Monica Archibald, like any great artist, sought a muse for her nature photography and found it in rural Livingston County after spending most of her life on the outskirts of Detroit. The Howell Township resident moved from Warren about 10 months ago. She said she sought a "beautiful environment" to take her photos. Today she and her husband, Rich, live on 26 acres, where they regularly see pheasants, hummingbirds and other wildlife. She said she moved there specifically for the natural, rural elements."We have so much wildlife. It's amazing, and with all the trees budding, it's beautiful," Archibald said. She was familiar with the county because she's boarded and ridden her horse, Stormy, a Polish Arabian, in Cohoctah Township for the past five years. She plans to build a barn this year to bring Stormy closer to her side. Archibald ventured into photography about 12 years ago, and is a self-taught photog[rapher]. Most of her work has been shot in Canada, Alaska and Ohio. In Michigan, she's been in Indian River and Mackinaw City, and shot at other locales. Within the past two years, she's taken excursions to Churchill, a city in the Canadian providence of Manitoba, to photograph polar bears, and to Homer, Alaska, to shoot the majestic American bald eagle and moose. Archibald often saw the eagles flying above her. "It was just amazing," she recalled. "I've always been intrigued by [wildlife]," Archibald added. The photographer became intimately familiar with the polar bear while in Canada, and has a separate photo collection of the white, furry bear. As of late, she's ventured into equine photography, using Stormy as her top model. She takes professional training of sorts on her own. Archibald is an avid bird watcher, and has photographed meadowlarks, snow buntings, owls and the rare osprey, among others birds. Some of her early work, which can be seen online at in a photo gallery at livingstondaily.com, comprises of macro, or up-close photography, in this case photos of colorful flowers. She later branched out into wildlife, sunsets and other settings. "I finally think I found my calling in nature photography," Archibald said. While urban Warren isn't exactly a Mecca of natural beauty, she won the 2007 Beautification Award for her lavish display of planted flowers and a pond in her backyard. She's been shooting photography commercially for the past three years after being urged by her husband, friends and others to sell her work to the masses. When she sells a print, Archibald makes prints of photos from her digital portfolio and her husband mats and frames the finished product. Archibald said she expects business to pick up as the summer goes on. Archibald rounds out her paycheck by running Instant Assistant Inc., a company that creates databases, PowerPoint presentations, graphic design and Web site work. Contact Daily Press & Argus reporter Christopher Behnan at (517) 548-7108 or at cbehnan@ gannett.com