PHOTOGRAPH

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

An extremely prevalent raptor, maybe the most common by number in the United States, the Red-tailed Hawk is found throughout the lower 48, most of Mexico and Canada, and even in some parts of Alaska during breeding season. It is also one of the very easiest birds of prey to identify by their vibrant tail feathers that you can see so easily, even high up in the sky. Alongside being possibly the easiest Hawk to see, it most definitely has the most well known call of any Hawk. The call you hear accompanied alongside a Bald Eagle in any marketing format is that of the Red-tailed Hawk. In fact any on screen usage of a Hawk or Eagle of any species is typically joined with the call of the Red-tailed Hawk.

LOCATION

Joshua Tree National Park, CA

One of the more recently designated national parks, Joshua Tree National Park, established in 1994, is basically as old as I am. Up there with Sanibel, FL, and Yellowstone National Park, it is also one of my absolute favorite places to take photographs. It is an immense park, located in southeastern California, east of Los Angeles, Joshua Tree includes parts of two deserts, The Mojave and The Colorado. This unique and harsh environment is home to a surprising amount of life, if you are patient and willing to look. Named for the “trees” that dot much of the landscape, the Joshua Tree is actually not a tree at all, but is the worlds largest succulent, which makes sense as they thrive in such arid places. Black-tailed Jackrabbits, and Kit Foxes hide under the branches of these plants, getting shade wherever they can, and Red-tailed Hawks and Crows nest in the branches, some of the few branches that exist across this vast area. This park also contains two oasis where huge fifty foot tall palms grow and yield a very different, although small by comparison, ecosystem. Song birds fly through the rustling palms and temperatures are noticeably cooler. Evidence that coyotes and foxes and bighorn sheep visit these areas are always plentiful but witnessing these excursions to water is not as abundant. I have loved spending time in the park over the past few years and have never been bored by what some might think is a dull/vacant landscape on first glance, it’s not.

Belle Campground

Belle Campground is one of the three campgrounds in the park where you do not need a reservation and are first come first serve. It is where my buddy and I have camped each time we have visited the park although I must say that you do need to get there early to ensure that you get a spot, even then you might still get shut out. It is centrally located within the park which makes for an ideal location to getting to some of the spots that he like to paint and that I like to photograph. It in its own right is a lovely location for both painting and photography as well!

FRAME

Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)

Bald Cypress, the giant of the swamp, is a stately, slow growing native of the southeastern United States. Very tough it can adapt to thrive in a wide range of soils, including very briny, salty, and water soaked areas. Able to grow very tall, it has great stability at its base thanks to its “knees.” The tallest known Cypress was about 145 feet tall. All of the Bald Cypress I have used in my frames has come from different parts of Louisiana.

THE ELEMENTS

Fire, Water, Earth, and Air

In the display case in the bottom of the frame, four items are preserved glass vials. The items represent the elements: fire (wood charcoal), water (mineral oil), earth (soil), and air (a milkweed seed). I include these items in my work as a symbol of the interconnectedness of all life on earth, and as a reminder that humans must do better.

The Plaque

I engrave a wooden information plaque for each work. The plaque includes what the photograph is of, the location of the photograph, what type of wood the frame is made of and where I got the wood from. The plaques also explain what the vials are in each display case, and even state the meaning of my logo. The plaques are attached magnetically and can be removed to read or to store on the back of each frame if you prefer not to have it displayed on the front.