're in the midst of our spring-green here. Cool with some rain and hail and even snow for the next few days.

May is a favorite month of mine. Great clouds and it's green and generally a bit warmer and warming and our rivers here are generally too high to fish so I don't feel as though I need to be on the river every day and end up exploring other places I might not otherwise check out. I am off to, for example, the Fall River in Northern California and then the East Cape in Baja, Mexico and then the Oregon Coast over the next three or four weeks.

The image below was my first image with a new camera--Nikon D810--taken today. Like any new tool, there are minor adjustments to make in order for the tool to become virtually invisible much like a pen to the hand of a writer. I have been shooting with the Nikon D3s for the past 5 or so years and upgraded yesterday to the D810.

Why the upgrade? My D3s is essentially lumbering into the mortuary to find its place. The memory card slots are broken. The frame is partially bent from a fall. The grip has fallen off in many places. I want a back-up camera. I'd like to print much higher resolution files (the D810 is a 35mm sensor with 36 mega pixels compared to the faster 12 mega pixel D3s), I am indeed sacrificing speed (ie frames per second and iso in exchange for much higher resolution) but really want a higher resolution file as I am shooting more and more at a relatively low (100-1,600) iso and decided against the Nikon D5. If iso and frames per second were my two priorities than the Nikon D5 would be my choice but that's not my case.

In any event, the image below was my first image taken with the Nikon D810. Shot today near Hailey, Idaho.

Lupine. Hailey, Idaho.

Carey, Idaho

Below are two images from today. For years now I have been intrigued with homes in small towns. The image below is of an old single story apartment row in Carey, Idaho.

Another place I have been fascinated by is Craters of the Moon. It's really quite close to where I live yet I have never been really satisfied with any one image I have taken there. It's a hostile environment in so many ways. Windy. It's almost always windy there and today was no exception. The bottom image was taken today at Craters of the Moon.

Apartments. Carey, Idaho.

Craters of the Moon.

Arco, Idaho

Below are a bunch of images taken either in or near Arco, Idaho. Arco was the first town in the world to be powered by nuclear power. It's located at the southern end of the Lost River Range and the Big Lost River is almost always dry in Arco. I have been fascinated by the town for some time and got a quick oral history from a lifetime resident, John, who spent nearly an hour answering my questions. John graduated from Arco's high school class of '55 and gladly pointed out where '55 is inscribed in the hill.

John, a lifetime resident of Arco, Idaho poses for a portrait. In the background is the infamous hill showcasing, in large painted white numbers, the graduating classes of nearly the last 100 years. Arco was first powered by nuclear energy in 1955. John mentioned the larger the size of the white painted number on "the hill" represented the larger the size of the graduating class that respective year. In other words, the small numbers represent smaller class sizes and vice versa. I spoke with John in front of Arco's Mello-dee Club.

The hill in Arco with almost 100 year's worth of graduating class numbers. This is a 5 image pano.

Road near Arco.

Buildings just west of Arco.

An old Arco motel. During better times, motels in Arco were abundant and occupied. This motel still appeared open.

Cross near dirt road. Arco, Idaho.

Water troughs and sky. HWY 20. Idaho. West of Arco.

Mello-dee Club. Arco, Idaho.

Fly Fishing Photography Inspired By Nature

Along with three other artists, I was featured in a short video created on behalf of The Nature Conservancy that was recently on display at BAM (Boise Art Museum).  Produced by ComDesigns, this video showcases four artists inspired by nature. ComDesigns donated their time to shoot and produce this short piece. As a fly fishing photographer and a fly fishing guide, I am a strong supporter of The Nature Conservancy and in particular the Silver Creek Preserve essentially located in my backyard. Without places like the Silver Creek Preserve the public would loose out on access to one of our country's premier spring creeks. Not only that, but The Nature Conservancy is spearheading a project on Silver Creek, that in my opinion will positively effect the entirety--not just the Nature Conservancy section--of Silver Creek by most importantly reducing water temps and mitigating siltation issues. Check out the Silver Creek Preserve site for more info regarding what is called the Kilpatrick Pond Project. The Silver Creek Preserve is for everyone and is one of my favorite places to photograph, guide, fish, walk, bird, canoe, etc...