Capturing Creativity
What did we do before phone cameras? Diana shoots and shares images to express her love for nature and convey stories of wildlife and biodiversity. Call it visual eco-storytelling. Smartphones, she believes, democratize environmental photography by putting the power to document a breathtaking moment in everyone’s pocket. #CellPhoneOut
Glory
I am drawn to the paths and fields near my home on my early-evening bike rides. I remember this moment so well. I reached one of my favorite stretches of the Lawrence Hopewell Trail, parallel to Old Mill Road, and paused for a beat to admire the eagles’ nest in the crook of a massive sycamore. I was greeted with this glorious canvas of color, depth and light.
Spring Cadence
The Princeton Poetry Trail is among my most cherished escapes. The one-mile loop meanders through an exquisite, biodiverse meadow with endless vibrance and texture. The shining Helianthus attract pollinators like these bees, as well as flocks of goldfinches. It’s a magical space — with poetry.
Autumn Fire
This photo reflects a personal truth — fall is my favorite season. As I made my way along the Lawrence Hopewell Trail one evening in late October, the vibrance of this backlit burning bush against the backdrop of browning meadow, clouds and fading sunlight quite literally took my breath away.
Morning Mane
I was cruising by Pennington’s Curlis Woods on my bike at 8:00 a.m. one November morning when these horses — residents of the Mercer Equestrian Center — emerged from the mist. What a gift to be alone with these gorgeous creatures in this moment, on this path. It was an ethereal morning much like this when I discovered my mom had passed away from Cancer in our upstairs bedroom.
The Admiral and the Luna
Nature is perpetual wonder. I walked out to get my mail one afternoon and startled a Northern Mockingbird trying to lift this Luna moth, stick attached, off the driveway. As I looked closer, I discovered the Red-spotted Purple in residence. Curious about their “connection,” I posted the photos in a wildlife group, only to learn that this type of butterfly eats carrion and was likely dining on the Luna, whose life is ephemeral.
Teasel at Sunset
I have long been fascinated by these spiky cone-shaped plants that rise up in abundance across the fields I frequent. They bloom purple in the spring, and their unique shape and design inspire awe in the fall. The teasel was once used in the textile industry to raise the nap on woolen cloth. Nature is extraordinary.
Pollinator Obsession
On July 13, 2025, I started a new tradition — a hike to the top of Baldpate Mountain the morning after my birthday. My inaugural climb was unforgettable. I spent several minutes with this Hummingbird Clearwing, zipping through the Wild Bergamot blooms with grace and intention. These excellent pollinators are welcome visitors to the meadow restoration atop Baldpate.
Old Mill Moon
Doesn’t this photo spark the creative ethos? As this Harvest Moon commandeered the open fields along Old Mill Road in Pennington, I was enchanted by the warmth of the autumn colors and artistry of the curling vines. How can you not dream of hidden spirits and distant worlds?
Forest Enchantment
I spent the first 18 Julies of my life in the Grafton mountains of Upstate New York. My grandparents’ log cabin sat alongside Forest Lake, a one-mile stretch of perfection, surrounded by wild woods. I would play with troll dolls, hiding them in root-latticed holes and building fairy houses out of twigs and leaves. It’s where my love of nature began, and storytelling followed. When I return for a few days each summer, I always get lost in the woods.
Art Aflight
This Eastern Tiger Swallowtail took my breath away one August day while I was hiking in North West Mercer Park. The wing mosaic, its darting tongue, the ironweed, abundance of grasses, blue sky and clouds off in the distance add so much depth and texture to this simple shot. And the sunlight...always the greatest inspiration.
Milkweed Pod
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright said, “Art is a discovery and development of elementary principles of nature into beautiful forms suitable for human use.” I easily get lost in nature’s architectural curves and designs. Nature is art. Click on the photo to read my poem, Milkweed Seduction.
Awaiting Mom's Return
One morning I stepped outside in the early-morning dew to snip a peony bloom for my kitchen table. I was so focused on my task that I didn’t at first see the visitor watching me from beyond my garden. Precious. Vulnerable. Awaiting Mom’s return. You’re safe here, sweet baby.
The Watcher
So often on my bike rides, I encounter deer watching me with fear and curiosity. More times than not, they bound away, white tails waving and bouncing. And other times, they lock in, alert and accepting of my intrusion. Perhaps that day’s grass, tinged in sunset, was particularly sweet. This is their world, and I am just passing through.
Lilac Bandit
Imagine this nature nerd’s incredible delight to look up from my laptop one late afternoon and spot a mama raccoon scuttling across my deck. Her response to me pressing my phone camera against the sliding glass door: to climb clumsily into the lilac bush for shelter and safety. I see you!
Walking With Jacob
"Partially submerged offcuts of ice bobbed like specters center-stream, trapping traveling beech leaves in yellowing eyelets. Water tumbled over shale stone in glass cascades, merging into a frenzy. And then, a gentle moment in a nearby eddy. Ripples gliding into geometric patterns like the fanned tail feathers of a Cooper’s Hawk." Click on the image to read my personal essay about Jacob's Creek.
Toward the Sky
Fall in the forest beneath an impossibly gorgeous azure sky. This October morning, my husband and I headed down tangled Kate's Trail in Princeton, named for a young woman who died in a car accident when she was only 17. These woodland memorials are so precious. How can you not feel their spirits in these hidden enclaves?