<Click all photos to enlarge.
Hover mouse over photo for caption when viewed on a computer.>

Oct 6 - 1 Oct 6 - 2 People ask me why I go to the Audubon sanctuaries so often, and how I can find new things to photograph each time.  Why I go is probably the easiest to answer.  I go because I need the exercise, I like being out in nature with my camera, and the sanctuaries are close to home.  I'm not so sure I would drive an hour just to walk in a particular sanctuary, but both of these places are nearby, they are protected and maintained, and they are a great resource for Frederick County.

Oct 6 - 3 Oct 6 - 4 How do I find new things to photograph?  The change of seasons helps a lot.  Right now, seeds and berries are plentiful, leaves are changing color, and a variety of birds are migrating through the area.  In the winter there will be bare trees, frosty surfaces, and animal tracks in the snow.  The seasons also bring a variety of insects that are plentiful in summer, but not so much in fall.

Sometimes, I shoot with only my macro lens; or I use only my point and shoot.  Other times, I carry a really big lens (like today) and l challenge myself to use it close up as well as far away.  I look up, down, and all around.  

Oct 6 - 5 Oct 6 - 6 Finally, where I walk is a sanctuary not only for plants and animals, but for humans, as well.  Other than the sounds of birds and chipmunks and occasionally overhead flights of planes and geese, I am usually alone with nature.  The distractions and distressing news of the modern world are left behind.  As I walk, I am usually thinking about how to write this blog; I'm not stressing over things over which I have no control.  It's an hour of peace, which many of us need in today's world.

Oct 6 - 7 Oct 6 - 8 Come walk in the sanctuary with me.  We don't have to say a word...

To raise funds for hurricane relief, please consider purchasing a butterfly print from my Wings of Hope collection.

<Thanks for reading my blog entry, which is part of a personal photography project to bring attention to and to benefit the Audubon Sanctuaries in Central Maryland:  Fred Archibald Sanctuary in New Market, MD, and Audrey Carroll in Mt. Airy.  The sanctuary is owned and managed by the Audubon Society of Central Maryland.  Volunteers are always needed to help with sanctuary management.  Copyright 2017 Cam Miller.  All photographs are for sale upon request.>