From Oakville to the World ...
- OakvilleJoe
- May 2
- 2 min read
Pexels has started listing where photos from its gallery are being used, and I was surprised and grateful to see how some of my nature photos have travelled across the world.
I posted my sleeping Red Fox photo on April 10, 2019, more than six years ago. It is still my most viewed and downloaded image. Recently, I found it used in articles that help readers understand animals and their behaviour. One article describes red foxes as “nature’s perfect blend of cat and dog,” noting their feline-like pouncing and dog-like playfulness, while kindly crediting the photo to Joseph Yu from Pexels. Another Spanish-language article from Mexico uses the same Red Fox image in a piece about nocturnal animals and how they survive at night.
I also found my Coneflower photo featured in several places. IDN Times Bali used it in an Indonesian article on flowers that attract pollinators, explaining how Coneflowers provide nectar, support bees and butterflies, and make a home garden more welcoming to pollinating insects. A Slovak-language website also featured the Coneflower image, and now I see that a Czech website under the .cz domain has used it as well. The .cz domain represents the Czech Republic. This photo was uploaded to Pexels on October 17, 2017. Seeds take time to germinate — and sometimes photos do too.
Let the photos talk: From Oakville to the World
My squirrel photo has also travelled widely. It has appeared in several LinkedIn posts, including articles using the squirrel as a visual metaphor for attention, distraction, or workplace behaviour. The same squirrel image is also shown as being used by the Times of India, and an Indonesian article used it in a piece about interesting squirrel facts. One point I especially enjoyed was how squirrels often bury nuts and forget some of them, allowing new trees to grow. Even a small animal’s “forgetfulness” can serve creation in a hidden way.
I also noticed that allevents.in used the Coneflower image in connection with past flowering or gardening talks. That is encouraging because the image not only decorates a page; it also supports learning, public interest, and appreciation for plants, flowers, pollinators, and the natural world.
From Oakville, Ontario, Canada, these photos have quietly reached readers in the United States, Mexico, Indonesia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, India, and beyond. Different countries, different languages, different audiences — but the same visual invitation to notice creation.
In a world often filled with heavy news — war, destruction, pollution, deforestation, and neglect of creation — I am thankful to see websites using images to teach people about flora and fauna. A photo may be silent, but it can still speak. It can cross borders, adapt to different languages, support education, and invite people to see nature with greater wonder and care.
Perhaps this is one quiet way a photo can serve others: not by shouting for attention, but by helping a reader pause, notice, learn, and care.
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” — Psalm Chapter 24 verse 1
Spreading photo messages to the ends of the world. Praise the Lord. 📸✨🙏
Pexels Webpage: https://www.pexels.com/@oakvillejoe/
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