On an all night shoot there is always that 3 to 5 am window when the coffee and RedBull stop working. This time can be so brutal waiting for the next effects or lighting setup — I avoid the temptation to sit down. The best thing to do is grab your tripod and get yourself moving.  One night, I saw this beautiful moon just beyond where we were working. I’ve biked, hiked and photographed Loch Raven for a lot of years but have never seen the moon rise at 4 in the morning.

I recently had the pleasure of working on a wonderful ad campaign for TreeBaltimore. Creatives Davina Grustein and John Fabrizio teamed up to support this organization’s efforts to help grow Baltimore’s tree canopy. (Learn more about the benefits of planting new trees using Maryland’s Tree Benefit Calculator.) A newly planted tree is a worthy cause in my book; it was my pleasure to shoot stills for the campaign. Thanks to Anne Draddy — TreeBaltimore Coordinator, Ignite Baltimore speaker and all around ecologically caring tree hugger — for giving all three of us the chance to do something good for the city of Baltimore. Look for the ads on buses and in the Urbanite Baltimore magazine.

Another summer has passed out at Antietam. I shot this image of friends with a very old film camera.  I love the 180mm on my Mamiya C-330. I’m on my second camera body after wearing out the first one which I bought in the 70’s. When you grow comfortable with a camera, it is good to stick with it. I get a lot of teasing from fellow photographers for shooting film. It has taken a long time to get a comfortable with a palette that I love.

This year Maryland can’t decide if it is summer or spring. On one of the first warm hikes at Liberty Lake, Luca watches the young bass. I’ve been photographing there for years. No matter the season, light on the water never stops amazing me. I can shoot black and white or color, makes no difference.

Lighting the fire at dinner is one of the sweetest times during our camping trips. Nights in Antietam are always very special after a long, lazy day by the creek. We have not been camping in almost two years and we are anxious to return. I love shooting night photographs when the fog comes through our camp site. Sometimes we do a night ride on our mountain bikes over to the beautiful and historic Burnside Bridge and then meander through the battle ground. We’ve also canoed down the creek in the pitch dark…amazing ride! This June will be our first trip in far too long and I, for one, can already smell the campfire.

Antietam Creek, Maryland. My friend’s son didn’t realize that the dogs smelled the bait in his pocket. He kept moving into deeper water and Mosby and Gizi kept following.

Emme loves a trip to the woods with the dogs. She insists on taking her new (pink) CamelBak. She is definitely an artist, but I have not figured out if she will draw what she sees out there or photograph it like her dad.

I love this old cowboy saying: “Never mistake a clear view for a short distance.”

Great to vote today. We are crossing a river in many ways. May the transition be peaceful.

The Battle of  Antietam, or The Battle of Sharpsburg as the southerners call it, gives this creek a very heavy feeling when you’ve spent as much time as I have near it. Tubing, camping, night mountain biking, night canoeing and wading much of it all the while photographing. I’ve spent over 20 years getting to know the light there.