Below are the few shots I got during the event. I had no idea it would turn into this. I was actually in bed, ready to sleep, and did one last check of aurora activity. After seeing the activity was so high, I dragged myself back outside thinking it would be a dud. 

Next time, I would choose a spot with something in the foreground for scale. But I might have to make a trip to the far north for a next time.

These shots show a vibrant and brightly colored aurora. In person it was muted colors. A long exposure photograph can show more detail than the human eye can see. These are not heavily manipulated, but they do not accurately reflect what it was like in person. 

In a yearlong project with Visit Walla Walla, I photographed a variety of iconic Walla Walla Valley events for the purpose of illustrating the 2024 Walla Walla Visitor Guide (along with other photographers). Below are highlights from this project. ​​​​​​

A Walla Walla Valley Academy student volunteers at the 2023 Walla Walla Balloon Stampede, helping inflate the balloon I was invited to ride along in. 

A birds-eye view of Howard-Tietan Park, where the 2023 Walla Walla Balloon Stampede was held. 

The Washington State Penitentiary Color Guard leads the parade for the 2023 Waitsburg Days Parade.

Community members line Main Street for the 2023 Waitsburg Days Parade. 

The Walla Walla Fair & Frontier Days wagon at the 2023 Waitsburg Days Parade. 

Tourism leaders from around Washington State meet at the Ford Motor Co in Walla Walla.

Visit Walla Walla Executive Director Guy Glaeser addresses an audience of state tourism leaders.

State tourism leaders toured the Walawála Plaza, enjoying treats from Bright's Candies food truck.

An entrance to the Ford Motor Co. 

Young community members enjoy a warm summer evening watching a show at Movies in the Park in College Place. 

The inflatable movie screen at Movies in the Park in College Place.

Some of the exciting action at Pioneer Posse Days in Milton-Freewater. 

The rodeo at Pioneer Posse Days. 

Fans enjoying the rodeo in Milton-Freewater.

Shanks Pony puts on a great show after the rodeo is over.

A vendor at the College Place Farmers Market offers blueberries to a young shopper. 

Cars line Main Street in front of the Liberty Theatre building for Wheelin Walla Walla Weekend. 

Wheelin Walla Walla Weekend draws a huge crowd.

The car show is a family-friendly, and dog-friendly, event. 

A rider in the Allegro Cyclery Walla Walla Grit bike race begins his decent down Mormon Grade. 

Rounding the turn of the summit at Mormon Grade during Walla Walla Grit.  

The roads certainly earn the "grit" part of the event.

The 2023 Harvest Festival was a great event for family fun.

Children enjoy the barrel maze at the 2023 Harvest Festival in the airport district.

A family enjoys shopping at the Ford Motor Co during the 2023 Holiday Barrel Weekend.

A young man makes a wish at Ford Motor Co during the Holiday Barrel Weekend. 

The Walla Walla City Christmas tree shortly after the lighting ceremony at 1st Ave. and Main St. 

A community band member plays holiday music. 

A lighted fire truck makes its way down Main Street during the Parade of Lights.

And, below, you will find some of the pages that this project illustrated:

One of my last assignments at the paper was to do a community Q&A with my friend and all around fantastic human, Lydia Caudill, the community development block grant coordinator for the City of Walla Walla. Along with taking photos, I wrote the article, a less common thing for me to do:
Read the article here.

Early in 2023 I transitioned to working at BMHS. One of the best parts of my new job there is photographing the animals. This was a promotional shoot for an adoption event at Castillo de Feliciana with Sadie. 

BMHS is a remarkable organization with its own veterinary clinic to care for their own animals and also extend services to the community. They offer subsidized services to income qualified people as well as serving volume clients and Trap, Neuter, Return programs. It is an honor to have full access to photograph this clinic in action. One this particular day, students from WSU were honing their skills during a TNR event.

I have to keep a sense of humor at work.

This gentle moment during a BMHS open house is one of my favorites. 

Early in life I developed a love of wildlife and thought I would one day become a biologist. Eventually, it morphed into wanting to be a wildlife photographer. This is still a passion of mine and yet I don't seem to get out as often as I would like to do this. This vulture was seen at Ladd Marsh in Oregon.

One of the unexpected parts of my new job in animal welfare was learning about how animals end up in a shelter. I was not expecting the volume of animals that come in because of their owners passing away. It is heartbreaking. Some more so than others. This is Margo. Her owner was a young man who was tragically murdered. Margo had some allergy issues that took a while to find the right family to welcome her. But eventually, she found her forever home.

Much of my 2023 was spent working with Visit Walla Walla to produce regional images for the Walla Walla Visitor Guide, a product I feel particularly connected to as I was lead designer for it for years at the Union-Bulletin. Now that Visit Walla Walla has taken it on, the design and production has gone to the next level. I'm so proud to still be part of it. This photo is of the Washington State Department of Corrections Honor Guard at Waitsburg Celebration Days.

Another fun promo shoot for BMHS with Elsa and the Walla Walla Sweets.

The Motor Co is a new venue in Walla Walla. This particular event was for a group of Washington State tourism leaders hosted by the fantastic folks at Visit Walla Walla. 

Another passion of mine is dance photography. It is particularly challenging to photograph. I volunteer my time to photograph and support this important art form in Walla Walla. In this photo, Phyllis Rothwell (in back), the artistic director for Washington State Youth Ballet, dances with Jacki Carlson for a Vicki Lloid production. Vicki and her Suitcase Players create some of the most diverse and interesting local performance art.

Vicki Lloid's work encompasses dance, theater, and spoken word. Here, local great actor Kevin Loomer, as Charles Burkowski, engages with Jennifer Winters.

I do a little bit of everything. This was part of a project for the Walla Walla Housing Authority.

Part of what I love about dance is being behind the scenes. There is an excitement level that is contagious. Waiting to go on stage is the peak of this energy level. This young dancer was waiting for their turn during Songs of Summer for Dance Center of Walla Walla at Cordiner Hall. Idalee Hutson Fish, owner and director, and Caleb Leitch, instructor, are inspiring to work with. Caleb was one of the first dancers I photographed.

Prior to the stage energy, there is the prep energy of getting ready. This young dancer with Dance Center of Walla Walla gets ready for Songs of Summer.

The City of College Place has movies in the park. A fun family time to watch a flick and enjoy being outdoors. This was for Visit Walla Walla.

Two young people with an iconic picnic scene watching a movie in the park in College Place.

Summer Dance Lab at Whitman College is one of my favorite times of year. It is where I got my start in dance photography. Working with the students is inspiring. And getting to spend time with SDL director John Passafiume, a great human and great friend, is something I look forward to every year.

The staff at BMHS are as amazing as the animals we serve. Shonee Turner, animal care and enrichment coordinator, is no exception. Her amazing connection with the animals, and her teammates, is truly special.

Visit Walla Walla hired me to photograph the Pioneer Posse in Milton-Freewater. I never expected to enjoy being behind the scenes at a rodeo as much as I do. But it has become one of my favorite assignments to get.

Another amazing element to animal shelter life is the dedicated volunteers that do a tremendous lift of labor that otherwise could not be afforded by a nonprofit. It's particularly moving when it's the young generation finding their place with giving. Zoey Johnson is a 12-year-old volunteer. You can read about her work at the shelter here.

I also do portraits. This portrait is of Shannon Ebding, for Buckley Investments. 

Being a photographer is an amazing doorway into worlds one might not normally get access to. I've met so many interesting people over the years. In this photo is Washington State Senator Perry Dozer at an event that Washington State Economic Development Association hired me to photograph.

I got a call one day from a retired farmer telling me about her sunflower field. The flowers brought her so much joy that she wanted to capture it. We ended up making books for her family and friends with the sunflowers so she could share the joy. Louise brought me joy too. I loved this project so much and am happy to have made a new friend.

Along with dance I love photographing theater. The Walla Walla Summer Theater production of Secret Garden was every bit as incredible as any Broadway show.

At BMHS there are heroes behind the scenes that keep the animals fed, clean and healthy. Part of what I love about this photo is the happy dog waiting to spend time with Ash, an animal care specialist. I also like this photo because, as small towns go, Ash feels like an extended family member as their father and I are good friends and go way back. 

Maria Torres is one of the BMHS team members that's been there the longest: More than 10 years. All the staff there have big hearts and care so much for the mission. Surrender Coordinator Baylie Steele, background, also has a big heart and has a growing pack of adopted pets of her own.

Another nonprofit that is very dear to me is Trilogy Recovery Community. Whenever possible I try to give back to them as they have given me so much. If you need help, reach out to them.

We had fun with a promo shoot for BMHS where Margo closed a sponsorship deal for Fall Furr Ball with attorney, and BMHS board member, Jeremy Hyndman.

Phyllis Rothwell, artistic director for Washington State Youth Ballet, is a gem of Walla Walla. It was a pleasure to work on these promo shoots with her students for their 2023 Nutcracker. This project was also my first attempt at incorporating AI technology. The dancers were photographed on white backgrounds. The other elements were added with generative fill in Adobe Photoshop. These backgrounds took a fair amount of time and creative work. AI can do amazing things but it takes the right prompts and creative thinking to get the results you want. The background image on the snow queen took at least 6 composite layers. 

One of the niches I work in is bottle photography. To do this correctly, with clean studio lighting and balanced labels with glass, as well as custom clipped backgrounds, is a specialty of mine. I'm excited to be working with House of Bones, a new client in 2023.

I also do family photos. I've been photographing the Eatons for many years now. The fall colors this year were spectacular.

When I left the U-B it was important for me to keep the doors open. I was happy to be asked to freelance for them during the recent general elections. This moment, after results were released at the courthouse, between Jeff Robinson, candidate for the position of Walla Walla City Council's West Ward, and Alayna Brinton, a candidate running for a position on the Walla Walla School Board, is the kind of story I like to tell with my camera.

I have a lot of other interests. Science is a passion of mine. I have microscopes and telescopes among other nerdy tools. This shot was taken by putting my cellphone camera up to my telescope eyepiece.

Any artist will doubt what they are doing. I do. But when the foster family that took Ruby in to care for her, while she gave birth to 11 puppies, told me that this photo is why they decided to foster her, I felt like what I was doing really matters.

Another photo for Visit Walla Walla. An iconic small town holiday scene.

Not all the photos at an animal shelter have animals in them. At least 4-legged ones. Walla Walla Fence Co installed fence extenders to deter high jumpers in our yards. The smoke, light and sparks were interesting to me.

The BMHS surgical team keeps our animals healthy. Alexia Smith, left, and Jennifer Catlett, right, fit a cone on one of Mamacita's puppies. 

Frank is a grumpy, very old, little superstar at BMHS. His owner passed away and we ended up with this very senior Dachshund. After an emergency surgery to remove bad teeth and part of his jaw, it was unclear if he would survive the night. Our development manager Kristin Lewis couldn't bear to let him spend the night alone at the shelter. What started out as a compassionate night turned into an adoption. Frank now lives with Kristin and her partner Kyle. Frank was featured in our Fall Furr Ball campaign and is part of how we raised more than $240,000.

I mentioned the foster that took in Ruby to help her give birth. This is Liz McDevitt and one of Ruby's puppies. Fosters take on some of the really hard work in animal rescuing that wouldn't otherwise be possible at a shelter. 

I do product photography. My friend Jason Lilly makes his own custom electric guitar pedals. Check out his work here.

This and the following photos are the final product in the Walla Walla Visitor Guide from my work this year with Visit Walla Walla. 

Let's hope that 2024 outshines 2023.
 

To learn more about their shows, visit: https://phtww.org/

https://www.wallawallawineservices.com/
 

To read the story and see photos from the U-B's chief photographer please visit:

Firefighters contain massive wheat fire north of Walla Walla

A "firenado" can be seen in the lower left of the smoke column just above a farmstead.

A tractor plowing a fire line ahead of a massive dark cloud of smoke.

Standing wheat burns in a wall of massive flames. Tractors work together to disc the standing wheat for fire lines.

Multiple images were stitched together for a panoramic photo showing the massive wall of smoke and flames.

Crews spray water on flames as the fire reaches Lower Waitsburg Road.

Flames create a menacing shape resembling the gaping mouth of a fire monster. Another tractor arrives to help plow fire lines near a farmstead.

A massive tractor gives scale to massive flames. 

Flames and smoke appear to surround a tractor as it cuts a fire line.

Fire trucks and crew work in tandem to douse flames. Crews work a scarred landscape putting out hot spots.

To read the story and see photos from the U-B's chief photographer please visit:

Firefighters contain massive wheat fire north of Walla Walla

And then, below, a couple on the drive home without flash.

Grass Widows (Olsynium douglasii)

The Umatilla Rim trail.  The view from the Umatilla Rim trail.  Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)
Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides)
American Black Bear (Ursus americanus)

A butterfly on Red Columbine. 

Rocky Mountain Clearwing (Hemaris thetis) taken with cell phone

A rattlesnake on Hells Canyon Road.

The view from the visitor center. Taken with a cell phone. 

Waking up to a foggy 4Runner window at the Ollokot campground. Taken with cell phone.

The cloudy view at the Hells Canyon overlook.

The Buck Creek trailhead.

Pine tree pollen in a mud puddle.

A Columbian Ground Squirrel.

Spittle bugs.

Sunset over Hells Canyon.

Sunset shadows in Hells Canyon.

A Whitetail deer and her twin fawns. 

Sacajawea Peak seen from Hurricane Creek trail in the Eagle Cap Wilderness.

Geological formations in the cliffs along Hurricane Creek.

Fairy-slipper orchids (Calypso bulbosa) along the Hurricane Creek trail.

Tracy and me hiking Hurricane Creek. Cell phone selfie. 

A Fairy-slipper orchid at Horseshoe Prairie in the Umatilla National Forest.

The Umatilla Rim trail as it passes through Horseshoe Prairie. 

At twilight with the nucleus visible. 

After twilight with the tail detail.

And then the ISS flew over with the Milky Way in the background.

The next night I tried looking at it with my telescope from my backyard in Walla Walla.

Self portrait doing what I love.

NEOWISE headed for a tree.

Like an ornament touching the tip.

Looking for life outside of virus fear.

Here is what I found: upgrading one of our main streets, university students at leisure in our parks,
a father and daughter day on the track, and more.

It was a good day.

The project has been broken up into 400-square-mile adoptable grids in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. My grid is in the Umatilla National Forest. 

Using Google Maps satellite view I zoom in to select an area that looks like good habitat. In this case it is open grassland surrounded by pine forest.  

I then draw an approximately 2.5 acre boundary using Google Maps polygon tool. The tool will tell you the area of your shape as you draw it. I normally draw it over the satellite view but am using the map view here so you can see the shape more clearly. I save this map to my phone, make it available offline and then when on site I can use it to tell if I'm within my survey boundary.

I load up all of my gear and head into the mountains. My survey area often requires four wheel drive and high clearance. 

I make sure to obey all national forest laws regarding off road driving and wilderness boundaries for the area that I'm in.  This is where I set up alongside the main forest road.

I bring a load of supplies including a net, vials and a cooler. I get my specialized supplies from BioQuip. 

I number a bunch of vials and put silica packs in them. 

I then use a wind meter (This link goes to Amazon. I am an Amazon affiliate and receive
commision on referred sales.) to record wind speed and air temperature.

I then scout the area for where the bees are. This field had thousands of them. 

Each survey should last 45 minutes total survey time. I use a stopwatch on my phone and start the timer as I walk the survey area. Once a bee is found the clock is stopped until the bee is collected and I am ready to start looking for the next one.

I photograph the numbered vial next to the host plant the bee is captured on. Each submitted bee must include the host plant.

Bees are then put on ice to put them in a sort of hibernative state which makes them easier to work with.

The silica pack keeps moisture from condensing inside the vial. If moisture condenses the bee's hairs become wet which makes it more difficult to identify them by their markings. 

This is my camera setup with a macro lens, an extension tube and a flash with diffuser. 

I place the chilled bee on a 2mm graph paper to photograph.  The bee will be inactive for a couple minutes until it warms up and flies away unharmed.

To properly identify a bee it requires three angles. The side, top down and face of it.   Bumble bees can detach their wings from their wing muscles and vibrate. This is used mostly for a process called vibration pollination as a specialized way to extract pollen from flowers with encased stamens. They can also produce body heat this way. Here is a short video of a bee warming itself and flying away after being photographed.

After I'm done collecting and photographing the bees and plants I download the photos to my computer and begin organizing the files per bee. 

Every flowering plant in the 2.5 acre survey area must be identified regardless of bees being seen on them.

Once I've organized all of my files and identified all of the plants I begin uploading the data to Bumble Bee Watch. I do my best to identify the bees but thankfully it is reviewed by a scientist who either confirms the identification or corrects it. I do the minimum of two surveys per season but try to do as many as possible. The first year I did five. With driving time, doing the survey and processing and entering data each survey can take up to 10 hours of time. 

Queen on a dime.

Queen on my fingertip.

Queen with drone mating.

Drone after ending mating.

Worker, about 1mm long, on a blade of grass.

Queens and workers on blade of grass preparing to launch into nuptial flight.

A waterfall in Glacier National Park

Bear grass

Swiftcurrent trail through bear grass.

Tent caterpillars

Logan Pass

Mountain goat at Logan Pass

Lost Lake

Bighorn Sheep

Pronghorn at the National Bison Range

Tracy surveying species for iNaturalist

Pika

A tiny beetle on a daisy with pollen grains on the petals. 

A tiny fly on a tiny daisy. The grains on the petals are pollen. 

Possibly sphagnum moss that started growing from soil I mixed for carnivorous plants. 

Possibly a fern thallus growing in the same soil

Equipment list:

Canon 5D MK III

Sigma 150-600 Sport

Canon 24-70 2.8L II

Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II

Canon EF25 II Extension Tube

Driving on NF-6413 going to Elk Flats trailhead. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)

The survey habitat near Elk Flats. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)

What appears to be a B. bifarius male.

A bee fly (Bombylius ?) feeding on nettleleaf horsemint (Agastache urticifolia)

An unidentified male, possibly B. fervidous, on nettleleaf horsemint

A cobalt blue butterfly

A swallowtail butterfly

A bee fly

Where I set up in the shade. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)

A wind and temperature meter HoldPeak HP-866B. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)

A bumblebee in a glass vile to chill it on ice so that it's easier to work with. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)

Netting bees for a closer look. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)  

A pair of blister beetles mating

Looking down on the Grande Ronde river valley 

Looking towards the Wallowa mountains from an amazing viewpoint.

Crossing a narrow bridge over  the Grande Ronde river. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)  

Crossing the Grande Ronde river. (Google Pixel cellphone photo)

A sedated bee to make photographing and identifying them easier.
Possibly B. flavifrons? I am a newbie at this and not good at IDing yet! 

Camera Equipment list:

Canon 5D MK III

Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II

Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro (Original Version)

Canon EF25 II Extension Tube

Canon 1.4x iii Telephoto Extender

Flashpoint XPLOR 600 HSS

Equipment list:

Canon 5D MK III

Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro (Original Version)

Canon EF25 II Extension Tube

Equipment list:

Canon 5D MK III

Sigma 150-600 Sport

Canon 24-70 2.8L II

Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II

Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro (Original Version)

Canon EF25 II Extension Tube

Equipment list:

Canon 5D MK III

Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro (Original Version)

Canon EF25 II Extension Tube

Equipment list:

Canon 5D MK III

Sigma 150-600 Sport

Canon 24-70 2.8L II

Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II

Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro (Original Version)

Google Pixel XL 1

Carnegie Picture Lab

A black-throated sparrow
A California Tree Frog at the oasis

A group of tree frogs at the oasis

Palm fronds 
A phoebe

California palms at the oasis
Inside the oasis 
A Joshua Tree
Our campsite at Belle Campground, Joshua Tree

Tracy investigating desert burrows up close

The Mojave Desert

Pencil Cholla Cactus
A rock wall within Indian Cove

Desert Trumpet
Desert night view from our campsite with the Andromeda Galaxy showing top center of the sky

The Milky Way over Joshua Tree 
Our campfire 
Our campsite lit by the rising moon 
Antelope Squirrel  
Joshua Trees 

A shrike in a Joshua Tree
A Desert Spiny Lizard 
Cholla cactus 
The ruins at Joshua Tree Mill Trail
A Long-nosed Leopard Lizard found by Tracy 
A Jack Rabbit
Joshua Tree forest 
The Colorado Desert at the southern entrance to Joshua Tree National Park 
The Colorado Desert 
Landing in Seattle

See all the Summer Dance Lab photos here:

http://www.stevelenzphotography.com/summerdancelab

A swarm of honey bees

Sunset over warships near Coronado Island A jetBlue plane on approach seen above the San Diego Union-Tribune building

The San Diego skyline

Children exploring the beach on Coronado Island An agave plant

The desert mountains seen from the Pacific Crest Trail on Mount Laguna  Tracy on the Pacific Crest Trail at Mount Laguna One of the many memorials at Kwaaymii Point Flowers in Tracy's yard Part of a cactus 

Part of a cactus 

One of dozens of hummingbirds that visit Tracy's yard 

Flowers growing on the Sunset Trail on Mount Laguna 

Acorn Woodpecker holes with their cache of acorns stored inside 

Sunset view from Mount Laguna

Driving on I-8 near Los Terrinitos

A song sparrow at Point Reyes

A pocket gopher at Point Reyes

The beach near Tomales Point

An endangered Tule elk cow 

A raven near the Tomales Point trail

A wasp that has paralyzed a spider to lay her eggs on is dragging it to a hole in the ground 

A carrion beetle with mites

Two wasps either fighting or loving. Or both. 

A side view of their behavior 

A Tule elk calf 

A Tule elk bull sniffing the air 

A Tule elk bull stretching after lying on the ground a while 

Part of the herd of Tule elk at Tomales Point in Point Reyes National Monument 

A goup of bulls

A coyote over a ridge with the ocean in the background 

Beautiful erosion designs in the cliff

A vulture 

A vulture

A female coyote 

Two elephant seal bulls fighting. Each one will eventually reach a length of 16 feet and 6,000 pounds 

Elephant seals

Schooner bay

Cobweb thistle

A barn swallow

A California quail 

A white crowned sparrow

Abbotts Lagoon 

Abbotts Lagoon 

A great blue heron

Grasses at Abbotts Lagoon 

Abbotts Lagoon 

The ocean beach at Abbotts Lagoon 

Ants farming aphids for sugar on a cobweb thistle 

A cobweb thistle flower 

Waves at Limantour Spit

A sand dune  

Tracy photographing endangered snowy plovers at Limantour Spit in very strong winds

An osprey

A sea otter at Morro Bay

An endangered snowy plover at Sandspit beach

A long-billed curlew

From my backyard:

My room for the weekend (with a photo I took over the bed). Cape Cove room at Heceta Lightstation B&B

The view off the front porch.

The keepers' cat.

Baby starlings nesting above the porch.

A panoramic view of the coastline with the keepers house and lighthouse in the distance.

US Coast Guard

Vulture

Sealion

Nesting seabirds. 

Looking south to Florence, Oregon.

Wild Foxglove

A raccoon hunti​​​​​​ng at the Siletz Wildlife Refuge.

Siletz River

This rare assembly of performers will present their work one night only at
Whitman College’s Chism Hall on Saturday April 29th at 8 p.m. Admission is free.