Diana Johnson has been taking photos since about twelve years old. Though her education veered into what she ‘should’ take instead of what she wanted…eventually passion won out. “I took every photography class offered at my school, before realizing that I would have to also take classes in journalism to achieve a degree,” she says. Though classically trained in B/W photography and darkroom techniques, she now feels that the digital revolution makes it possible to take photography to levels only dreamed of before.

Scott Reed grew up in Rochester, NY. He lived in Hinesburg, VT for twenty-one years until he moved with his wife Penelope to the Fairview area. He has two children, Taylor age 27 and Alice who is 24. He also has two dogs and an african gray parrot. Scott spends a lot of time outdoors hiking and bird watching. Every September he makes the drive with his wife to spend a few hours at the vertical bog on the BRP. 

by Linda Martinson Blue Ridge Naturalist

The month of September is a transition from summer to fall, from long days and leisurely evenings to the fall equinox and then shorter days and longer nights. And there are other corresponding natural changes in September, for example in leaf colors and in insect, bird and mammal behavior. The katydids and other night-singing insects are increasingly muted, and the hummingbirds are getting ready for their long migration to somewhere far far away. I’ve increased the proportion of sugar to water in our feeder to help the little guys pack on some weight (about 25-40% more) for their trip. The bears are also packing on weight in preparation for their hibernation in the winter, and there are plenty of acorns for them this year. The goldenrods and asters in the field by the river are glorious this year, and it’s been a good season for Monarch butterflies there, too.