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JBees Film Published & award winning nature photography, focusing on the natural landscapes and wildlife of Appalachia.

Fine art prints available for purchase at any budget. If you have a coffee shop, restaurant, or boutique to decorate, shoot me a message 🙂

As much as I'm relieved for the end of a brutal summer, it is quite sad to see the Blue Ridge rainforest shift back into...
09/29/2026

As much as I'm relieved for the end of a brutal summer, it is quite sad to see the Blue Ridge rainforest shift back into hibernation. Here's some more favorites from last month of the vegetation and terrain that literally creates its own weather in one of the wettest areas in the entire country.

Nikon Z8
24-120 f/4S

Let's just say I could NOT wait to share these special moments from the Blue Ridge Parkway and Shining rock. We waited h...
09/20/2026

Let's just say I could NOT wait to share these special moments from the Blue Ridge Parkway and Shining rock. We waited hours for the storms to clear, and despite more storms all over the radar decided to send it. Worth the gamble to say the least.

This day was very much a mirror of the exact time and itinerary from a trip I took last year, with similar conditions. Last year I was still learning the ins and outs of a new camera and forgot how important a polarizer can be when shooting bright landscapes.

The rhododendron season was a bit disappointing this year in the highlands, but the Flame Azaleas and Gray's Lillies see...
09/05/2026

The rhododendron season was a bit disappointing this year in the highlands, but the Flame Azaleas and Gray's Lillies seemed to have gotten their secret recipe. Pop up thunderstorms was the icing on the cake for this trip back in June.

The tough balance of photography in these mountains is setting out with ideas and plans in mind, but nature isn't predictable. My intent for this trip was to hit my usual spots for Rhododendrons but they were all gone save for a few bushes above 6000 feet. After changing plans and seeing a few incredible sunsets and storms, we set out on the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to ride the TN/NC border & take whatever it offered. Turns out it was a peak bloom of Flame Azaleas and Gray's Lily, which felt even more special than the Rhodo bloom. Still, finding the composition I was looking for proved difficult for the first day. On our last morning a storm rolled in quickly and we made the hard choice of hitting the trail instead of waiting it out at camp. Although terrifying, it was a beautiful thunder filled experience. After about 45 minutes the storm was gone, and the winds were strong enough to have all of my gear completely dry again in a short time. The best part: the storm clouds and dappled light gave me the exact photos with the flowers that I had been hunting for.

Lots of irony involved in the whole experience.

Summertime in the Blue Ridge, filled with color and surprises any time of day. 1. A blanket of clouds rolls in from the ...
09/02/2026

Summertime in the Blue Ridge, filled with color and surprises any time of day.

1. A blanket of clouds rolls in from the smokies after sunset for one of the coolest and most colorful moments of inversion I've ever seen (BRP)
2. Morning sun rays shine on Grandfather Mountain just ahead of a quick flash flood inducing thunderstorm (Pisgah NF)
3. Peeking through native Pale Sunflowers towards Looking Glass rock on the Blue Ridge Parkway
4. Scattered showers begin to blanket the eastern side of Waterrock k**b, where the spruces meet the sky (BRP)

📸Nikon Z8

greatsmokymountains

Some of the more special bird moments I caught this year. Didn't have to work very hard for these, as all but one were t...
08/29/2026

Some of the more special bird moments I caught this year. Didn't have to work very hard for these, as all but one were taken from the backyard!

1. Ruby Throated hummingbird (male)
2. Barred Owl under a full moon
3. Double Crested Cormorant gang activity on Lake Barkley
4. Wild Turkey displaying for his wives this spring

Nikon Z8 + 150-500 f/5-6.7

Familiar summer sights from around my Tennessee travels this year ☀️1. Tufted Titmouse2. Great Egret3. Tribe Syrphini4. ...
08/27/2026

Familiar summer sights from around my Tennessee travels this year ☀️

1. Tufted Titmouse
2. Great Egret
3. Tribe Syrphini
4. Pond Slider
5. Eastern Cottontail

08/23/2026

A Summer in the Blue Ridge - full 10 minute documentary now up on YouTube! See my YouTube link in bio.

A short documentary from a handful of trips to various places in the Blue Ridge Mountains in summer of 2025. I wanted to take some time during my normal photography to shoot some immersive video scenes, highlighting some of the best parts of being in Appalachian wilderness in the summertime.

All video is my own, with zero use of AI or major processing.

Locations include Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Blue Ridge Parkway, Pisgah National Forest, Cherokee National Forest, and Shining Rock Wilderness.

Shot with Nikon Z8 and D750, processed with Final Cut Pro on Mac OS.

All music by Doc Watson, one of the greatest artists and storytellers ever to come out of these very mountains.

The Elk of the Great Smokies... its wifey season for these bulls 🦌Oconoluftee - August 2026Nikon Z8 + 150-500mm f/5-6.7
08/22/2026

The Elk of the Great Smokies... its wifey season for these bulls 🦌

Oconoluftee - August 2026

Nikon Z8 + 150-500mm f/5-6.7

Fun Fact: these photos were all taken within one hour of each other Fun Fact 2: we did indeed catch the stormNothing qui...
07/03/2026

Fun Fact: these photos were all taken within one hour of each other

Fun Fact 2: we did indeed catch the storm

Nothing quite like experiencing a fast storm front in the high country. We packed up camp as thunder rolled in the distance, with every boom sounding closer and closer. The smart move would have been to stay held up in the tent where there was plenty of tree cover, but the uncertainty of the forecast made me want to get the hell of this mountain in a hurry. Unbeknownst to me it would be 40mph winds, flash flood conditions, heavy lightning, and the entire storm would pass within 30 minutes. Every article of clothing down to my insoles in my boots was soaked, and the wind was so strong that we were dry again by the time we made it to the car. The suffering did pay off, as you can see here by these incredible scenes as we straddled the state lines on the Appalachian Trail. 10/10 would do again

Calm before the storm in Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock wilderness- home to one of the largest old growth forests in the eastern...
05/25/2026

Calm before the storm in Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock wilderness- home to one of the largest old growth forests in the eastern US, some of the most difficult hiking trails in the whole country, and some of the best views I’ve ever seen. Enjoy these four from a stormy sunrise in April, where I scrambled to capture as much as I could before we broke camp and high tailed off the mountain as distant thunder roared the storm front came right at us. You certainly do not want to be caught on this ridge line during a spring thunderstorm.

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