The ghost orchid is a rare orchid with small white blooms that grows wild in Florida. The plants, which lack foliage, look like they are suspended in the air as they attach themselves to tree trunks by a few roots. Many environmental enthusiasts and photographers have spent enormous amounts of time searching for the tiny plant. In 1999, Mike Owens, a biologist at the Fakahatchee Preserve, guided me on a hunt for the elusive orchid. The only ghost orchid we could find was 13 feet up in a tree, so we hauled several ladders into the depths of the swamp, and I got the shot! Later, I used this image of the ghost orchid with its two legs crossed to form a heart as my brand and the symbol that accompanies one of my favorite sayings, “Art Comes from the Heart.”
One of the Rarest Orchids in the World
Poaching is the main reason rare orchids, like the ghost orchid (dendrophylax lindenii), have diminished to fewer than 2,000 plants in the wild. A mature epiphytic orchid’s delicate, spider-like root system securely clings to the bark of a tree. A poacher will often saw that portion of the tree to a manageable size for easy transport, leaving the tree damaged. The destruction of the tree disrupts the fungi-containing lichen, and the rare plant soon dies. To compound the difficulties of its survival, only one insect, the giant sphinx moth, can pollinate the ghost orchid.
Ghost Orchid 1 was taken with a Clyde-O-Wide 4×5 (hand-built by Clyde) 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/32 | 47mm Schneider Super-Angulon XL lens | 2 minutes.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
When I first moved to Florida from California, I was surprised trees could grow in saltwater. From that time on, I have loved the sculptural quality of mangroves, especially red mangroves, surrounded by water. As I traveled through the Everglades’ Ten Thousand Islands by boat, I passed these mangroves often. On this day, everything came together—the light, the clouds, and the stillness of the water. Today these mangroves have all but disappeared due to several hurricanes.
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 habitats 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.
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.
The Florida Trail, a designated hiking route, extends from North Florida south to the Big Cypress National Preserve. I took this image while photographing the seven wilderness areas of Florida for The Wilderness Society and the Forestry Department. The Florida Trail intersects a portion of these unspoiled lands. As we hiked along the trail, I saw this scene and couldn’t resist taking a photograph, as I felt it evoked a sense of heading toward a figurative light.
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.
The only “wild” river flowing into Lake Okeechobee, Fisheating Creek is located on the west side of the Lake. The entrance to the creek is along Highway 27 near Palmdale.
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.
While being filmed for the documentary Big Cypress Swamp: The Western Everglades, Clyde explored the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park. Clyde enjoys photographing the unique environment of this part of the Everglades due
to the many species found here that are typically in more tropical climates. While standing in deep water with the crew, the sculptural qualities of this tree made him pause and take this photograph.
Resilient Trees of the Everglades
Well into the dry season, when much of the water has receded, the pond apple trees’ large, gently twisting buttresses lay exposed, showing marks of the past high-water wet season. Their roots dig into a rich, black muck made of partially decomposed plant debris, often several feet thick, until they reach the limestone below. Where waters tend to be deeper and the cypress trees more widely scattered, pop ash and pond apple trees thrive.
Fakahatchee Cathedral 2 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 Super-Angulon XL lens | 30 seconds.
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
I had never seen so many Osprey nests located so close to each other as I found while canoeing the perimeter of Lake Russell. This particular Osprey nest was artistically located in a sculptural cypress tree. I couldn’t resist taking a photograph of this beautiful nest. I photographed this at the Disney Wilderness Preserve in Central Florida near Kissimmee. The Preserve is run by The Nature Conservancy and is a haven in the mad rush of “fun” in the Orlando area.
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.
The creek is in the Panhandle and is a tributary of the Apalachicola River. I photographed it while I was working on the Apalachicola River film project with Live Oak Production Group.
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 photographed this clamshell orchid (prosthechea cochleata) while working with a crew from
CBS’s 60 Minutes. We retraced the path of the infamous “Orchid Thief” through the Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park. This clamshell orchid was seized from the poacher and repatriated to the Fakahatchee. Sadly, many of the orchids that were returned to the ecosystem were unable to acclimate to their previous environment as this one did. In this photograph, the clamshell appears to be a large flower, but in reality, the bloom is relatively small (about one inch), as are most of the flowers of native Florida orchids.
Elusive and Endangered Orchid
This endangered orchid proliferates in deep swamps where moisture is more prevalent and temperatures more stable. Rarely seen by the casual observer, this flower is a rewarding sight to those who venture into the deeper waters of these wetlands.
Clamshell Orchid 1 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 Super-Angulon XL lens | 2 minutes
Disclaimer – Cropping, contrast, and image density may vary. To learn more about the darkroom printing process, click
here.
Cayo Costa Island is one of my favorite places in Florida. I always enjoy taking our boat over to the island for a few days of relaxation and photography. On this trip, we traveled to the south end of the island where we found some wonderful driftwood. The day was perfect with no clouds in the sky. That meant that when I put my red filter onto my lens the sky would be a nice black background for the sculptural sun-bleached driftwood.
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.
Blowing Rocks Preserve, Jupiter – The majority of beaches in Florida are white sand, so when I heard that there was a beach in Florida with large rocks, I was curious to see what it was like. I was surprised to see that it resembled so many of the beaches that are on the west coast of the U.S.A. I had a great time photographing…it took me back to my days on the beaches of California.
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.
