About

I have been privileged to live on an East Texas tree farm for the last seven years.  During that time I have documented many plants and animals —

  • 89 species of birds
  • 19 species of dragonflies
  • 26 species of butterflies
  • 14 species of mammals
  • 7 species of frogs
  • 10 species of snakes
  • 4 species of turtles
  • 15 species of trees
  • and many more.

As the city encroaches, the wild plants and animals I see every day become more and more precious to me. My husband’s parents bought this place 55 years ago – how many of these creatures will be here 55 years from now?  If they are gone, how will anybody know what we have lost?  I feel that the most important thing I can do is record and share their stories.

About the name Little Wild Streak:  It comes from one of my favorite songs, “Threadbare Gypsy Soul” by Pat Green.  (Lyrics here.)

I don’t have a huge wild streak, I am not going to go on safari in Botswana or dig up fossils in Mongolia; I just have a little wild streak, I roam this farm in all kinds of weather, documenting the plants and animals that live here.

About my photography:  “Creature over Camera.” I am not after stunningly artistic photos, and I am not after clear scientific illustrations, I am somewhere in the middle.  I just want to document the species I see, in their environment.  I don’t collect any specimens, and if I capture an animal for photo purposes, I release it after a few minutes.  I am more concerned with learning about the species than I am with learning about camera terminology and techniques.  I would like to do both, but there’s only so much time in a day.

My current camera is a Canon Powershot 60HS, and before that I used a Panasonic Lumix FZ35.  I really loved the Panasonic and used it until it just couldn’t take pictures anymore.  I think its system of settings is more intuitive than the Canon’s, but I love the extra zoom on the Canon and the fact that it will take shots continuously.

As far as post processing, mostly I just crop.  Every now and then I increase the contrast or saturation.