Last time we got a call from a publisher, they were looking for photographs of “pretty places” for a National Park’s calendar. This time, we got a call from National Park’s Magazine. They were looking for images to illustrate an upcoming article on investments in water management in Everglades National Park. Here is the photo they selected:

The day we took this shot, we rose early, put on our water shoes, and followed Paul (naturalist, incredible photographer, and friend) into the Everglades. He warned us of sharp limestone beneath the surface of the water – and of Alligators, Cottonmouths, and Burmese Pythons… and he went barefoot.

We spent more than an hour wandering around in this area as the sun came up over the Mangroves, took a bunch of shots, and headed to breakfast. But it isn’t the efforts behind the photo that sell it. It’s not the hike, the lens, the camera system, or the dangerous animals that threaten to nibble on your toes out there. ;)

In this case it’s the location – the heart of a park that is struggling to deal with problems ranging from water management to infestation by invasive species (remember the Pythons we mentioned?) to threatened and endangered species. The light helps – it’s a pretty sunrise, and the well-controlled highlights and shadows make it pleasant to look at. But in the end, it’s a portrait of this troubled and beautiful location… and that helps the publishers tell their story.