Description: Heart Of A Dandelion .................................... Wow! Was I ever surprised when I got up closer than ever to a dandelion with my 105 macro! Never knew it had a heart!! Nature is full of surprises! .............................. All images are copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistributing these images without the expressed written permission from me is strictly prohibited. .............................. Thank you for looking, Debra Martz
Description: Glimmering Thistle by Debra Martz ......................... Not the bright, vivid color you usually associate with the Thistle wildflower! I decided something softer might be a nice change so I overexposed the shot to get this light, delicate and softly colored thistle. ......................... This image is copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistributing these images without the expressed written permission from me is strictly prohibited. .............................. Thank you for looking, Debra Martz
Description: Colorful Sunrise At Sea ©Debra Martz It was a very calm morning to enjoy the start of a new day with coffee and a sunrise on the balcony. It is just wide open seas somewhere between Jamaica and tomorrow's port of Aruba. I've made it even more colorful with the use of digital brushes and textures. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: CURACAO Tourist Attraction by Debra Martz The Queen Wilhelmina Park in Punda is the location of two words standing 1.5 meter-high. Those words are DUSHI (nice/sweet) and CURACAO. Tourist line up to get their individual photos, family photos, etc. in front of, standing on, or sitting in the large letters. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Springtime In Alaska by Debra Martz ........................... May is a beautiful time to visit Alaska. Flowers were blooming all around Ketchikan. ........................... This image is copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistributing these images without the expressed written permission from me is strictly prohibited. .............................. Thank you for looking, Debra Martz
Description: Bottlenose Dolphin by Debra Martz ........................... It was so much fun watching this dolphin travel along side the boat in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway near Rockport, Texas. The purpose of the boat tour was to see the endangered Whooping Cranes, which we did but at a distance. So this bottlenose made the trip worthwhile! There was a smaller dolphin with this one but it only came near enough to the surface to see its shadow under the water. So the assumption was this was mom and her young one. They traveled beside for several miles occasionally with "mom" pleasing the boat passengers with a jump from time to time! ........................... This image is copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. ...
Description: Great Blue Heron Portrait by Debra Martz ........................... Made a trip to Rockport, Texas to go on a boat tour to "hopefully" see the endangered Whooping Cranes. Since we have a ferry along the way, you can't always time the trip easily so we left early not wanting to chance missing the boat. Well, no ferry back up on this morning so while waiting for departure time took a little drive along the frontage road of the bay. Being early morning, there were quite a few birds out feeding and luckily this heron was very near the road right by a small pullout! ........................... IMPORTANT: This image is copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistributing these...
Description: Casibari Walkway Aruba Painterly To my surprise, the island of Aruba is extremely arid, rainfall is minimal and cacti are native plants. (Tropical plants have been brought to the island such as the non-native palm trees.) Pathways have been placed to better explore the natural rock formations and boulders. Location is the Casibari Rock Formation area. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Heron in the Morning Light ©Debra Martz A beautiful Tri-colored Heron getting its breeding plumage Capture along the boardwalk at South Padre Island Nature and Birding Center the last day of February. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved In My Gallery/Collection: Feathered Friends 3 20230228-DSC_6671
Description: Casibari Walkway Aruba To my surprise, the island of Aruba is extremely arid, rainfall is minimal and cacti are native plants. (Tropical plants have been brought to the island such as the non-native palm trees.) Pathways have been placed to better explore the natural rock formations and boulders. Location is the Casibari Rock Formation area. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Roseate Spoonbills Resting Time ©Debra Martz As luck would have it I would finally see some Roseate Spoonbills at a decent distance but they all had there heads tucked in for a nap. Perhaps because they rest on only one leg, this one wobbled a bit so I at least got a quick sight of its namesake, the spoonbill, before it tucked back into position. Captured along the 4800 ft boardwalk at South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center the last day of February. Light painterly touches add to the reeds and water only to remove/smooth some distractions. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved In My Gallery/Collection: Feathered Friends 3 20230228-DSC_6859-Edit.tif
Description: Alaska Reflections Black and White by Debra Martz Alaskan Reflections Abstract by Debra Martz ........................... It was a beautiful, clear day for cruising in the Glacier Bay National Park. After viewing a massive glacier at the end of an inlet, we cruised into one of the majestic fjords in the park which provided beautiful reflections on this clear day! ........................... This image is copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistributing these images without the expressed written permission from me is strictly prohibited. .............................. Thank you for looking, Debra Martz
Description: Tropical Mockingbird in Punda Curacao ©Debra Martz At first glance I thought this was a Northern Mockingbird. It looks almost the same with slight differences in the feathering and of course, their range. The yellow background is that of the government building in Willemstad, Punda Quarter, Curacao. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Alaskan Reflections Abstract by Debra Martz ........................... It was a beautiful, clear day for cruising in the Glacier Bay National Park. After viewing a massive glacier at the end of an inlet, we cruised into one of the majestic fjords in the park which provided beautiful reflections on this clear day! ........................... This image is copyright of Debra Martz. All associated rights are reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistributing these images without the expressed written permission from me is strictly prohibited. .............................. Thank you for looking, Debra Martz
Description: Punda Love Hearts In Abundance ©Debra Martz The hearts are located on the Punda side of the Queen Emma Bridge, composed with a colorful bit of Handelskade behind them. The plaque reads Lock Your Love on the "Punda Love Hearts" by Carlos Blaaker. There were so many locks they seemed to be pouring out over each other. With that thought in mind I turned to a few software programs to create the look of Hearts almost dripping with love, locks that is. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge Curacao ©Debra Martz Built in 1888 and named after a Dutch queen, this floating bridge connects the Punda and Otrobanda neighborhoods of Curaçao's capital Willemstad. It swings open on pontoons to allow boat/ship traffic through the narrow harbor giving it the nickname of The Old Swinging Lady. The bridge is now for pedestrians only. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Sailing in Aruba ©Debra Martz It was early evening, about 6:15pm, while I watched the tourist load onto Rumba. I was a bit jealous that we would not be in port long enough to head out on what would be a sunset sailing trip. Such a beautiful and colorful scene with blue water and sky, and bright red and white sailboat. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Pathway Around Boulders and Cacti Aruba ©Debra Martz To my surprise, the island of Aruba is extremely arid, rainfall is minimal and cacti are native plants. (Tropical plants have been brought to the island such as the non-native palm trees.) Pathways have been placed to better explore the natural rock formations and boulders. Location is the Casibari Rock Formation area. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Aruba Water Sports and Boats ©Debra Martz This seemed to be a very popular spot for water sports and boats. There were even more than what I could capture in one shot. Multiple layers of textures and digital brushes applied for a somewhat painterly look. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Arashi Beach in Aruba ©Debra Martz What is not to love about the clear turquoise water surrounding the island of Aruba! It's hard to tell that this beach was quite crowded. To my right it was full of people lounging in chairs under umbrellas while others were swimming and snorkeling. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Bananaquit in Aruba ©Debra Martz I was supposed to be looking at all the huge boulders and granite formations but I heard a bird and had to start searching for it! This one was new to me. I'm always happy when I can add a bird to my list! See at the Casibari Rock attraction April 14th on the island of Aruba. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Common Gallinule Looking Fluffy by Debra Martz The tail showing off white under tail feathers is just one of the displays of courtship during mating season. And, it was March so this is a possible reason for the raised tail. The Common Gallinule in the Americas were once known as the Common Moorhen like those of the Old World. But the American Ornithologists' Union split it from that in 2011. I photographed this beautiful bird at Leonabelle wetlands in Port Aransas, Texas. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Eared Dove at Casibari Aruba ©Debra Martz There were a number of paved pathways at Casibari that wound around the many large boulders and cacti. I heard birds so, of course, I went in search of them. At a distance I first thought this was a Mourning Dove but discovered it was an Eared Dove. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Tending To Its Feathers ©Debra Martz The early morning sunlight emphasizing the beauty of the Great Egrets white feathers. Breeding season is soon and this one is showing signs of the additional plumage they get during this season. Meanwhile in the upper right, a single Black-necked Stilt with its bubblegum pink legs strolls on past. Image captured in the Leonabelle area of Port Aransas, Texas in early March. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: California Lighthouse Aruba ©Debra Martz The California lighthouse stands as a silent watchman in the area known as "Hudishibana," near the island's northwestern tip. Why California? The SS California, a steamship made of wood, sank on the NE coast of Aruba in 1891. The lighthouse was named after the vessel when it was built in 1915-1917. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Station of the Cross - Alto Vista Chapel - Aruba ©Debra Martz We followed a winding road through fields of cacti on the way to the Alto Vista Chapel. A little way before the chapel there were white crosses marking the stations of the cross. (Note that Aruba is arid and cacti are native plants to the island) ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
Description: Chapel Of Our Lady Of Alto Vista ©Debra Martz Alto Vista Chapel This small yellow chapel was built in 1952 on the site of the original, and first, Catholic church which was built in Aruba in 1750 by a Spanish missionary, Domingo Antonio Silvestre. The chapel is reached by a winding road lined with white crosses marking the stations of the cross. ©Debra Martz, All Rights Reserved
