Swede's Photographs

Retired soldier, I spent about 30 years in the military (USMC/Army).  Also recently retired computer systems engineer.  So, I'm just plain retired.  I need something to do so, I decided on photography and bird watching as a hobby.  Unless otherwise stated, all photographs I post are my own. I take pictures and want to share them with you, so please follow my blog.

[swede1952]

I've had several inquiries about how to get a print of some my photographs. This is a hobby for me, so I haven't been equipped to handle those requests. But I enjoy what I'm doing and want to share my photographs.

So, I set up an account and website with pixels. My website is: https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com/

If you want a print of one of my photographs, you can get it there, If I haven't loaded it, let me know which one it is, and I'll gladly load it there for you.

Cheers!

[swede1952]

Waterside Watcher

I love finding Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias) hunting in the Louisiana lakes. Herons and egrets aren’t rare here, but I still feel privileged every time I see one. In this photo, I especially like how the camera caught the heron’s reflection in the water.

[swede1952]

A Moment of Curiosity

We were out on our walk one day a few years ago when I spotted this white‑tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). My dogs, Ben and Charlie, didn’t notice her at all—they were too busy investigating a small trail branching off from the one I was on. The deer and I stood there looking at each other for more than a minute. She lingered longer than deer usually do, holding my gaze, until I glanced down to adjust my camera. When I looked back up, she was gone.

Discover nature's fleeting moments through my lens—visit my photo gallery to see more.

https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com

[swede1952]

Restless Mockingbird

[swede1952]

Barred in Shadow

My dog, Charlie, and I spotted this barred owl (Strix varia) tucked into the forest shadows one day while we were out and about.

Check out breathtaking photos of magnificent birds of prey, visit my photo gallery here:

https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com

[swede1952]

Good morning. ☀️🌥️🌦️

3 June 2026

I just fed Charlie. I filled his bowl and let him into the house, watching him rocket to his usual eating spot—only to whirl around and stare at me like I’d broken some sacred covenant. I had filled his bowl, just like I said… I’d simply forgotten to put it down. A minor lapse, easily fixed, and all was forgiven. Still, I can’t help wondering how many demerits that earns me.

It’s not like I forgot mealtime altogether—though I’ve done that once or twice. Those were the days I felt genuinely guilty, discovering my mistake only after Charlie, and Ben when he was alive, had spent the whole day shadowing me, sending subtle signals I completely missed. When I finally realized my oversight, I’d try to make amends with double rations, as if that balanced the scales.

But the thing about dogs is this: they’re your best buddy no matter what. Their loyalty isn’t conditional, and their forgiveness is immediate. Even when you forget to put the bowl down.

“To err is human; to forgive, canine.” — Unknown

“Dogs do speak, but only to those who know how to listen.” — Orhan Pamuk

“Dogs’ lives are too short. Their only fault, really.” — Agnes Sligh Turnbull

“A dog will teach you unconditional love. If you can have that in your life, things won’t be too bad.” — Robert Wagner

[swede1952]

Dove in the Evening

I like the way the soft light from the sun reflects off this mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) and cast a shadow of a slender branch across the bird's breast. It is a moment of calm.

[swede1952]

Whitetail Rest

This is a Common Whitetail Dragonfly (Plathemis lydia) perched on a twig, showcasing its intricate wings.

Discover nature's fleeting moments through my lens—visit my photo gallery to see more.

https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com

[swede1952]

Little Cedar Flame

Carolina Wrens (Thryothorus ludovicianus) are much shyer than Carolina Chickadees, but when they finally show themselves, they absolutely steal the show.

[swede1952]

Perched with Purpose

This Carolina chickadee perches with an unusually straight posture, and it sports an oddly punk haircut. Both the posture and the uneven head feathers are indicators that the bird is molting. Apparently, the more upright posture may help relieve the pressure from new emerging feathers.

Step into a world where even the smallest moments—like the glint in a bird's eye—tell their own story.

https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com

[swede1952]

Good morning. 🌺🌻🌼

1 June 2026

Charlie has positioned himself in my office doorway, waiting for the minutes to tick by until mealtime. Honestly, I remember doing the same thing decades ago — standing in line outside the mess hall (or “dining facility,” as they call it now), waiting for the doors to open. That was just the way of things, especially on weekends when I’d already spent my pay and mostly existed from one meal to the next.

I’ll freely admit that as a young man, I wasn’t exactly the wisest of the bunch. Luckily, we were paid twice a month, in cash. Assuming we had the weekend off, the money usually disappeared that first weekend, leaving a long stretch of days before the next payday. And weekends back then weren’t even full weekends — a half‑day on Saturday and Sunday off, unless we were in the field, deployed, or otherwise occupied.

As I implied, I probably could have used my time and money a whole lot better than blowing it in the off‑post bars whose sole purpose was to extract every cent from freshly paid Marines. I was a mess back then. My theme song was probably straight out of The Wizard of Oz:

"I could wile away the hours Conferrin' with the flowers Consultin' with the rain And my head I'd be scratchin' While my thoughts were busy hatchin' If I only had a brain" - Harold Arlen/ E.Y. ‘Yip’ Harburg

Actually, I was smarter than most, I think — but my brain was still relatively new, and I hadn’t yet learned how to use it… or maybe even how to turn it on.

Believe me when I say the old line is true: live and learn.

“In youth we learn; in age we understand.” — Marie von Ebner‑Eschenbach

“Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.” — Oscar Wilde

“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” — Søren Kierkegaard

[swede1952]

Branch of Thought

This red‑bellied woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) looks as if he’s deep in thought, quietly pondering the day’s events.

[swede1952]

The Mushroom Realm

This ground‑level mushroom scene, wrapped in green grass, has been artistically altered to feel dreamy and abstract.

If you love flowers—or just enjoy discovering their beauty and names like I do—come explore my gallery of blooms captured in moments of wonder and curiosity.

https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com

[swede1952]

Bathhouse Boss

[swede1952]

Blue Glare

This blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) fixed me with a classic ‘get off my lawn’ glare.

Step into a world where even the smallest moments—like the glint in a bird's eye—tell their own story.

https://swede1952-photographs.pixels.com

[swede1952]

Good morning. ☕☕☕

30 May 2026

I remember when telephones with push‑buttons started showing up. They looked so modern, so futuristic, like something out of a science‑fiction movie. If you had one sitting on your desk, you must have been somebody — even though, at first, they didn’t really do anything the old rotary phones couldn’t do. I still wonder why we started with a dial instead of buttons in the first place. I don’t wonder long, though. It had to be whatever the technology of the time could manage.

When I was a small child living with my grandparents — my parents were off at the Great Lakes while my dad went through Navy training — I had to memorize their phone number. To this day, it still doesn’t make sense to me. It was “Sycamore 5‑2453.” Try dialing that into a phone today. There have been a few changes since then.

And isn’t it funny that after all these years, after all the technical leaps that led to the cell phones we carry in our back pockets, we still say we’re “dialing” a number? I’m sure plenty of young people don’t even know what that means. I’ve seen clips online where teenagers are handed an old rotary phone and look as confused as I’d be if someone handed me a crank‑and‑jar churn. I wouldn’t know its purpose, let alone how to use it.

Makes you wonder what the next fifty years will bring. I’m certain of one thing: nobody will be running down to the telegraph office. And someday, even cell phones will go the way of buggy whips.

“We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us.” — Marshall McLuhan

“Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days.” — Doug Larson

“If you don’t like change, you’ll like irrelevance even less.” — General Eric Shinseki

[swede1952]

Sand‑Side Ibis

My daughter took this remarkable photo of a white ibis (Eudocimus albus) during her travels this morning. She captured it with her iPhone and texted it to me from a beach in the Bahamas.