Curl

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio with Shelby

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio with Shelby

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

 

 

 

In the studio with Mia Elise

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio with Mia Elise

Mia is the granddaughter of my friends James and Irma in San Antonio. Their daughter Tess and son-in-law Chris left Mia with them for the weekend and we were able to do a quick photo session after dinner tonight. She was the best model. These are just a few of the almost-500 shots I did in less than an hour. She has such an expressive face!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D800 / Nikkor 85mm lens / LED lighting and ringlight

And here’s the look one gets near the end of a session…the Churchill stare:

 

 

In the studio with Lauren

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio with Lauren

I bought this pink sequin tablecloth to use as a backdrop for tonight’s photo session with my niece, Lauren. We ended up using it later as a gown. Not too shabby for improvising, huh?

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio with Lauren

In my studio-away-from-home with my niece Lauren, now in her pink hair phase (I love it!). She is as sweet and smart as she is photogenic. Thanks for modeling for me tonight, Gigglebean!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Honey bee on Jerusalem artichoke bloom

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Green Frog (Rana clamitans)

Green Frog (Rana clamitans), photographed at McKee-Beshers Wildlife Management Area in Poolesville, MD

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Canna blooms

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Canna blooms

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

HLM Cover Feature: HLAA Chapters

Hearing Loss Magazine is published bimonthly by the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). The July/August 2017 issue focuses on HLAA Chapters:

On the Cover by Dave Hutcheson

We really are on this journey together. Joan Kleinrock, HLAA’s very first national chapter coordinator, said it best, “Picture a wagon wheel from the Old West, with the hub of the wheel being the national office and the spokes of the wheel the local chapters. The wheel will not turn without the hub and spokes working together—supporting each other.”

Joan’s analogy couldn’t be more relevant. Every day, we embark on a journey to spread knowledge, provide resources and raise awareness of hearing loss. Our continued work and shared efforts get the wheels turning, and with each new accomplishment, both locally and nationally, we gain momentum toward reaching our final destination and goal.

For this issue’s cover we invited a few chapters near the national office in Bethesda, Maryland to join HLAA National Chapter Coordinator Erin Mirante on a little journey of our own. The sun was shining on the warm late spring day so we put the top down and got rolling. We asked our fellow travelers Russ Misheloff, Rachel Stevens and Veronica Davila Steele to share a few thoughts about their chapter’s journey. Now, won’t you join us?

Learn more about the Hearing Loss Association of America at hearingloss.org.

On the cover: (l to r, front seat) Russ Misheloff (D.C. Chapter), and HLAA National
Coordinator Erin Mirante; (l to r, back seat) Rachel Stevens (D.C. Chapter) and
Veronica Davila Steele (Prince George’s County Chapter), with her hearing dog Somalia
(“Sammie”).

Cover photo © Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Butterfly ginger

Butterfly ginger (Hedychium coronarium)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Skipper on ‘Sombrero Adobe Orange’ coneflower

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Skipper on Purple coneflower

Skipper on Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Ptilotus Exaltus ‘Joey’

Here’s a shot I got at the rock garden at Green Spring Gardens. Is this not the cutest little plant? It looks like hundreds of little hot pink lipsticks. Each spike is only about 3-4″ tall. It’s a drought tolerant and heat resistant plant from Australia. It’s called Mulla Mulla or Joey Lamb’s Tail (Ptilotus Exaltus ‘Joey’) How’s that for a name?

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

 

Hoverfly on a Shasta daisy

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Hoverfly (also known as a flower fly or syrphid fly) on a Shasta daisy

Here’s a random fact I just came across: there is a flower fly found only in the cloud forests of Costa Rica that is named for Bill Gates (Bill Gates’ flower fly). Another one is named after Gates’ associate Paul Allen (Paul Allen’s flower fly). The flies were named such in recognition of their “great contributions to the science of Dipterology” (From the order Diptera, which includes insects that use just two wings to fly)

So now you know, too. You’re welcome. 😁

But wait! There’s more! Curiosity took me to a site that answered my burning question—how long do hoverflies live? A lot shorter life than I imagined! Here’s the answer:

Their live span is similar to other flies. They can live anywhere between 15 to 30 days and it all depends on the climate and temperature they are in.

Bell Agapanthus

Bell Agapanthus (Aganpanthus campanulatus)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Tiger on a tiger: Eastern Tiger swallowtail on Tiger lily

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Buffet line: Skippers on Purple coneflower

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Daylily ‘Moonlit Masquerade’

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Skipper butterfly

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Skipper butterfly on Verbena bonariensis (also called Vervain)

‘Sombrero Adobe Orange’ coneflowers

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Eastern Amberwing dragonfly

Going through my dragonfly photo archives and came across this “high key” photo of an Eastern Amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera) perched on a waterlily bud. Amberwings are one of the smaller dragonflies. The depth of field is shallow on its wings, but I like this shot because the body and head is still sharp. The high key/bright sunlight works in this photo, too. Normally I try to shoot on overcast days or use a diffuser—but you can’t really use a diffuser on moving subjects! This was shot at Green Spring Gardens a couple of years ago.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Female Blue Dasher dragonfly

Female Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis) on Sacred Lotus leaf

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

Blue Dasher dragonfly

Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis) on water lily bud

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Daring Jumping spider

Daring Jumping spider (Phidippus audax) on an iris (unknown cultivar)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Shrub Rose ‘Zaide’

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.