Heaven on Earth

One of the reasons I love photographing so much is that wherever I go I find magical moments. Even if the place is crowded, covered with fences or has a terrible weather, I can capture something special. Most of the moments I capture are more beautiful than what I saw in real life. This is because, in reality, there is too much information and a lot of different angles to look at things. However, while photographing , I always choose a focal point as well as an angle. For instance, in the image above, taken at Yosemite National Park, you don't see the dozens of people standing by my side. This is my way of creating heaven on earth.

At Yosemite it was very easy to find little pieces of heaven and every creature I met represented an opportunity. At the park, I photographed two species of reptiles: Sagebrush lizard (Sceloporus graciosus) which pose nicely for the photo and Gilbert's skink (Plestiodon gilberti).

The skink had a beautiful blue tail but the tail was hidden between the rocks. Also, the skink was too illusive, I had to wait quietly for several minutes before I could snap his photo.

The flowering Dogwood tree was a much easier target. But sometimes, when I know the object is immobile, I have less motivation to get an exceptionally good photo of it.

The California ground squirrel (Otospermophilus beecheyi) was less illusive than the lizards and more challenging than the Dogwood tree so I spent a while near the river trying to get a nice portrait of this little fellow. These squirrels seem to be very comfortable around people and they didn't pay much attention while I was photographing them. Actually, two of them got into a fight and ran toward me. Unfortunately, they came so close that I couldn't focus on them with my 300mm lens.

The mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) is one of the largest animals in the park. It is also one of the easiest animals to spot. They are not shy around people and you can see them everywhere if you just keep an eye for them.

My heaven on earth is made from the creatures I meet and their habitat. This piece of heaven in Yosemite National Park is extraordinary, especially when you look at it through the mirror lake.