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Before It Gets Dark, Nature Photography by Derick Carss
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Before It Gets Dark, Nature Photography by Derick Carss
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I, Naturalist
Wildlife, Personal Derick Carss 6/1/25 Wildlife, Personal Derick Carss 6/1/25

I, Naturalist

For nature photographers, iNaturalist is an absolute game-changer…

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Life After Death
Wildlife, Video, Personal Derick Carss 4/14/25 Wildlife, Video, Personal Derick Carss 4/14/25

Life After Death

Condors are the largest raptors in North America, but that doesn’t mean finding one would be easy…

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My White Whale, Part 2
Wildlife, Personal, Video Derick Carss 3/1/25 Wildlife, Personal, Video Derick Carss 3/1/25

My White Whale, Part 2

Another chance to encounter one of the ocean’s most intelligent and formidable predators—the orca…

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Intentions
Wildlife Derick Carss 1/3/25 Wildlife Derick Carss 1/3/25

Intentions

As I look ahead to 2025, I’m committed to keeping this intentional approach to wildlife photography…

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Top Nine, 2024
Landscape, Wildlife, Personal Derick Carss 12/31/24 Landscape, Wildlife, Personal Derick Carss 12/31/24

Top Nine, 2024

When I sat down to pick my favorite nine images from 2024, I had a few realizations…

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Critique
Landscape, Personal Derick Carss 11/30/24 Landscape, Personal Derick Carss 11/30/24

Critique

I try to think critically about my photography, but getting an outside perspective is always helpful…

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Best Day Ever
Wildlife Derick Carss 11/26/24 Wildlife Derick Carss 11/26/24

Best Day Ever

Imagine you went to Tahoe, hoping to photograph some black bears. What would the perfect day look like…

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My White Whale, Part 1
Video, Wildlife Derick Carss 11/13/24 Video, Wildlife Derick Carss 11/13/24

My White Whale, Part 1

An early rise, plenty of coffee, and a long drive to the central coast. But Monterey Bay is always worth the effort…

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Super Creeps
Wildlife, Video Derick Carss 10/27/24 Wildlife, Video Derick Carss 10/27/24

Super Creeps

Spiders seem to trigger something deep within us—an ancient, instinctive shudder…

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Triple Threat
Wildlife, Video Derick Carss 7/27/24 Wildlife, Video Derick Carss 7/27/24

Triple Threat

This is a story about one ubiquitous species and why they deserve a second glance…

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Unusual Mortality
Wildlife Derick Carss 5/30/24 Wildlife Derick Carss 5/30/24

Unusual Mortality

This past weekend, I sadly encountered the body of a sea lion pup washed up on the shore at McClures Beach…

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A Missed Opportunity
Landscape Derick Carss 5/14/24 Landscape Derick Carss 5/14/24

A Missed Opportunity

I didn’t expect the northern lights would ever be visible in California, but this past week, they were … and I missed it!

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World Book Day, 2024
Personal Derick Carss 4/23/24 Personal Derick Carss 4/23/24

World Book Day, 2024

This year, I thought I’d share five of the best I’d read in the last twelve months, plus a bonus children’s book…

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Beach Masters
Wildlife, Video Derick Carss 4/10/24 Wildlife, Video Derick Carss 4/10/24

Beach Masters

With their pendulous noses, blubbery mass, and scarred chest plates, Northern Elephant Seals aren’t known for chiseled good looks…

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Bay Area Salamanders
Wildlife Derick Carss 2/25/24 Wildlife Derick Carss 2/25/24

Bay Area Salamanders

There are a couple of lakes in the Mount Tamalpais Watershed where I can easily find salamanders at this time of year…

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Perfect Conditions
Wildlife Derick Carss 2/20/24 Wildlife Derick Carss 2/20/24

Perfect Conditions

Not perfect light and weather conditions, but for someone starved of photo opportunities, I couldn’t have asked for more…

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Pick-up Shots
Wildlife Derick Carss 1/21/24 Wildlife Derick Carss 1/21/24

Pick-up Shots

To maximize limited photography time, I’ll focus on what I call ‘pick-up shots’…

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Top 9, 2023
Wildlife, Personal Derick Carss 12/29/23 Wildlife, Personal Derick Carss 12/29/23

Top 9, 2023

In 2023, I took far fewer wildlife photos than normal, but I was able to see some new species and try out some new techniques…

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Wintering
Wildlife, Video, Personal Derick Carss 12/26/23 Wildlife, Video, Personal Derick Carss 12/26/23

Wintering

One of my favorite indications that winter is coming can be easy to miss. A creature so discreet, you could spend a lifetime here and never see it…

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Bearly Visible
Wildlife, Video, Personal Derick Carss 10/22/23 Wildlife, Video, Personal Derick Carss 10/22/23

Bearly Visible

In California, there are bears everywhere! They’re on hats, shirts, snow globes, and they’re emblazoned on our state flag…

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