I spent a day in Biscayne Bay on a photo trip. Late in the afternoon, the sun began to break through the clouds creating fantastic patterns of light that sprinkled across the water. The area was very shallow, so I hopped out of the boat to set up the camera but quickly found myself waist-deep in muddy sand. I wallowed over to the place I wanted to photograph while Niki slowly maneuvered the boat as close as she could get, and handed me my camera gear. By the time I finished taking the picture, I was stuck. In an attempt to free myself, I ran my hand down my leg, creating a space for air in the mud to break the suction. I escaped, but the mud claimed my wedding ring. Now I like to tell people that “Dare’s gold in dem dare mangroves!”
Biscayne Bay
Where a fringe of mangroves meet the northern keys and a portion of the third-largest coral reef in the world lies sheltered, there is a protected shallow estuary where clear waters allow lush seagrass meadows to flourish. Key Biscayne Bay occupies a limestone depression just off southeast Florida mainland and is a productive ecosystem where plants, sun, and translucent waters combine with nutrient-rich freshwater runoff to produce food and shelter for over 600 native fish, 20 threatened and endangered species, and a myriad of neo-tropical water birds. Here, the calm, clear warm waters of this vast bay give one a sense of what conditions might have been like just before the Florida platform emerged from its marine birthplace to become the Greater Everglades as we know it today.
Linderman Key was taken with a Deardorff 8×10 camera on T-Max 100 film. This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Camera settings: f/45 | 120mm Nikkor SW lens | orange filter | 3 seconds
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
The southern rim of Lake Istokpoga is a magical place. It is filled with large beautiful cypress trees that survived the logging of the early 1900’s due to the fact that their interiors have large hollow areas. Because of the hollows, the wood isn’t good for commercial use, but they do make wonderful photography! I took this picture while standing in the water, after waiting for several hours for the light to be right. Gators were bellowing at me, and thunder and lightning was booming all around. To my dismay, when I proceeded to pack up my gear, I found that I had sunk so far into the muck I couldn’t get out. The suction was too great! Eventually, I figured out how to get out: by turning myself in circles, I made the hole I was caught in larger and larger, thus breaking the suction. I had to screw myself out of the muck!
This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
Lake Istokpoga is very shallow, averaging four feet deep or less. The southern shore is lined with beautiful large cypress trees that have wonderful shapes to them. The lake is located near the town of Lake Placid along Hwy 27 in Central Florida.
This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
A photographer friend joined me on a trip to photograph Lake Istokpoga. We got up before dawn and drove for more than an hour to reach the lake every morning. It wasn’t an easy drive because of the incredibly dense fog. Each morning, by the time we arrived, the fog would bank up along the lake’s edge, magically dissipating, leaving us disappointed. One morning, after being disappointed once again, we abandoned our goal of photographing the fog and instead launched a boat and set out to enjoy the water. After several hours of paddling around, fog started forming on the lake! I was afraid it wouldn’t last, so I jumped out of the boat, set up the camera as quickly as possible (not an easy task when standing in three feet of water), and shot four or five images before the fog disappeared. It was as though nature had orchestrated this moment just for us.
This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
Buttonwood trees are a type of mangrove but have wonderfully rugged bark that adds wonderful texture and shape to a photograph. I found this Buttonwood near Key Largo in the Florida Keys.
Key Largo Buttonwood was taken with a Deardorff 5×7 camera on T-Max 100 film. This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Camera settings: f/45 | 72mm Schneider lens | orange filter | 1 second
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
I rarely photograph man-made structures, but when I saw the lighthouse on Key Biscayne, its exotic presence inspired me to take a picture. Several years after I photographed it, Hurricane Andrew crossed over the island, leaving a path of destruction. The lighthouse survived, but the land surrounding it looks very different now.
This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
I had been casually strolling along the beach when I came across this log washed ashore. It sat there in solitude, looking like a lonely animal. I opted to accentuate this feeling of loneliness by taking a long exposure. The blurring of the waves and clouds created a gentle contrast against the log’s hard contours. When I printed the image, I was drawn to the interplay between soft and hard elements and was glad to have stumbled upon this scene.
This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
Mangroves are a wondrous plant. Imagine a tree that survives in saltwater! I am constantly amazed by their sculptural beauty and the important part they play in the ecosystem of the world. I wanted to photograph this mangrove from a high position, so we pulled our boat up onto the beach and I set up my tripod on the bow of the boat. It was tricky because the boat refused to sit still; it kept bouncing around in the waves. I was having difficulty taking the photograph, so my wife, Niki, tried to steady the boat. I took several shots but finally managed to get one that had no movement.
Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge
At the southwest edge of the Everglades lies one of the world’s most productive and biodiverse estuaries, the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge. This coastal wetland, spanning 35,000 acres, is a labyrinth of mangrove islands. Mangroves contribute to a rich source of nutrition in the form of leaves, bark, and twigs—debris that becomes colonized by microorganisms and eaten by small fish, shrimp, crabs, and their larvae. The plant’s ability to trap and accumulate debris creates new islands and habitat for other vegetation and allows juvenile creatures to flourish. The mangroves, with their sprawling, submersible root structures, offer a hiding place to a diverse array of inhabitants from both larger predators and the pounding destructive forces of seasonal storms. These sturdy barriers are essential in protecting the coastline from tidal surges and pounding waves, as hurricanes and tropical storms roll through.
Indian Key Pass 6 was taken with a Deardorff 8×10 camera on T-Max 100 film. This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Camera settings: f/45 | 90mm Schneider Super-Angulon XL lens | orange filter | 1 second
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
Most people think that the Everglades ends where the coast begins, but that could not be further from the truth. The Everglades ecosystem continues as freshwater flows into the saline waters of two coastal regions. Towards the southwest, freshwater meets saline in the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge. At the mainland’s southernmost point, freshwater flows into the shallow Florida Bay. Here, black, red, and white mangroves flourish. Trapping sediments around their roots and support structures, these saline-tolerant trees create protection and shelter for juvenile fish and marine life, making them a critical nursery habitat. Florida Bay, with average depths of less than five feet, shelters one of the world’s largest seagrass meadows and covers more than half a million acres. This underwater grass not only improves water clarity, but also provides oxygen, nutrients, and shelter to fish, shrimp, lobster, and other invertebrate species. Endangered and threatened animals such as the Florida manatee, loggerhead sea turtle, and American crocodile rely on this ecosystem, as do humans who harvest it for the lucrative shrimp and crab industry.
Indian Key Pass was taken with a Deardorff 5×7 camera on Tri-X film. This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Camera settings: f/45 | 75mm Nikkor SW lens | orange filter | 1/4 second
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
The Hillsborough River meanders through so many different areas that it is a joy to photograph. Years ago, I gave photographic workshops. At the time, the Hillsborough River was flooded, so we were able to take the boats into areas that would usually be impossible to access. I wanted to show the photographers how important it is to take a photograph from different angles, such as standing in the water. I took this photograph standing in water up to my chest. It was fun sharing the river with a group of people who love photography. It made the day very enjoyable.
This photograph is hand-printed in Clyde’s darkroom on fiber-based paper, selenium toned, then mounted and matted to current archival standards. The photograph is a limited edition and signed by Clyde.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
