{"id":1181,"date":"2024-09-22T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-22T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/?p=1181"},"modified":"2025-04-10T23:10:59","modified_gmt":"2025-04-11T05:10:59","slug":"it-can-take-decades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/illinois-nature-photography\/it-can-take-decades\/","title":{"rendered":"It Can Take Decades"},"content":{"rendered":"

It Can Take Decades<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n
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\"At

Late-summer flowers decorate the seep of a hanging fen.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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This is an image that I’ve been trying to get for over two decades.<\/p>\n

The picture shows a couple of wetland habitats. The area nearest the camera is the seep of a habitat known as a fen. As the name suggests, the seep is where water seeps from the gravel hill located behind the camera. (You can see a similar hill in the far distance.) This is a hanging fen because the seep is backed up against a hill.<\/p>\n

The small stream that emerges from the seep (near the top) feeds into another wetland habitat, known as a sedge meadow, where the dominant plants are, well, sedges. The term “meadow” can be misleading. I envision a lush field of grass and flowers where you can hold a picnic and frolic in the afternoon sun. But if you tried that here, you’d likely need rescuing after you and your checkered tablecloth got stuck in magnetic mud.<\/p>\n

The gravel gives the water a high alkaline content, but not every plant can tolerate that kind of chemistry. Flowers are often uncommon or rare. Here we have Ohio goldenrod, sphynx lady tresses orchid (the two spikes of white flowers), and Grass-of-Parnassus (the whitish flowers sprinkled throughout the seep).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\u2014Mike<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The image here showcases a hanging fen and a sedge meadow, two unique wetland habitats Mike has been trying to photograph for over twenty years. The fen, fed by a gravel hill’s seep, features rare plants like Ohio goldenrod and sphynx lady tresses orchid, adapted to its alkaline water conditions. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1182,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"It Can Take Decades","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[68,212,73,261,276,67,79],"tags":[272,305,273,268,267,271,274,304],"class_list":["post-1181","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chicago-nature","category-illinois-nature-photography","category-landscape-photography-lessons-tips","category-landscape-photography","category-mchenry-county","category-nature","category-nature-photography-lessons","tag-fen","tag-grass-of-parnassus","tag-hanging-fen","tag-landscape","tag-landscape-photography","tag-sedge-meadow","tag-seep","tag-stiff-goldenrod"],"yoast_head":"\nIt Can Take Decades - The Heart of Nature\u2122 by Mike MacDonald<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"With nature photography, it can sometimes take many years to get a picture. 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It all came to a head one day after I performed my one-man show about Chicago nature. Three audience members separately visited me at my book-signing table\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Chicago Nature"","block_context":{"text":"Chicago Nature","link":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/category\/illinois-nature-photography\/chicago-nature\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The winter sun warms the oak savanna on the kame at Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin, Illinois.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Bluff-Spring-Fen-Snow_Ice-220125-0010-FS-FINAL-800px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=582%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Bluff-Spring-Fen-Snow_Ice-220125-0010-FS-FINAL-800px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=582%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Bluff-Spring-Fen-Snow_Ice-220125-0010-FS-FINAL-800px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=582%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1126,"url":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/illinois-nature-photography\/sometimes-you-just-need-a-little-distance-bird-photography\/","url_meta":{"origin":1181,"position":3},"title":"Sometimes You Just Need A Little Distance","author":"Mike MacDonald","date":"February 11, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Sometimes You Just Need A Little Distance The great blue heron is one of Chicago's most recognizable and elusive birds. Pass by any wetland, and you'll probably see one off in the distance, hunting motionless, like a statue in the still waters. Yet they are fast to flee, rarely allowing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Bird Photography"","block_context":{"text":"Bird Photography","link":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/category\/photography-lessons-tips\/wildlife-photography-lessons-tips\/bird-photography\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Great Blue Heron of species Ardea herodias strikes a pose as it elegantly preens its feathers.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Birds-Great-Blue-Heron-0090-800px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=533%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Birds-Great-Blue-Heron-0090-800px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=533%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Birds-Great-Blue-Heron-0090-800px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=533%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1190,"url":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/photography-lessons-tips\/nature-photography-lessons\/bunnys-view-of-springtime-woodland\/","url_meta":{"origin":1181,"position":4},"title":"A Bunny’s View of a Springtime Woodland","author":"Mike MacDonald","date":"November 18, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"In the woodlands of early May, shy waxy white blossoms of mayapples hide under their umbrella-like foliage.","rel":"","context":"In "Chicago Nature"","block_context":{"text":"Chicago Nature","link":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/category\/illinois-nature-photography\/chicago-nature\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"An intimate view from underneath a miniature forest of mayapples in the woodland known as Raccoon Grove Nature Preserve in Monee, Illinois.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Raccoon-Grove-240506-0010-FS-2000px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=1200%2C959&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Raccoon-Grove-240506-0010-FS-2000px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=1200%2C959&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Raccoon-Grove-240506-0010-FS-2000px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=1200%2C959&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Raccoon-Grove-240506-0010-FS-2000px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=1200%2C959&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Raccoon-Grove-240506-0010-FS-2000px-copyright-sRGB.jpg?fit=1200%2C959&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":83,"url":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/nature\/landscape-photography-transcendental-light\/","url_meta":{"origin":1181,"position":5},"title":"Transcendental Light & The Art of Landscape Photography","author":"Mike MacDonald","date":"February 6, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"On this typical May morning, along a bluff at Black Partridge Woods, transcendental rays of new-day light\u00a0fleck the verdant floor and streak across serpentine waves of woodland phlox, casting\u00a0the divine onto this springtime panorama. Thirty\u00a0minutes earlier, though, only flat blue\u00a0shade from the open sky illuminated the landscape. Editorially and visually,\u00a0the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Chicago Nature"","block_context":{"text":"Chicago Nature","link":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/category\/illinois-nature-photography\/chicago-nature\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"In the art of landscape photography, light can have a transcendental effect. Here at Black Partridge Woods, woodland phlox spread in a serpentine wave across the bluff, as streaks of morning light dramatically and ethereally transform matter. \u00a92013 Mike MacDonald Photography, Inc.\u2014ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Please contact Mike MacDonald for permission to use this or any image.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/Black-Partridge-Woods-0370-600px-Copyright1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1181"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1181\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1249,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1181\/revisions\/1249"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1181"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chicagonature.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}