October 2026: Fisk Knob in Infrared

Sorry this is a little delayed this month, but I have been running around a bit for a change! :)

More infrared fun for you this month! 
This quaint farm is situated in a little dale south of the highest elevation point in the county, which was my vantage point for this shot.
A little further to the right than you can see in this shot the trees clear out and on a nice day you can see for 20 miles!
This shot though, was focusing on this farm, and the delightful contrast which IR photography can give you. 

One of the things I enjoy with IR is that because it is not a visible light spectrum I never know exactly how the shot is going to turn out ahead of time. 
The camera has been specially modified for this, so I can estimate the amount of light needed and adjust *some* settings to allow it to capture the right amount of light, but because modern computers and software are not designed to display a light spectrum that is invisible to the human eye, I never really get to fully see what is there until I get it on the computer and adjust the "visible light" levels to allow for this captured spectrum to be seen. 
It often feels like opening a Christmas present. :)

September 2026: Red Mantis

 

If you have ever wondered why some mantids are green, some brown, and some are this lovely reddish color, here is why:

They change based on their environment! Not quickly like a chameleon, but with each molt. The color depends on what the predominant surrounding vegetation is like. This summer we have had a long, hot, and very dry summer. So much of the vegetation around here is brown or reddish brown. The mantids which live in those plants are now that color, while the ones who live in plants that stay green even in the hottest driest weather are still green. 

You can't tell from the photo, but the lower portions of this grass are the exact color of this mantid. He is in the upper green portions of the grass stalking grasshoppers, which are themselves in the upper portions of these grasses advertising for mates this time of year. 

What that tells me is that fall is coming quickly, and with it some of the most beautiful scenery in the country will be right outside my door. :)

Stay tuned!

August 2026: Madcat Revisited

 

An old friend, Grammy-winning harmonica wizard Peter Madcat Ruth, was playing a concert near here a couple weeks ago, and I was fortunate enough to be able to gear up once again and make some new photos! He was here last year as well, which is nice as I don't often get to see him this often!

It was good to see him again, and even better to be able to get out and haul my gear around without any problems once more. 

Looking forward to filling up the rest of the summer with good shots and good times!

Farmhouse in Spring

 

OK, this will finally be the last one from the archives as I have been cleared by the doc and therapists to return to my normal activities! 

I have not been out yet, mainly because of the heatwave, but am looking forward to getting back at it and posting some new images very soon!!

June 2026: The Late Kyle Busch

 

Back in 2011 I was doing a shoot at the Berlin Raceway in Marne, MI. Mainly I was there to shoot Johnny Benson, but as I was making my way to where the Benson crew was I happened to snap this passing shot of Kyle Busch, who just passed away on May 21st. 

It was a very deceptively sunny shot, as just 20 minutes later it was pouring down rain and the whole day was washed out...typical Michigan! LOL!
So this was one of only 4 photos I ended up with that day.
I never used it for anything, and nobody has ever even seen it until now.

Life is short, and you never know when your number is up. So take advantage of the opportunities life presents you with and make the most of them.

Hopefully I will be back taking photos late next month, physical therapy is going very well, and I anticipate the schedule to hold. 

Jonderson

May 2026: Red Frilled Tulip

 In this part of Michigan, nothing says Spring like tulips. Looking at this one it is not hard to understand why. After a long winter of monochrome, to see the first flowers come up and have them be so striking is quite enjoyable!

This is another archive image, as I am still out of commission for another month or so. Hoping to be back at it by July though!

Enjoy the warmer weather!!

J

April 2026: The Prosperous Cheetah

 

When they are not running at 70mph, cheetahs don't move around much. Especially when their bellies are already full. :)

I am not going to be moving around much for the next couple months either, as yet another surgery is going to have my arm in a sling starting tomorrow morning. Apparently I pulled the top of my bicep off somehow. So you are going to be seeing archival images for awhile I am afraid. This one is quite old, but still enjoyable I hope. 

March 2026: Sandhill Cranes

 

These are sandhill cranes, notoriously hard to approach as they do not like people, they have excellent vision, and are very rarely alone.  They are quite common around here in the summer months, and their return is an assurance that spring is not far behind. I heard the first ones of the season last week, so decided this would be a good image to post even though I took it in the autumn. 

I anticipate hearing red-winged blackbirds in the next week or so as well...that is always a heart-warming sound to me even though there is usually another snowstorm right behind them. You take the bad with the good though, as one never shows up without the other. 

February 2026: Mid-Month Photography Tip

 

For those of you who do Urbex and abandoned places photography, it is always wise to make sure you don't walk in to a particular building "blind". You never know what is actually holding some structures up. This abandoned house looked very inviting for exploration from the outside at ground level, but a quick peek into the basement through a window revealed this nightmarish accident waiting to happen. Yes, that jinky Jenga is all that was holding up the entire house! 

I say "was" because it is not there anymore, fortunately. And fortunately I had the good sense to look in there before considering going inside. 

Stay safe! Be smart!

February 2026: Names On The Wall

 One of the aspects of taking photos in an abandoned asylum is that you never want to lose sight of the fact that real people lived, struggled desperately, and died there. This wall is located in one of the residential buildings where the patients lived. The nurses who cared diligently for these people also lived on site, on the top floor. Several of them would record the names of their patients on the wall in pencil near their beds, sometimes with the date they arrived or where they were from. Some of these names have been there on these bricks for 100 years. It isn't known why they did this, perhaps to remember to pray for them every night, perhaps because they knew that it was likely that no other record of that person being there would be available in the future, no one knows. But the fact is that in some cases these pencil entries ARE the only record of that person being there, and the only evidence that anyone ever cared enough about them to even record their name. It is a very poignant part of these buildings, and every time I have been there I have taken the time to stop and take note of the names for ten minutes or so.

These buildings are currently slated for renovation where possible, and demolition where not, so I do not know what is to become of these bricks and the names upon them. Perhaps the photos people have taken of them will be all that the future will be able to see. But they were real people with real struggles, some of the struggles very serious, and they were cared for by people who thought them worthy of remembering.

January 2026: Blue Morpho

 

Here is a magnificent Blue Morpho butterfly to bring in the new year with a blast of color! These beauties live in Central and South America, and can be 5 inches across! Their backs are an irridescent blue, from which they get their name, but the underwings, seen here, are what I think of as their "good side". 

Wishing you a colorful and prosperous new year full of amazing sights and experiences!  

December 2025: Ghost Squirrel

 

No, not a ghost. And not an albino! This is actually an Eastern Gray Squirrel. Normally they are either gray or black, but they have a very recessive gene which now and then pops up in a few locations across the country which produces these all white variants. In these isolated places the variant can be suddenly common for a generation or two, with sometimes as many as 12 or more squirrels being white. 

This particular population holds only 3 white individuals, so they are very rare indeed.

An auspicious choice for photos this month, as everything here is now covered in snow, and these 3 white squirrels which were so visible to predators in the summer are now perfectly camouflaged, unlike their gray and black siblings.

November 2025: Autumn Frost

 

No, not that kind of frost, although we have had a couple days of that. No, this autumn mushroom is called a Frost's Bolete, named after Charles frost, the person who first described it as a species. It is a spectacular mushroom, brilliant crimson color, with an unmistakeable lattice stem. Like many similar-looking mushrooms it bruises very easily, and such pressure points turn a dark blue quite quickly.

Although these are edible if prepared properly, most people choose to avoid doing so as the number of toxic mushrooms which look almost identical to these is great. No sense risking your life just for a mushroom! 

Autumn is a great time for colors out in the woods. Do yourselves a favor: get out there and enjoy how beautiful it is in the fall, and pay attention to all the wonderful color!!

October 2025: Back to nature

 

Back to nature photos this month. :)

This is a hog-nosed snake. The "master thespians" of the snake world. While completely harmless, their main defense from predators is over-acting. First, they pretend to be dangerous cobras! They flatten their head, as you see here, often rising up and swaying back and forth in a threatening manner. If that doesn't work they flip themselves over on to their backs and writhe around in feigned agony and then play dead, even emanating a death-like smelly liquid from their cloaca. If you set them back on their belly they will flip themselves over again and continue playing dead, as if them flipping themselevs over again does not count as demonstration of life. The whole charade is pretty amusing for we humans to watch, but in reality it often works for the snakes themselves.

In other news, I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time this week and was able to take an injured great horned owl to a rehab center where I am told he was able to be saved. I am very happy about that, as they are truly beautiful birds. 

Have a great month, and we'll see you here again in November!

September 2025: Madcat!

 

Yes, due to the positive response of last month's portrait you get a second one this month! 

This is none other than the Grammy Award winning harmonica wizard, Peter "Madcat" Ruth. I first met Madcat 40 years ago, and have been catching his shows whenever I can ever since, most recently in Rockford, MI a few weeks ago when this shot was taken.  You can check his music and tour schedule out at his website here: https://www.petermadcatruth.com/  

He is a truly amazing player, and a super nice guy as well.  

August 2025: Summer Portrait

 I haven't posted a portrait in ages, so this month will feature one from the archives. I don't do a lot of people portraits, but sometimes the opportunity is just too good to miss out on. Sometimes it is that the person or people who are the subjects are outstandingly camera-friendly. Sometimes it is the environment or the circumstances. And sometimes it is all of the above. This was a very difficult shoot as the sun was full blazing all day, but with some adaptation that can be turned to your advantage easily enough. You just have to keep your eyes open for opportunities.

Today's lesson: Take the opportunities that life gives you. Look for them and don't miss out on them, because you may not get another chance, and at some point you will eventually be too old to do so. Make sure to take a camera with you though, because even if it doesn't pan out well it will still be an adventure, and what is an adventure without photos to help tell the story!

July 2025: Flaming Skull

 

Posting early this month because I am going to be unavailable to do so later.  

This looks worse than it is, don't worry. It is a papier-mache Halloween decoration. Some wasps had begun nesting in it, and since I am very allergic to wasp venom I condemned the structure and evicted them. :)
Never one to pass up a chance at a fun photo, I grabbed a camera first. Glad I did, this is really creepy!  Not your typical 4th of July BBQ, that is for sure! 

When I was shooting this I was remeinded fo the Photo Challenge I did back in 2016, when I photographed a skull a day for an entire month, which you can see beginning here: https://jondersonphotography.blogspot.com/2016/06/june-photo-challenge-intro-and-entry-1.html 
When you get there, just click on "newer" to go to the next entry in the series.
That was a fun challenge, and I should do another one coming up here later this summer or early fall perhaps. I will have to think of a fun subject for it though.

Lots of exciting things coming up this month for us here, hopefully you will get outside and enjoy the summer too!

June 2025: Robin Chick in the Nest

Spring is the time for newness, and birth, in the natural world. Leaves emerge, flowers bloom, and new animals appear on the scene. Change happens year round, but spring always offers newness, and with it new opportunities.

This robin's eyes are closed, it has no idea what lies ahead for it, but it is eager to take in whatever life has to offer...good or bad.  An excellent approach to life in my opinion, although I no longer lead with my face as it is doing.  One of the benefits of age is wisdom. :)

As the summer approaches and the weather warms, take the opportunity to get outside and enjoy what nature has to offer you wherever you are. Even in your own back yard, amazing things are happening if you take the time to look carefully. 

May 2025: Abandoned Church

 This month we have a very striking-looking abandoned church, which was built in 1888. There is a companion one-room schoolhouse across the street, built in 1907, but it is nowhere near as photogenic as this church as it was still being used into the early 1970s and so had been kept up until then.

Rural America is dotted with structures just like this one, remnants of history, anchor points to a very different age. Though different, it is still an age whose structures have lessons to teach us about ourselves even today, though the doors are shut and the windows shattered. It is one of the reasons I have enjoyed shooting abandoned places for the past several years. The past, even though it is over, is still very much alive and part of our world, and can be learned from just as readily as one can learn from a present day classroom (or online!) lecture. It is a shame to overlook these lessons, and in many cases we do so at our own peril as a civilization. 

March 2025: Waiting for Warmth

 

Here is a shot from a couple years ago which I have not released anywhere else. It is another shot from my Traverse City State Hospital archive, depicting a small room with some impressive pipe fittings and what appears to be a heat register or radiator of some sort. 

I miss shooting here very much, as the angles, textures, colors, and lighting always made me feel like a kid in a candy store. The juxtaposition of that artistic Eden against the narrative of what the place actually was...an asylum...never ceased to carry a tremendous impact for me. The parallels and imagery were unavoidable and in your face all the time. The beauty and complexity of the pipe fittings and of the human mind, both broken and now fallen into disuse yet still very much visible...the broken heat source amid cold walls while the warm sun blasts through the all-too-often broken window glass...it was a place I could have spent years in and still found new things to capture every day.

I chose this image for this month because while spring is approaching it is still quite cold here, and in some ways I feel like this room...waiting for warmth. Warmth is coming, for both myself and for this room. Spring is just around the corner, and this room is now being renovated and will likely serve as someone's climate-controlled office space (an asylum of a different sort, some would say) in the near future.