Scary Things...

Cottonmouth - Big Cypress National Preserve - Photo © Mac Stone

We all have things, or maybe ideas rather, that crawl under our skin and cause our heart to beat a little faster. I have a few friends who are absolutely terrified of snakes. In fact, just looking at this photo above makes them extremely uncomfortable. One friend told me "Mac, I mean this in the nicest way, but I hate this (photo)." I've never had this sort of visceral fear of anything tangible, that I can think of. I love snakes, insects, alligators, and all that creepy crawly and squishy stuff. I'm more afraid of situations or of the idea that I'm not in control. Maybe some of you have this too, but I've always been afraid when standing atop tall buildings or bridges that my alter ego is going to rise up and make me jump. This is the same dark side that starts to itch when police walk by and a part of me feels the urge to grab their gun and say, "ha ha, just kidding." Does this happen to anyone else? Weird.

Well, if you're one of the people terrified of images of snakes and alligators and other denizens of the swamp, then this next part isn't for you. For the next two months I'll have 12 large format canvas prints on exhibit at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Naples, Florida. Running from November 5th until the end of December I'll be displaying and selling these prints which highlight the Everglades watershed and its many landscapes and fauna. Go check it out if you have the chance, because I will be unveiling a few images which I've never displayed to the public. If you're wanting to jump on the Christmas shopping early, head to the swamp because the canvas prints at 2 ft x 3ft are on sale with part of the proceeds going to Audubon's beautiful Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. What does a 2ft x 3ft gallery wrapped canvas look like? Well, I'm glad you asked...