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Photographing Nature in Biscayne National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While walking on the elevated boardwalk near the visitor center in Biscayne National Park with a view looking to the northeast at an Anhinga. This bird happened to have its wings opening up and neck straightening out. I walk slowly to capture an image with this look using a new Nikkor Z 28-400mm VR that I'd recently purchased just for wildlife occasions like this.

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An Overlook to Vermillion Lakes and Mount Rundle (Banff National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the southeast while taking in views across a nearby forest to the more distant ridges and peaks with Mount Rundle (Rundle Peaks). This is at a roadside pullout along Trans-Canada Highway 1at the Vermilion Lakes Viewpoint in Banff National Park.

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Outside Performance in Finding Things Wild (Everglades National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While enjoying a bike ride along the Shark Valley Loop in Everglades National Park, I came across this Great Blue Heron in a nearby freshwater slough. The view extends to the southeast and zoomed in with a NIKKOR Z 28-400mm f/4-8 VR to have the heron fill the image with some background sawgrasses and water. I captured several images with this bird, with this sideway look and pose being a favorite.

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My Playtime is Outside by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While hiking along the Black Butte Trail with a view looking to the east-northeast in Shasta–Trinity National Forest. This picturesque setting is something that I happened to turn around to look at along the hiking trail. The rest of the image was moving around until I had much more of a wide opening with the trees, looking down the mountain I was on, and then across the valley to the ridges and peaks with Mount Shasta. I chose to angle my Nikon Z8 Mirrorless Camera slightly downward so I could create more of a sweeping view looking across to Mount Shasta off the distance. I figured that in raising the horizon higher into the image would bring out more of a sense of grandeur to the setting.

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Otter Creek Along the Blue Ridge Parkway by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the east while taking in views of Otter Creek and a bridge crossing. This is at a roadside pullout along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

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Feeling Life's Energy While Exploring Biscayne National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the southeast while walking along the shore of Boca Chita Key in Biscayne National Park. What I wanted to capture with this image, was to angle my Nikon Z8 Mirrorless Camera slightly downward, bringing the horizon a little higher into the image, so that I could have a sweeping view looking across the shoreline with the mangrove tree area as a distant backdrop along with blue skies above. I later cropped portions of the foreground to create a wide-angle, panoramic feel.

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Sweeter than a Sunset Sky (Jasper National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While sitting and taking in a sunset view long the shores of the Athabasca River as a place I was staying around the Jasper, Alberta area. The setting is with a look to the south. My thought on composing this image was to pull back on the focal length and capture a sweeping view as the river waters flowed by. I decided to include some of the nearby trees and bushes as foreground interest and help bring out more of a layered look from near to far I also wanted to include some of the ridges and peaks of the Trident Range as well as Mount Edith Cavell, which had that warm red glow from the setting sun.

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Power Being Delivered to the Mountains and Beyond by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: Under some transmission power lines at a roadside pullout along US Route 95 in Nevada. My thought in composing this image was to keep the horizon more or less leveled-on and center myself as best I could between the two sets of transmission line towers. Having the horizon leveled-on would allow me to bring out more of a sweeping view, leading up to the mountains with its ridges and peaks off in the distance. The blue skies and clouds would be that color contrast to complement the earth-tones in the lower portion of the image.

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An Open Desert Setting to Joshua Trees (Joshua Tree National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While at a pullout just before driving in through the main park entrance with a view looking to the north. This was my first time to be in the national park and see those famous yucca tree plants. Here I captured a view looking across this open desert plain, leading up to the more distant rock formation hillside. The blue skies and clouds would be that color contrast to complement the earth-tones in the lower portion of the image.

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Forest and Peaks of Coconino National Forest by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the north-northeast while taking in views across a nearby forest and peaks present along the Fay Canyon Trail in Coconino National Forest.

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High Adventure in Jasper National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While at an parking lot overlook at Medicine Lake and a view looking to the north and up the mountainside of Medicine Lake Slabs. This is in Jasper National Park. My thought on composing this image was to angle my Nikon SLR camera such that I was able to fill this mountainside from edge to edge, but still including some blue skies above. I felt that that helped to complement the setting, especially with the earth-tones in the lower portion of the image.

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Framing with a View Beyond (Bryce Canyon National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the northeast while walking the Rim Trail and taking in views across hoodoos and other eroded formations in Bryce Canyon National Park.

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Bennett Peak While Talking in Views of Northern New Mexico by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While at a roadside pullout along Indian Service Rte 5 with a view looking to the northwest across the northern New Mexico high desert setting. Bennett Peak is the formation off in the distance.

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Nature's All Star Lineup in Everglades National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting extending to the west-northwest while taking in views across a freshwater slough to an American Alligator seemingly swimming by and taking in the morning sun. This was along the Shark Valley Loop in Everglades National Park. What drew me into this image was the way that only a portion of the alligator was visible in the nearby canal waters.

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The Great Outdoors Awaits (Everglades National Park) by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: I captured this image while taking the bike tour along the Shark Valley Loop in Everglades National Park. The setting extends to the west-northwest across a nearby canal (freshwater slough) to an anhinga with its wings extended. This image was a favorite of mine in the set captured as the bird happened to give an almost side look with its head. The rest was later making adjustments with control points in DxO PhotoLab 8 to bring out the contrast, saturation and brightness I wanted for the final image.

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Exploration of Waterton Lakes National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: A setting looking to the south while taking in views across the farmland and prairies leading up to the mountains and peaks in Waterton Lakes National Park. This is at the Waterton Park Front along Alberta Highway 6. I wanted to capture a sweeping view across this landscape and decided to angle my Nikon SLR camera slightly downward, bringing the horizon higher into the image. I decided on a wider-angle, panoramic view by pulling back on the focal length.

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Tales and Adventures of Exploring Lassen Volcanic National Park by Mark Stevens Via Flickr: While hiking along the Cinder Cone Trail with a view looking back at the summit area with its volcanic past and then to more distant peaks and ridges. This was located in Lassen Volcanic National Park with a view looking to the east-northeast. My thought in composing this image was to take advantage of the hiking trail paths traversing the summit area. I moved around to align myself with the evergreen pine tree and other plants as foreground elements to enhance the visual appeal of the composition.