She generally spot meters the scene and shoots in aperture priority with exposure compensation set for -2/3. "The nice thing about nature photography is that you can almost always find something green, and I know green is -2/3 of a stop as a general rule; the slight underexposure gives me richer colors."

At the right pace and with the right gear, the rest is observation. "I'm often attracted by movement," Carol says. "I love the insects, the butterflies, the grasshoppers. I see something flitting around and if I get close and sit on the ground and wait, a whole new world opens up."

For several years Carol's world has included her endangered species project. "About six years ago I started getting requests from magazines for endangered species photos, and I didn't have them. I thought, well, if they're making these requests, there are probably very few people who have these pictures, maybe I should get some. I started doing the research, and it turns out there are 483 threatened and endangered species in Illinois, where I live—plants, animals, insects, birds, everything. I've shot so far 115 of them; I get about 15 to 20 species a year if I'm lucky."

The project quickly grew beyond her desire to simply have photos to provide to clients. "I started a not-for-profit organization called Team Green Environmental Network, which will be putting together school exhibits. We would like to do a book of photos, and we're working on a museum exhibit, too."

Her goal is to inspire. "My philosophy is, if you get out into nature, you will begin to appreciate it, and if you appreciate it, you'll want to protect it."

You can see many more of Carol's photographs at her website. There's information about Team Green Environmental Network at www.teamgreenweb.org. Carol's photos of threatened and endangered species are at www.flickr.com/photos/teamgreenweb.

Carol Freeman has been an NPS member since 2002.