« Previous Entries

Birds

Birds
White Breasted Nuthatch
05.14.12 | Permalink | 1 Comment

This spring migration has been light in terms of species calling my property their home. It could be in part because of the hours I am keeping at work and the lack of food in the feeders .

White Breasted Nuthatch Portrait

One species that seems to call our woods home year round is the White Breasted Nuthatch. White Breasted Nuthatches are active, agile birds with black, gray, and white markings. They are commonly found at feeders and dine on insects and large seeds.

White Breasted Nuthatch Ready to Jump

They also have big voices for such little birds, often making as much of a racket as Blue Jays.

White Breasted Nuthatch Sunset

Images Captured with Nikon D3x, 600mm f/4 on Lexar Digital Film
Birds
Blue Winged Teal
05.07.12 | Permalink | 2 Comments

The Blue Winged Teal is one of the most beautiful of the dabbling ducks.

Blue Winged Teal Drake Coming Ashore

This species of duck travels vast distances during its migration. It is the first of the species to head north in the spring and one of the very first species of any bird to head south in the fall. The Blue Winged Teal covers migration distances that range from Canada and Northern USA to South America.

Blue Winged Teal Drake Catching Some Rays

Happy Couple

Captured with Nikon D3x, 600mm f/4 w/TC-14eII on Lexar Digiatl Film
Birds
Boat Tailed Grackle
04.19.12 | Permalink | 3 Comments

The Boat Tailed Grackle is one of those bird species where the female is as beautiful as the male.

Female Boat Tailed Grackle Preening

One of the things I love about photographing birds in Florida is that my hit ratio or “keepers” are better because the concentration of birds is higher and they seem to be more habituated to humans than those in the Northeast (at least thats what I tell my wife )

Female Boat Tailed Grackle Bathing

These images were taken just at sunset. In fact the image below was taken in overcast conditions, otherwise it was a gloriously sunny day.

Male Boat Tailed Grackle

Its hard to appreciate the iridescence of the males feathers but they are stunning.

Male Boat Tailed Grackle Over Shoulder Portrait

Images captured with Nikon D3x, 600mm f/4 w/TC-14e II on Lexar digital film.
Birds
Green Heron, The Hunter
04.12.12 | Permalink | 6 Comments

Which image do you like better?

Green Heron Hunting, Extended

I think I like the first image best as you don’t often get to see a Green Heron fully extended. Seeing the neck muscles bulging makes the image.

Green Heron Hunting, Aiming

What I don’t like about either of these 2 images is that the branch crosses the birds beak. I takes what would have been a lovely image given the beautiful background and screws it up. I hate when that happens. Thats why wildlife photographers have to have a lot of patience, you need to put your time in behind the camera to have an opportunity to get the shot. Then you still might not get what you want! Wildlife photography reminds me a lot of the instructions on the shampoo bottle, wet, wash, rinse, repeat. We do a lot of repeating in wildlife photography!

Images captured on a Nikon D3x w 600mm f/4 w TC-14e II on Lexar digital film.
Birds, Monday Musings
Tricolored Heron at Sunrise
04.09.12 | Permalink | 6 Comments

Tricolored Heron at Sunrise

Im not sure why I like this image so much, but I do. Maybe its how the light falls on the birds feathers on the right, or the sparkle in its eye. Maybe its the majesty implied by the way he sits in this tree. Either way, it is one of my favorite images from my recent trip.

Image captured with Nikon D3x w600mm f/4 on Lexar digital film.
Birds, Monday Musings
Monday Musings – American Coot
04.02.12 | Permalink | 5 Comments

I love Florida. My wife has a hard time understanding my love affair with the Sunshine State but I just can’t stop enjoying the wildlife and nature opportunities Florida offers.

American Coot Reflection

Thanks to many of you who answered my request for your favorite birding locations on the east coast of Florida, I had a wonderful 2 days of birding. One of my favorite locations was Wakodahatchee Wetlands. I will post a site report on this location shortly.

American Coot

Wakodahatchee Wetlands certainly has made it to one of my favorite Florida birding locations. One of the species that was abundant at the wetlands was the American Coot.

American Coot Calling

This member of the rail family is often confused with a duck. Like many of the species at the wetlands, the Coots that I observed, were habituated to the goings on of the vast boardwalk which made them fairly easy to photograph and observe.

American Coot with Grass

Images Captured with Nikon D3X, 600mm f/4 on Lexar Digital Film
Birds, Monday Musings
Monday Musings – Whats Your Favorite South Eastern Florida Birding Hotspot?
03.05.12 | Permalink | 7 Comments

Brown Pelican on Post, Florida Race

In a few weeks I will be heading down to Florida on business. I plan on making some time for bird photography. I will be in the Broward County (Ft. Lauderdale) area. I am hoping my loyal readers can make some suggestions as to where to focus my limited birding and photographic time.

Brown Pelican in Flight, Florida Race

Florida is one of my favorite places. Between the abundant wildlife and Disney World, who could ask for anything more! I hope one day to call Florida my second home. With that in mind, I would be very appreciative if you would share with me some of your favorite locations to observe and photograph birds.
Birds
White Throated Sparrow
02.27.12 | Permalink | 5 Comments

We had a little bit of snow the last few days. While I was out around sunset, I caught a glimpse of this little fellow.

White Throated Sparrow on Snow

At first, I thought it might be a song sparrow. But after further attention I realized it was a White Throated Sparrow. The give away for me was in the clear white breast and if you look really closely, you will see a hint of yellow over its beak.

White Throated Sparrow Gesture

I love to try and capture gesture in my wildlife subjects. It makes them seem so much more “human”. I love the way the head is cocked on this subject. I make a game of trying to capture gesture in wildlife. I think it keeps you sharp as a photographer. Too many times I see people standing around while all sorts of wonderful things are happening around them. Maybe they should stop and look!

Captured with Nikon D700, 600mm f/4 w/TC-14EII on Lexar Digital Film
Birds
Great Black Backed Gull – Which Do You Like Better?
01.13.12 | Permalink | 9 Comments

I thought this Great Black Backed Gull was a beautiful bird from the moment I saw it.

Great Black Backed Gull Portrait

The light that was falling on it was a little harsh but in certain spots you could see great detail in the bird. As you can tell the bird is a large gull. In fact, the Great Black Backed Gull (try saying that fast 10 times) is the largest of all gulls in the world.

Great Black Backed Gull Full View

Of the 3 images, which do you like best?

Great Black Backed Gull Long

Images captured with Nikon D700, 600mm f/4 on Lexar Digital Film.
Birds
Purple Sandpiper
01.11.12 | Permalink | 4 Comments

On my recent trip to Barnegat Jetty, I had the good fortune to add a new species to my files, the Purple Sandpiper.

Purple Sandpiper Kissed by Sun

What really amazed me about these birds is how gentle they seem.

Purple Sandpiper Seeking Shelter from the Wind

As I stated in my post last week, the wind this day was ferocious with gusts of 30 mph. It is truly amazing how these birds can find safety from the wind let alone cling to the rocks. The downside of them finding shelter was poor, indirect light. We didn’t have a chance to photograph one Purple Sandpiper that was in the sun all day. That said, getting some good clicks of a new species for the files makes any day a good day!

Images captured with Nikon D700, 600mm f/4 with TC-e14 II on Lexar Digital Film