Macro

Mantis in our front yard. The water droplet on its head came from the hose. The mantis started to move when my wife began to water the plants out front, so she called me out to take a picture.

Mantis in our front yard. The water droplets are from our water hose; my wife was watering the plants and ended up watering the mantis, too.

Sunflower in the back yard.

A freshly emerged cicada. I shot this on the suckers of one of the backyard trees.

Robber fly. These predatory flies catch their prey in mid-air. This one was hanging out on a bench in our backyard, which is the blue in the background.

Green anole. Despite the name, these lizards change color. This one was hanging out on our water hose out front. Normally they're skittish but this one was enjoying the sun too much to be bothered by the camera.

Kern's flower beetle, enjoying a pink evening primrose in our front yard.

Bold jumper on a rose. It was living in a spot near our front door, so I relocated it to our flowers.

Ice captured on our Roses during a Texas ice storm.

A barn spider (southern, N. Crucifera) guarding our front door. Mostly they like to live in trees but if there are a lot of them they will make their webs on the roof of the house.

A green anole, actually looking green. These lizards can change their color. They also shed their tails if you grab them.