Blog

The Sea Ranch is legendary in the annals of California Coastal development.  In the early 1960's, ten miles of the Sonoma Coast was designated for development, in an era before there was any regulatory agency overseeing coastal development. Now, and as a result of such...

  As a professional garden photographer for more than 25 years, I have seen all sorts of gardens and have learned a lot from many expert gardeners, designers, and plant geeks. California native plant gardens are absolutely the hardest to photograph, though they are my...

I am a member of the Lawn Reform Coalition, a group of garden designers and environmental advovates who are promoting new ways to think about the American fetish for lawns.  Since my own particular advocacy is for sustainability, and most recently, meadow gardening specifically,...

  I offer garden photograph workshops all around the country.  Built around my book "The PhotoBotanic Garden Photography Workshop" and the photo lessons at the Learning Center at PhotoBotanic.com, the workshops offer an opportunity to sharpen your skills and focus your concentration with an assignment...

At launch of my new e-pub site, PhotoBotanic.com, one book is ready, 3 more scheduled. I have spent 30+ years in garden publishing, and am still standing.  I sold my first photograph 42 years ago.  Along the way I have received some nice awards and have...

I found myself composing lots of panorama photos this past year. I visited a number of expansive landscapes and used panoramas to evoke a sense of wide open spaces. It's started in the early spring when I went to Southern California for the wildflower superbloom. Anza Borrego...

I see what I see, even if I can't show it very well on a blog.  Here, the peeling bark of a Manzanita (Arctostaphylos densiflora) has been transformed into elegant orange, rust, and mahogany brush strokes with the Topaz Simplify3 filter.  It looks great in...

When Gwen Steege, my editor at Storey Books, asked if I would be interested in a succulent book, I could hardly believe my ears.  I live in California where succulents have become a staple of gardens.  Many a great fine art photographer has studied them. ...

Grasses - Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design was my first book with Story Publishing and the first time I teamed up with a writer to author a book.  And boy, was I glad to team up with Nancy Ondra, the extraordinary gardener and...

It took 4 months to grow this picture; a single second in the garden to "see" it; and 8 hours of computer work to clean it up. The one second part is easy to explain.  Last Saturday was a garden day and when I walked...