Texas Mountain Laurel
Mount Rainier, WA

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Interesting Nature Facts: Updated Daily

Featured Gallery of the Month: Papaveraceae!

Latest Photos and Wildlife News

Frequently Asked Questions

Featured Gallery

Papaveraceae (Poppies & Bleeding Hearts)

Poppies & Bleeding Hearts: Until recently consisting of primarily wild poppies, the Papaveraceae family has been expanded to include Fumariaceae (bleeding hearts and fumeworts). While common in cultivated gardens, most members of this family contain medically-significant narcotic alkaloids and an acrid latex sap, which is responsible for giving us opium, heroin, codeine and morphine.

Papaveraceae (Poppies & Bleeding Hearts)

Poppies & Bleeding Hearts: Until recently consisting of primarily wild poppies, the Papaveraceae family has been expanded to include Fumariaceae (bleeding hearts and fumeworts). While common in cultivated gardens, most members of this family contain medically-significant narcotic alkaloids and an acrid latex sap, which is responsible for giving us opium, heroin, codeine and morphine.

Papaveraceae (Poppies & Bleeding Hearts)

Poppies & Bleeding Hearts: Until recently consisting of primarily wild poppies, the Papaveraceae family has been expanded to include Fumariaceae (bleeding hearts and fumeworts). While common in cultivated gardens, most members of this family contain medically-significant narcotic alkaloids and an acrid latex sap, which is responsible for giving us opium, heroin, codeine and morphine.

Latest Photos and Wildlife News

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel

The golden-mantled ground squirrel (Callospermophilus lateralis), is a fascinating species found across most of the western United States and north into Alberta and British Columbia in Canada. With a distinctive striped appearance and several unique behaviors, this small mammal is a joy to see and watch in person.

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The Black Turnstone: A Charismatic Shorebird

The Black Turnstone: A Charismatic Shorebird

The black turnstone feeds mostly on small crustaceans and marine worms, which it can find on rocky shorelines or mudflats. It is also known to eat small insects, mollusks, and occasionally plant material.

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Female Saffron-winged Meadowhawk

Female Saffron-winged Meadowhawk

The last time I passed through Montana, I stopped by some duck ponds in Anaconda at a place called Warm Springs State Wildlife Management Area and there were dragonflies and damselflies everywhere! I was familiar with some of the species, but this one olive-golden...

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Interesting Nature Facts #129 – Sphinx Moths

Their size and rapid wing beats allow sphinx moths to hover and feed like hummingbirds, which is why they were nicknamed 'hummingbird moths'. People often mistake the protrusion on the back of the sphinx caterpillar for a stinger. MORE PHOTOS OF BUTTERFLIES AND MOTHS...

Interesting Nature Facts #136 – Green Lynx Spider

The green lynx spider has an appetite for insects belonging to the Lepidoptera family (moths and their larvae) that are known to be enemies of crops like corn, cotton, cabbage, etc. Although their importance in the controlling of pests is counteracted by their...

Interesting Nature Facts #133 – Gladiolus

In Ancient Rome, a scientist was struck by the gladiolus' resemblance to the swords gladiators used in battle. He named the bloom gladiolus after the Latin word for sword, "gladius". MORE PHOTOS OF WILDFLOWERS MORE INTERESTING NATURE FACTS Interesting Nature Facts is...

Interesting Nature Facts #6 – Elk

Elk are associated with love in many tribes, and Native American legends often credit elk with the creation of the first flute, an instrument used by men to woo women in many Native American cultures. MORE PHOTOS OF ELK AND OTHER MAMMALS MORE INTERESTING NATURE FACTS...

Interesting Nature Facts #105 – Chicken of the Woods

The sulphur shelf mushroom is an edible fungus that grows on trees in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, and tastes nearly identical to fried chicken. That explains its common name, the "chicken of the woods"! MORE PHOTOS OF MUSHROOMS MORE INTERESTING NATURE FACTS...

Frequently Asked Questions

1 - Fine Art Prints, Canvases and Other Printing Options

I have an automated ordering system for fine art prints that not only makes ordering easier, but gives you more options. Choose luster (my personal favorite – it’s a cross between matte and glassy), old-fashioned glossy, classic black & white or even have your images printed on metallic paper or canvas. As always, all my printing is done on ultra-premium museum-quality, acid-free professional photography paper with commercial archival inks that won’t fade or “yellow” over time. I care enough about my work to have it only printed on the best materials possible.

Next to every image in our gallery there is an “Add To Cart” button that will give you all the options available for that image in a very user-friendly format, and will make ordering a breeze. There is even an option at checkout for custom cropping.

And as always, if you have specific questions that aren’t answered on this page, please contact me and I’ll be more than happy to talk to you over the phone or by email, or even walk you through the ordering process. When in doubt, contact me before ordering.

All final orders will be double-checked and verified personally by me to make sure every order looks absolutely perfect before going to print.

2 - Image Licensing and Stock Images

I am pleased to announce that every single image on this website is available for instant download to your computer – no waiting involved! An ever-increasing amount of our business these days has been electronic image sales for bloggers, web-designers, news media and those who want the image in electronic format only. Many of these are publishers, editors, and other media specialists who do not require the printed image for their work or project.

We have a system in place for instant downloading of high-resolution (.TIFF) images for both personal use and commercial use. Just choose the size you want and it’s yours instantly, and we’ve tried to make this new system easy and simple to use and understand. There are two types of downloads available for you to use immediately. Read more about uses and downloading options.

Commercial Royalty-Free:

This type of download is for use in business or enterprise. This can include editorial work, blogging, sales material, non-profit, pamphlets, brochures, inclusion in a website, or any other commercial application. If you are not sure, ask yourself, “Am I planning on making money with this image or using for a business-related project?” If this is the case, then this is the right type of license needed. This does not include printing images for resale, print publication, or digital resale. If you do need an extended license for commercial work that requires use in mass printing, television, film, or other related commercial uses, contact us at your earliest convenience so we can discuss and we’ll get you a fast and reasonable quote.

Personal Use:

This type of download is for an individual using the image for personal use only. This includes classroom usage, school projects, personal prints, screen savers, usage for painters and artists to create derivatives that aren’t commercial in nature, etc. Essentially for uses that you aren’t trying to make money from our work. If you have any questions or extra information regarding uses please contact us and we’ll get you pointed in the right direction.

3 - More Information about Customized Fine Art Prints and Special Orders

Ordering prints from our galleries just got even easier! Now we are offering not only prints, papers, metal prints, acrylic and metal wall displays but a whole new range of customized frames, mats, and other accessories! Most prints are shipped within three business days and come with a no questions asked 30 day return policy. (I’ll discuss the details with you directly before you order – some of these materials may not be listed in the galleries, and I will take those orders personally – contact me for more information)

Through our partnership with Fine Art America we offer the most customizable and easy way of providing you with the very best professional prints for your office, home or gallery.

Custom frames and mattes – design it with amazing online tools! (Contact us so we can set it up personally with you)
Metal Prints (printed directly onto high quality aluminum)
Acrylic Prints (looks amazing with float mounts)
Stretched canvas prints
Museum wraps
Gallery wraps
Choose from over 230 high-end frames and 100 mats
Specialty fine art papers – including watercolor and luster!
Even greeting cards! Many more options, and we’re adding more every week!

4 - Usage Guidelines: Copyright Notice

We appreciate that you would like to use our photographs and/or images for your own projects. Please ask if you would like to use photographs for a blog or any other specific use. We offer exclusive rights to some of our photographs and it is important that you contact us, as this can then get us into legal troubles.

You may not copy images for paintings, drawings, or in any form or derivative without written permission. Your easiest option would be to purchase a “personal use” discounted download.

You may not sell or resell any photograph/image that Rich or Galina Leighton has taken or created. We have in our employ two competing copyright violation services searching out illegal usage of our work. Legal steps will be taken if misuse of our copyrighted material is detected.

If you want to use one of our images, you are required to purchase or license, which is easily and instantly available for every image through the shopping cart. Either contact us for your needs or use the automated pricing option for each image when viewing individual images (“Add to Cart” button). Every image you see in our online galleries is registered with the United States Copyright Office, and we do follow up on every single infringement case, all around the world. If you have any questions about any of this, please contact us.

You may not copy images for paintings, drawings, or in any form or derivative without permission.

We work really hard to create these images. Please respect our copyright. Thank you.

Three Little Birds, Four New Photos

Rise up this mornin', Smiled with the risin' sun, Three little birds Each by my doorstep Singin' sweet songs Of melodies pure and true, Saying', ("This is my message to you") ~ Bob Marley Just a quick post for today.... three very recent bird photos from my travels...
Pacific Madrone

Pacific Madrone (also known as the Manzanita)

Easily one of the most beautiful of all of the hardwoods on the Pacific Coast, the Pacific madrone is a member of the heath family and closely related to rhododendrons, and is the most northerly broadleaf evergreen trees on the continent. Early Spanish settlers in...

Grizzlybear Prickly Pear – Washington’s Desert Beauty

Recently I made yet another foray into the deserts of my increasingly favorite area of the Pacific Northwest, the Oak Creek Wildlife Area in Yakima County, Washington. As I've stated in other posts across the years, I am a big fan of cacti - and especially when they...

Oregon’s Sea Stacks

Last week I had an unexpected two-and-a-half day opening in my schedule and I pounced on the opportunity to visit new places and reconnoiter some new locations. The idea was that I could find/scout out potential photography hot spots and mark them on my "places to...

Profiles in Nature #2 – Wood Stork

Welcome to the second article of my new series, “Profiles in Nature”.  Thank you so much to everybody for the overwhelming response I received on the first post, I wracked my brain to make sure I followed up with an even better offering and I think I've done so with a...

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