The Subantarctic Islands of New Zealand and Australia
During December of 2005, we spent 18 days aboard the "Spirit of Enderby", a small Russian polar research ship, on a Wings Birding Tours and Heritage Expeditions trip led by Steve Howell and other outstanding naturalists. The purpose of the trip was to study and photograph seabirds and marine mammals on and around several unique and beautiful subantarctic islands located on the Southern Ocean near New Zealand and Australia. We visited Snares, Enderby, Auckland, Macquarie (Australia), Antipodes, Bounty, Campbell, and Chatham Islands on a 2382 nautical mile loop that started and ended in the city of Dunedin on the South Island of New Zealand.  Click on any of the images below to view galleries of photos from each of these unique and beautiful islands:
Chatham (Shy) Albatross The Chatham Islands	Yellow-eyed Penguin Enderby Island	White-headed Petrels The Southern Ocean

Saving Mount Diablo
Hikers above Donner Canyon	Bumblebee Moth	Diablo Sunflower
The August 2005 issue of Diablo Magazine contains an 8-page story by Hannah Craddick entitled Saving Mount Diablo.  The story highlights some of the key places on and around Mount Diablo that have been preserved over the past 30+ years through the efforts of Save Mount Diablo.  The printed piece also includes a large number of my photographs.

The Mount Diablo Buckwheat Rediscovered!
On May 20th 2005, I was asked by Seth Adams, Save Mount Diablo's Director of Land Programs, to join a small group of biologists and reporters to photograph a plant that hadn't been seen for 69 years:  Eriogonum truncatum, the Mount Diablo Buckwheat. In most modern botanical references, Eriogonum truncatum is listed as "presumed extinct".  The last documented  observation of this plant had been  in 1936 by Dr. Mary Bowerman, one of SMDs founders, and the author of "The Flowering Plants and Ferns of Mount Diablo, California" (originally published in 1944, and revised in 2002 with Barbara Ertter, Curator of Western North American Flora at U.C. Berkeley's Jepson Herbarium). However, on May 10th, 2005, a small population of about 20 plants was  rediscovered  by University of California botanist Michael Park during a routine plant survey in a remote section of Mount Diablo State Park.  The location of the discovery is being kept secret until a long-term management/recovery plan can be developed.  However, the location is on land that was preserved by Save Mount Diablo. I was told that the hike to the location of the discovery would be long, hot, steep, and rugged.  As a result, I left my tripod and other equipment in the car, and took only my camera and two lenses - my favorite macro lens to photograph the plant, and a wide-angle zoom lens to photograph the habitat and the people.  Consequently, all of my images were taken hand held with available light. After publication of the initial exclusive story by Contra Costa Times reporter Mike Taugher (with photos by Times photographer, Cindi Christie), the news spread rapidly.  When the Associated Press picked up the story (and my photographs), the news went worldwide.  More information abut the discovery, and links to a few of the news outlets that used my photographs can be found below. Save Mount Diablo Press Release:  Mt. Diablo Buckwheat rediscovered San Francisco Chronicle: Flower species thought extinct found blooming on Mt. Diablo Grad student spots type of buckwheat last seen in 1936 National Public Radio: Wildflower Thought Extinct Rediscovered in Calif. CNN: Wildflower feared extinct rediscovered ABC News: Wildflower Feared Extinct Found in Calif.

8 May 2005

30 January 2005

After receiving many requests, I have opened a web store to allow the on-line purchase of photo gift cards, limited-edition calendars, and fine art prints - check it out.

26 September 2004

Catching up on a summer's worth of shooting with trips to Alaska in June and Yuba Pass in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains in July.  The "Recent Work" page includes some nice images of sleek Northern Rightwhale Dolphins and Pacific White-sided Dolphins from a pelagic trip to the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary.

California Red-sided Garter Snake

9 May 2004

Save Mount Diablo's Four Days Diablo hiking/backpacking trip starts in Walnut Creek and ends four days and almost 40 miles later near Brentwood.  In between, the Diablo Trail passes through six parks, while only crossing two public roads.  The Diablo Trail is a testament to the hard work done over last 30+ years to expand and protect the open space and habitat around Mount Diablo.

Sunset on the Daiblo Trail

24 April 2004

22 February 2004

21 September 2003

10 January 2003 Public Slide Show:  We will be presenting a program on our trip to Antarctica at the Mt. Diablo Audubon Society meeting on Thursday, February 6th in Walnut Creek California.  Our presentation begins at 8:05 PM.  Click the following links for directions and the program description.

Chinstrap Penguin on Nest

26 December 2002

King Penguins on South Georgia Island

During November and December, we spent 19 days aboard the Russian vessel, Grigoriy Mikheev, on a Wings/Oceanwide Expeditions trip exploring the Southern Oceans and Antarctic Peninsula.  I have created a preliminary set of galleries to share some of the images from this amazing  trip.  Please stay tuned, since I am planning to add more detail to the galleries, and more information about the trip in the coming weeks.

13 October 2002

25 August 2002

30 June 2002

• Just when I thought summer had arrived for good in our part of Northern California, I stumbled on some remnants of Spring.  All it took was some elevation - a couple of hikes near the summit of Mt. Diablo (3849 ft) produced some nice wildflower, butterfly, and lizard images.  The California Whiptail image is notable for me personally as it is the first time I have seen this species on the mountain.
• A quick weekend trip to South Florida for a wedding provided enough time to visit the Wakodahatchee Wetlands in Palm Beach County.  This is an amazing place with an outrageous assortment of wildlife including cooperative Least Bitterns, Green and Tricolored Herons, Purple Gallinules, American Alligators, Florida Redbelly Turtles, Least Terns, nesting Purple Martins, etc, etc.  The wetland is managed by the Palm Beach County Water Utilities Department, which should be commended for the effort and expense it has invested into this extraordinary wildlife area.
• I have created an event gallery for the Spring 2002 Save Mount Diablo 4-Day Diablo Trail backpacking trip.

20 June 2002

• I have moved Heinphoto.com to it's own web server, and have made a number of enhancements to the web site including adding a Search Page.
• I have created a new set of galleries to share preliminary photos from an event or trip.  The images are unedited, and most of them will never appear in the Natural History Gallery.  However, I needed a place to be able to share photos from a trip with friends and clients quickly.

12 May 2002

• Updated the Mount Diablo and Southeast Arizona special places galleries, and added a new Mojave Desert gallery.

6 May 2002

• This has been a great Spring in Northern California, with excellent wildflower displays and the green, green hills.  In addition to visiting  favorite locations like Morgan Territory Regional Preserve, I was fortunate to be able to hike along on one day of Save Mount Diablo's 4-Day Diablo Trail Backpacking trip.  The Diablo Trail starts in Walnut Creek and ends 30 miles later at the Round Valley Regional Preserve staging area.  In between it passes through 6 different parks and open space, while crossing only  two roads.  The Diablo Trail highlights 30 years of land preservation efforts by Save Mount Diablo.

• Spring is the time of the year to visit the desert.  In April we managed to take trips to both Southeast Arizona and California's Mojave Desert.  One of the highlights of our trip to Arizona was encountering large numbers of Ramsey Canyon Leopard Frogs, in several ponds at Beatty's Miller Canyon Guest Ranch in the Huachuca Mountains.  These  frogs were only "discovered" in the late 1980s, and are considered to be the rarest North American frog species.  The Beatty's have done an amazing job of providing habitat for these threatened amphibians.  The Beatty's Orchard/Ranch is also arguably the best place in the US to watch hummingbirds.

• The Mojave Desert is probably quite an obstacle for migrating songbirds to cross on their spring migration.  Water is scarce, and oases like Butterbredt Spring and Galileo Hill stick out like sore/green thumbs.  As dawn breaks at Butterbredt, western migrants like the Wilson's Warbler descend in large numbers to take advantage of the water, cover, and food that the oasis provides.  Not far to the East, the lawn at the Silver Saddle Ranch and Galileo Hill is often covered with multicolored songbirds like Western Tanagers, Hooded Orioles, Wilson's and Yellow Warblers, and Lazuli Buntings.  Desert wetlands like the Piute Ponds on Edwards Air Force Base, provide critical habitat for both nesting and migrating shorebirds and waterfowl.

13 March 2002

• Springtime in the East Bay Hills of Contra Costa County, California can be quite spectacular.  I have added a few new images of local open space landscapes, including one image that shows the boundary of the Higgins property with Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve.  This remote and wild corner of the park will have houses backing up to the fence line shown in this image if the city of Antioch follows through on development plans for Future Urban Area #1.  Please support Save Mount Diablo in their efforts to preserve open space in rapidly growing Contra Costa County.
• I have also caught up on a few older images of an unusual Orca, a young Raccoon, and one of the treats of a fall hike on Mt. Diablo - the Tarantula!

3 February 2002

• I have added images of one uncommon and several common winter birds on the Northern California coast to the Gallery.
• We will be presenting a program on our trip to the Galapagos Islands at the February 7th Mt. Diablo Audubon Society Meeting in Walnut Creek, California.

8 December 2001

• Several images in this update are from a Thanksgiving trip to Morro Bay and the Carizzo Plain National Monument.
• My image of Snow on North Peak was chosen by Save Mount Diablo for the cover of the invitation to their 30th Anniversary celebration that will be held on December 10th.  Congratulations to Save Mount Diablo for 30 years of protecting habitat and open space in the San Francisco Bay Area.

3 September 2001

• Save Mount Diablo and the East Bay Regional Park District have recently announced several new land acquisitions in the eastern part of Contra Costa County.  We provided Save Mount Diablo with photographs from the Gim/Clyma  and Elworthy-Highland Ridge properties, which will be added to Morgan Territory Regional Preserve, and the Brown property, which will be land-banked as part of Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve.
• On April 28th 2001, Save Mount Diablo and the East Bay Regional Park District celebrated the acquisition of Clayton Ranch.  This spectacular property has outstanding views of Mount Diablo's North Peak and will be land-banked as part of Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve.
• The endangered California Red-legged Frog (Rana aurora draytonii) is one of the many species of wildlife that has benefited from the great work of Save Mount Diablo.  Please consider supporting this very effective conservation organization.
• Also in this update are some new wildlife images from the Pt. Reyes National Seashore and from a pelagic birding trip to the Cordell Bank from Bodega Bay, California.

22 July 2001

• The Galapagos Islands are a nature lover's and nature photographer's dream.  We were fortunate enough to be able to visit this amazing place on a Field Guides tour during late June and early July,  I have created a rather large gallery of images from this trip.  Please consider supporting the Charles Darwin Foundation to help preserve and protect this wonderful place.

23 June 2001

• Spring trips to Trinity, Siskiyou, and Modoc Counties in California, and Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, produced many of the images in this update (see the "Recent Work" page).  Malheur has been on our list of "must visit" places for many years, and it didn't disappoint.  In addition to nesting Franklin's Gulls and Black Terns, we had many pleasant surprises like this Western Screech Owl.
• An outrageous reptile hunt at a friend's house in Oregon produced the Gopher Snake and Red-spotted Garter Snake images.  Under one piece of corrugated tin we found 2 Rubber Boas, 1 Red-spotted garter Snake, 1 Gopher Snake, and a Northern Alligator Lizard!

15 March 2001

• Gray Jays are not common anywhere in California.  One of the more reliable places to find them is Van Damme State Park in Mendocino County, which is where we were fortunate enough to capture this image.
• Sometimes photographic opportunities arise in your own backyard.  These images of a White-throated Sparrow and Cedar Waxwing were taken in our backyard during a weekend spent at home.

17 February 2001

• Mount Diablo is a 3800-ft mountain that dominates our local skyline.  A few times each winter, cold storms cover the mountain in a few inches of snow.  I have added an image of the North Peak of Mt. Diablo taken as a recent storm was clearing.  I have also added several images taken on and around Mount Diablo to our "special places" gallery.

15 January 2001

• Added an image of a Ferruginous Hawk that has been perching on a conifer behind our  neighbor's house.

8 January 2001

• Several  images taken over the holidays including trips to Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge in Florida and Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge in California.  The highlight of these trips was a fierce Northern Pygmy-owl near Putah Creek in Yolo County, California.

16 November 2000

• Added an image of a very cooperative Virginia Rail from the Limantour Estero at Pt. Reyes National Seashore.

29 October 2000

• I created a Special Places gallery to celebrate a few of our favorite places to visit.  So far I have included Alaska, Pt. Reyes National Seashore, Southeast Arizona, the Cordell Bank, and Mono Lake.

24 October 2000

• New "fall color" landscape images from Mono Lake and the Eastern Sierra.  I have also continued adding older images to several galleries.

4 September 2000

• I am slowly working through my catalog of existing images and have added a number of them to the gallery.  I also added a few new links to the links page and added a Table of Contents page to help visitors locate a particular image quickly.

30 August 2000

• The initial launch of this web site.