Spring 2025

Frediani’s lens captured this incredible image of a pair of Western bluebirds in her front yard per- forming a mid-air mating dance. The blue bird is the male. She says they also included the side mirror of her pickup truck in their ritual and their family still lives on her property. A fork-tailed storm petrel is the centerpiece of what looks like an abstract painting. Shot in Monterey harbor, the reflections of sky and boats are distorted by an oil slick on the water’s surface, resulting in a fascinating composition. Frediani is fascinated by reflections in water and often photographs them. F rediani’s new book “Wild Monterey Bay: Up Close and Personal—Stories of Memorable Wildlife Encounters,” a collaboration with marine biologist Katlyn Taylor, started as a storytelling project with a simple premise: to ask people “What’s your most memorable wildlife encounter in Monterey Bay.” Lavishly illustrated with Frediani’s and other photographers’ images, the book is “a celebration of the bay and the people who interact with it.” Frediani and Taylor will be on hand for an author event at the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History on March 7 as part of the city’s First Friday art series. The museum is located at 154 Forest Avenue in Pacific Grove. For more infor- mation, visit www.pgmuseum.org and www.wildmontereybay.com. C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G 2 0 2 5 125