Photography by Jim Crotty

Photography by Jim Crotty Higher education professional with a side interest and passion for nature and landscape photography.

I 2026, I will be working in an interim position as a Senior Instructional Consultant at Central New Mexico Community College, where I have also been teaching as a communication instructor since relocation to New Mexico from Ohio in early 2023. I am also a doctoral candidate in instructional design leadership in Franklin University's Doctor of Professional Studies program. Also, in 2026, I will be

working to complete my dissertation research, which examines the unique socialization challenges faced by RANG (Reserve and National Guard) military students when transitioning between military and academic environments. I enjoy helping students discover and develop their creative potential and communication skills, and assisting and coaching faculty in effective teaching methods and strategies. I have taught undergraduate communication courses at Central New Mexico Community College, The Modern College of Design, The University of Dayton, Sinclair Community College, and Thomas Moore College. It was through the experience of redesigning courses for online delivery in the spring of 2020 that I was inspired to pursue a doctorate in instructional design leadership at Franklin University, where I have been able to enhance my knowledge and skills in designing, developing, and evaluating effective and engaging learning solutions. I also remain active in my chosen creative outlet - storytelling through nature and landscape photography. I pursued photography as a profession until transitioning to higher education; however, I remain active in it as a creative hobby. Previously, my photographic work has been featured in national publications such as USA Today, National Wildlife, Smithsonian, Ohio Magazine, and Nature's Best, as well as a number of print installations at healthcare facilities throughout Ohio. I also applied my love of teaching to planning and presenting nature photography workshops, which I conducted and hosted in Ohio from 2009 to 2021. I am a proud dad of three adult children and a United States Marine Corps Reserve veteran. I value lifelong learning, creativity, collaboration, and service to others through the rewarding process of education and personal development. IMPORTANT NOTE: I DO NOT photograph family reunions or similar social gatherings.

Welcome JuneThe first full month of summer always brings new energy to life’s learning journey. With it comes the inevit...
06/02/2026

Welcome June

The first full month of summer always brings new energy to life’s learning journey.

With it comes the inevitability of change, the promise of love rediscovered, and new horizons to be reached.

Welcome, June, and let the journey unfold as it should. Enjoy every new sight and experience. Looking back, we will see just how brief it was and wish it could go on just a bit longer.

Tonight’s rising of the   from
05/31/2026

Tonight’s rising of the from

The Thin PlacesEmbracing the healing light in the places where the “veil is thinnest.”I was recently inspired to write t...
05/30/2026

The Thin Places

Embracing the healing light in the places where the “veil is thinnest.”

I was recently inspired to write this post and share these images after listening to another great episode of a favorite podcast - The JeffMara Podcast on YouTube. It had to do with a recent guest describing his “thin places” where he feels most attuned to the higher frequencies of the unseen energies.

I found this to be intriguing and relatable.

Paralleling the Celtic awareness and sensitivity to the seasons and times, such as Samhain, when the veil between the seen and unseen world is at its thinnest, there are locations and places too where we sense something beyond our five senses and a welcoming that feels so familiar even when it’s our first visit.

We find our thin places throughout our lives, and these places are different for every individual. Those who are more artistically inclined tend to find these places much earlier than most people. Even as kids, they loved wandering in the woods every chance they got.

These are the places where we can’t help but feel free to raise our frequencies to levels that match the frequencies of the energy of the ground, air, and sky all around us.

Where are your thin places? What about these places makes them energetic and healing to you?

Are they near water? At elevation? A place where you know the light of each season intimately? A forest path carpeted in pine needles? How about the memories formed in a location or the intensity of the human history that took place there? Or perhaps an old stadium so thick with childhood memories, “you have to swat them away like flies” (nod to Field of Dreams).

I know I have several favorite places. Some I visit repeatedly, and some I have visited just once. But in all I sense the same presence.

The peace and grace of a western sky on the edge of summer.Landscape images captured during a recent camping trip to Ang...
05/27/2026

The peace and grace of a western sky on the edge of summer.

Landscape images captured during a recent camping trip to Angel Fire and Eagle Nest, in the Moreno Valley of Northern New Mexico.

05/27/2026

Turn your sound up for this one. A Canyon Towhee serenades, and along comes a Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay to bump the towhee off his perch.

Video recorded with a Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 500mm lens, and a mini shotgun microphone.

05/24/2026

It’s the little things in life 😊

Like camping and coffee.

The definition of a good day.
05/24/2026

The definition of a good day.

Finding peace in peaceful things. I think we all desire this and naturally gravitate toward it as the years go by. But i...
05/18/2026

Finding peace in peaceful things.

I think we all desire this and naturally gravitate toward it as the years go by.

But it doesn’t necessarily have to be nature as we like to define it. It can be a passion for the art of a sport, theater, or literature, all of which serve as the connection to channel the love for beauty and art.

We need it. We desire it like the lungs for air and the heart for love.

We all share the connection through the heart to what excites our spirits and gives rise to all that’s true and good.

Don’t lose touch with that. Never, ever. It brings us all back home after all is said and done.

Soul GrowthLocations include North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, and New Mexico.
05/14/2026

Soul Growth

Locations include North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, and New Mexico.

Memories of an incredible display of the aurora borealis from Hocking Hills two years ago.
05/13/2026

Memories of an incredible display of the aurora borealis from Hocking Hills two years ago.

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2409 Desert View Road
Rio Rancho, NM
87144

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