Barnes, now 61, is known today as the bandleader, accordionist and harmonica player for the New Orleans- based Sunpie and the Louisiana Sunspots. His band performs at festivals around the world: a fusion of zydeco, blues, Creole funk, gospel and melodies from Africa and the Caribbean. He has toured with Paul Simon and Sting, and his music is featured in more than 20 movies and tele- vision shows, including Déjà Vu and Undercover Blues.

Bruce is also a naturalist who spent most of his 40-year career working for the National Park Service. But for Barnes, music and nature don’t inhabit separate silos. Louisiana’s rhythms, he says, are as place-specific as its bayous, marshes, cane fields and forests. The wetlands even produce their own music. Barnes photographs natural elements like fungi, wildlife, and other environmental elements that add a visual reference for his inspiration in music.