Welcome to MacFarland Photo
William (Bill) MacFarland
I am a conservation photographer that uses my skills with the camera to promote action, understanding, and enjoyment of the Potomac and Anacostia watersheds.
My images of these urbanized watersheds are used by environmental organizations and publications not just to document the issues with our watersheds, but to highlight the actions that people are taking to ensure healthy rivers and streams.
My current projects are focused on the positive impact of beaver on our watersheds and the importance of involving communities in conservation.
My specialties include macro photography, remote motion-triggered wildlife photography, and drone photography. These specialties enable me to tell the stories of our watershed up close, from above, and from vantage points we don’t normally get to see.
My youth was filled with memories of canoeing, fishing, and swimming in the rivers of western New York state, Pennsylvania, Ontario, and Maine. Those experiences drive me to produce images that promote clean and accessible waterways for everyone. You can find me in Gaithersburg, Maryland, or a kayak on a river somewhere thereabouts.
Have you ever been so involved with a task that you forgot what you were doing before you started? That was me this summer and I learned a valuable lesson in the difference between focusing on goals vs. answering interesting questions.
Every year I try to add one or two new paddling locations to my experience. This year, I wanted to spend time on one of the tributaries to the southern Potomac River. In the river’s lower reaches, the tributaries tend to flow a little slower and wind back on themselves. That makes for easy paddling […]
Perhaps what made the time pass so quickly, especially this summer, was burying my head in an all-consuming photography project.
After giving up that morning, I parked my kayak on a rock, caught my breath and put the failing moment into perspective. That moment was short because I was interrupted by the distant sound of laughing.
OK, see … I can explain. It’s not that I was just photographing raindrops although technically there were raindrops being photographed. It’s kind of complicated…maybe you could just give me a minute to explain. Last January I found myself a little frustrated with my photography. Sure I had some success with my images but it […]
Finally I reached the bottom of the hill where the drainage from the silt ponds flowed. I couldn’t get this vantage point from the drone. I just stood there as the story played out in front of me. A stream, Cabin Branch, flowed from my right to my left and it went from clear water to muddy muck. The silt ponds appeared to be failing or were overflowing – all that silt was running into the stream, clouding it up and running down hill to the county resevoir. I told myself, I guess I have my image – the clearing of the fields and forest had indeed impacted the water way.
