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Marty’s photo of the day #4661: Yesterday, I didn’t post any photos from my “This Week at the Essen Wildlife Refuge” series that I often post on Sundays. That’s because at this time of year, the animal life in front of my motion-sensing cameras slows down substantially. Nevertheless, I’ve decided to share this recent, rather […]
Marty’s photos of the day #4480-4481: Deb’s and my house sits roughly in the middle of the 25-acre Essen Wildlife Refuge. A long gravel driveway comes in from the side, crosses in front of the house, and wraps around to our garage. A long raised porch runs across the front of our house, the porch […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4445: After 27 years of protecting our forested land as the Essen Wildlife Refuge, I really believe the animals have figured out that they are safer here than elsewhere. As proof, both the number of animals living around us and the variety of species are off-the-charts. Consequently, this summer’s theme […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4441: One of the treasures of Montana’s Bitterroot Valley is the Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge. It’s my go-to spot whenever I want to enjoy a few hours of great photography opportunities. This morning I got up at 5:00 a.m., took a quick shower, and timed my drive to get […]
Marty’s photos of the day #4433-#4435: Here are three photos of this past week’s wildlife action, captured by the upper-level motion-sensing camera at the Essen Wildlife Refuge. Photos I’m not posting include a black bear, a fox, and the mystery animal that I’ve been trying to positively identify for the past few months (likely a […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4323: I bought a new Canon R50 camera and three lenses to go with it. I’m eager to fully test my new equipment, but the changeover from winter to spring in Montana is the worst time of the year for photography. The lighting is poor, the wildlife numbers are down, […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4182: I mostly enjoy winter—the colder the better—but I know many people can’t wait for spring. With that in mind, I dedicate today’s photo—from last spring on the Essen Wildlife Refuge—to all those counting the days until spring comes around again.
Marty’s photos of the day #4060-4064: Deer, elk, and wild turkeys galore! Here are just a few of the photos taken last week by the motion-sensing camera I have set up at the pond below our house, on the Essen Wildlife Refuge.
Marty’s photo of the day #4013: It’s baby animal time on the Essen Wildlife Refuge. Yesterday morning, a doe ran right up to my dog, Nellie, and me, trying to distract us, and then last night, my wife, Deb happened to step outside just in time to see likely the same deer stash her fawn. […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4010: All the rain this year has made for spectacular waves of wildflowers at the Essen Wildlife Refuge, surrounding Deb’s and my house. A few weeks ago, the white flowers of the serviceberry bushes were everywhere; then they were replaced by the yellow flowers of arrowleaf balsamroots; now they are […]
Marty’s photos of the day #3673: On February 12, 2020, I got my hair cut in preparation for a college show in New Jersey. At the time, I had no idea how hard the COVID-19/Trump pandemic would hit, and that following that show, I would be switching to performing at colleges via Zoom. After that […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3630: Every morning before work, I take my dog, Nellie, to a clearing in the woods by my house, and we attempt to play Frisbee. Yesterday, we had a very curious (and I think very pregnant) doe hanging around. First, I had to talk the deer out of Deb’s garden, […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3604: It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything from my front yard motion-sensing camera. Pictures over the winter have been pretty run-of-the-mill—just the usual bigfoot, D.B. Cooper, and naked Mitch McConnell shots. Finally, though, I got the deer portrait I had been aiming for!
Marty’s photo of the day #3519: Deb’s and my house looks down a tree-filled hill with multiple benches. Every winter, when the snow gets deep, one or more deer take to sleeping on the closest bench to our house. Yesterday was the first day that happened since our dog, Nellie, joined our family. Consequently, Nellie […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3322: I took this photo yesterday, in front of my house. Many people aren’t aware of it, but on Sundays momma deer gets the day off and daddy buck has to fawn over the kid.
Marty’s photo of the day #3302: The warm weather means moving my office outdoors to the front porch. While there, working on my next book, I keep a camera beside me to capture images of visitors, like this one from yesterday. I find it interesting that deer are sensitive to noises, such as speaking or […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3224: Where I live in Montana, the animals enjoyed a good winter. Deb and I have been regularly seeing a moose on our evening walks, along with lots of deer. Also, every morning on my bike ride I see between twenty and thirty deer, and this morning I saw another […]
