Steven Helmer Publications

I skipped a couple nights but decided to put one of my trail cameras in the yard last night just to see if there was still as much activity (the cats haven't been as interested in looking out the window at night). As it turns out, there was quite a bit happening during the night and early morning hours with visits that included everything from opossums to stray cats.  Here are some of the photos: _________________________________________________________________________ Here are some previous trail camera photos and videos: Trail Camera Videos (1/3/2026-1/4/2026) Trail Camera Photos (11/10/2024-11/12/2024) Trail Camera Videos (10/13/2024-10/14/2024) Trail Camera Photos (4/7/2025-4/8/2025)

After some uncomfortably hot weather the past several days, we are back to some cooler temps. This made my walk at lunch a bit more enjoyable because I didn't end up drenched in sweat.  The city recently did some landscape work at the park, opening up some areas that were previously difficult to get to because of high grass. This did lead to me getting some photos, like the one of the sandhill cranes below that I probably wouldn't have gotten.  Here are some of the photos I took: _____________________________________________________________________________ Here are some of my previous nature photos: Lunchtime Walk Photos (7/6/2026) Lunchtime Walk Photos (7/21/2026) Morning Walk Photos 4/27/2018 Some Heron Photos

I ended up cutting my walk a bit shorter today, both because I had a lot of work to do at the office and because I didn't want to scare a heron (last photo) that was fishing near one of the trails. I did still manage to get some photographs though. Here are some of them: _______________________________________________________________________ Here are some of my previous nature photos: Lunchtime Walk Photos (7/6/2026) Lunchtime Walk Photos (6/3/2026) Morning Walk Photos 7/26/2017 Some More Walk Photos

After several days of it either being too hot or too smokey to go for a walk, we finally have a reasonably decent day today. So, despite some concerns it might rain, I got out with my camera. While not my best outing photo-wise, I did manage to get some pictures. Here are a few of them: _________________________________________________________________ Here are some of my previous nature photos: Just a Couple Rabbit Photos Lunchtime Walk Photos (7/9/2026) Morning Walk Photos (7/10/2026) Morning Walk Photos 9/28/2017

I managed to get out by the lake with my camera for a bit this morning before heading into the office. I didn't get in as much of a walk as I would have preferred though. There was a flock of geese blocking the way and I didn't want to do anything to scare them (or get me attacked) so I turned around. Despite cutting the walk short, I did still manage to get some photos (which is more than I could say about my walk at lunch). Here are a few of them: ________________________________________________________________________ Here are some previous nature photos: Lunchtime Walk Photos (6/4/2026) Lunchtime Walk Photos (5/6/2026) Just a Nest Photo Morning and Lunchtime Walk Photos 4/23/2024

The weather has been a bit iffy the past couple days. If it hasn't been horribly hot/humid, it's been raining. So, when I decided to take a chance and go for a walk today, I didn't go as far, just in case I needed to head back to my car in a hurry. It wasn't terribly hot out when I went and I did manage to avoid rain, though there were some ominous clouds in the sky. I also managed to get some photos while I was out. Here are a few of them. _____________________________________________________________________ Here are some of my previous nature photos: Morning Walk Photos (6/4/2026) Lunchtime Walk Photos (5/6/2026) Lunchtime Walk Photos (10/9/2024) Some Random Outdoor Photos

It's a bit warmer/more humid than it was yesterday but I still managed to get out for two separate walks today. The first was early this morning along the lake while the other was through the park at lunch (when I could really feel the muggy weather). Here are some of the photos: ____________________________________________________________________________ Here are some previous nature photos: Lunchtime Walk Photos (6/2/2025) Lunchtime Walk Photos (9/27/2024) Lunchtime Walk Photos 8/7/2024 Morning and Lunchtime Walk Photos 5/16/2024

It is the first day in a while where it is neither raining or dangerously hot/humid outside, so I found the time to take a walk with my camera at lunch.  It was somewhat quiet there, with very few signs of life, but I did still manage to get at least some photos. Here are a few of them: _______________________________________________________________________ Here are some previous nature photos: Lunchtime Walk Photos (5/13/2026) A Couple Trail Camera Squirrel Photos (2/14/2026) Morning Walk Photos 4/27/2018 Some Bird Photos from Around the Yard

We are under a heat advisory today so, even though I did decide to brave it and take a walk at lunch, I didn't walk as far or as long as I usually do. This was both to avoid any heat-related health issues and because my camera lens kept steaming up from the humidity, making my photos either darker than normal or look like they were taken on a foggy day. Here are the photos I was able to take and (reasonably) salvage: ___________________________________________________________________________ Here are some previous nature photos: Morning Walk Photos (6/22/2026) Lunchtime Walk Photos (6/23/2026) Front Yard Bird Photos Family Walk Photos 8/8/2017

I managed to get a walk in at lunch today, despite knowing the rain we had yesterday would make the trails muddy. As it turned out, they weren't as bad as expected but the parks department was out there mowing so there weren't as many photo opportunities as I would have preferred. I did, however, come across this robin hanging out in a puddle and snapped its photo. ________________________________________________________________________ Here are some of my other bird photos: Just a Random Bird Feeder Photo Front Yard Bird Photos Green Heron Photo Bird Feeder Photos 3/10/2018

I wasn't sure if I would get an opportunity to get a walk in at lunch today because of a surprisingly busy Tuesday. However, there was enough of a lull for me to get out for a short while and that's all I needed to get some great photo opportunities, including making eye contact with the deer I thought had moved out of the park weeks ago as I was walking past one of the ponds. Here are some of the photos: ____________________________________________________________________ Here are some of my previous nature photos: Lunchtime Walk Photos 4/30/2018 Lunchtime Walk Photos 8/14/2017 Lunchtime Walk Photos 3/18/2019 Lunchtime Walk Photos 5/15/2019