tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31078236974674453302024-03-05T04:16:29.826-05:00Joshua Clarks': Journeys in Nature PhotographyJoshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-10786257086297164202015-08-29T21:29:00.000-04:002015-08-29T21:48:46.935-04:00Baby Least Terns!<div>
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For two consecutive years now my wife and I have timed our Florida trip around the baby Least Terns. Last year I had some decent success. I did get photos of the little guys running around the beach but as every photographer you are always left yearning for more and something better. Well this year, by far surpassed my experience last year. I made two trips out to the east coast of Florida for these little guys. What I got to see this year that I really didn't see last year (course doesn't mean it happened) was skirmishes with the Ghost Crabs and Least Terns. This was an interesting behavior to watch between the two. From my understanding, the crabs will go after the babies so anytime a Tern spots a wayward crab wondering to close they charge the crab with its wings raised high in an attempt to chase the crab away. Sometimes, you will see the Terns double up on the crabs which I was able to see. <br />
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Along with the skirmishes that I saw I was able to capture more moments with the baby Terns and the Terns with their parents with some feeding shots. Something that I wasn't able to capture last year. I was fortunate to have some very sweet light in the morning as well which was something that I didn't have last year. <br />
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I was able to capture images of a Wilson Plover that had decided to set up its nest right by the boundary ropes on the beach too. No pictures of the babies as the eggs hadn't hatched yet but I am sure some of my Florida photography friends were able to get them. <br />
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I mentioned my wife came with me on the second day. Again she got to see what I look like in action and did her thing taking pictures of me taking pictures. She did enjoy her time on the beach and by the ocean as we both do when we visit Florida. <br />
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Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-21716238735861193502015-08-29T19:44:00.002-04:002015-08-29T20:20:44.823-04:00Shawnee State Park<br />
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I'm back! Looks like it has been awhile since I have done my last blog on here. Going to try and make a better effort of doing so in the future. <br />
So with that I am going to be doing three blogs from three trips that I took this year. First up was a short weekend trip to Shawnee State Park in southern Ohio to catch the early warbler migration. Now this is a trip that I try to do every spring, I went down with two friends of mine. Our trip was cut short on the last day due to weather so we had to head back early. But we had some great success with several birds. Some of the highlights from the trip are below:<br />
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Louisiana Waterthursh - had a lot of fun with this bird. Got a little wet too with a leaky boot as we were crouched down in a creek for it. <br />
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Cerulean Warbler - such a beautiful looking species. Got some great looks of this guy too.<br />
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Prairie Warbler - these guys are always a lot of fun<br />
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Yellow-throated Warbler- would have liked to get this guy on something other than just a bare stick but there is always next time.<br />
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Northern Parula- this is such a beautiful looking bird. Hard to believe something this colorful can be seen in Ohio. <br />
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As always I am looking forward to a return trip down in southern Ohio in the early spring next year!<br />
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<br />Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-16555686851020750512014-04-23T20:28:00.003-04:002014-06-06T09:39:38.168-04:00New Journey to Begin...I'm about to embark on a new journey in the realm of my photography. I'm excited, yet nervous at the same time. Luckily, I have a great wife who has been very supportive of me. Even more so now as this new journey begins next week. It has to do with an image that REI recently purchased off of me for a 10 year license for a new store they are opening in Easton Ohio and a new window of opportunity that has been extended to me. For those that may not have seen this already, the exert below is from my Facebook post earlier in the month about the initial agreement.<br />
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<i>Back in February I was contacted by the marketing director at REI headquarters (Recreational Equipment Inc.) out in Kent Washington. REI is much like Cabela's and Gander Mountain, specializing in outdoor gear. They are largely located out west and in the south. Their first store in the northeast part of the country will be in Columbus, Ohio. I was contacted because they were searching for an outdoor landscape photo from Ohio to be used in their new store as a mural that they will be opening in May. They were searching for something to print out 34ft x 13ft in size! Not knowing specifically what image they were looking for I replied back with a link to my website that contained all my landscape photos from around here. After some e-mails back and forth about the logistics of it they choose the one below. I was ecstatic!</i><br />
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<i>This photo will be displayed in their Columbus store opening next month (by the cash wrap as they call it) and will include the name of the photo with the credit given to me. In addition, I was invited to their Community Reception Night before the Grand Opening next month, in which my wife and I will be attending! I am EXTREMELY excited and humbled about this opportunity. </i><br />
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If anything, I feel really humbled and honored for this up-coming opportunity and am hopeful that this will lead to even bigger things within the company. Don't want to spoil too much so you'll just have to keep checking back.... :)<br />
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Below is the image they choose to use for the Easton store location.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Actual Mural from the REI store located in Easton Ohio</td></tr>
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<br />Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-89286224786964051352014-01-03T09:55:00.000-05:002014-01-03T11:34:20.536-05:002013 Year In Review<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Year in Review 2013</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Even though we are a few
days into 2014 I wanted to share some of my more memorable moments that I
encountered in 2013. They are in no particular order as it is hard to place one in front
of the other. This past year was filled
with memorable moments. It is the ones that stick out most in my
memory that I wanted to share today. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> Earlier
last year, an “echo” irruption took place in the western United States, in what
was thought of to be a rare occasion even though we are currently having a huge
explosion of owls here on the east coast at present time. I took a trip to Washington with two friends
of mine for my first Snowy Owl experience.
The travel out there was, well, awful to say the least. But that is neither here nor there. The experience was unforgettable. I’ll never forget how I felt when I spotted
my first Snowy Owl, I was in awe.
My short two day trip out west presented me with great opportunities and
picture perfect weather. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Wilson’s Plover Nest (Flagler Beach, Florida)</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> My wife
and I took a trip to Florida in May as I had hoped to get some photos of baby
shore birds emerging from their nests.
Well, I arrived several days too early for the little ones as it is
impossible to set a target date for such an occurrence. I just have to hope for the best basing it off of previous years.
What I did find though was a VERY photographical Plover nest that a Florida
photographer friend of mine and I both enjoyed several great looks at from
outside the roped off area. I was able
to photograph a female Wilson’s Plover settling down onto her nest of three
eggs on the sandy beach. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> Taken at
the same location there were several Least Terns doing courtship behavior. I had hoped, again, to photograph baby shore
birds but none had hatched yet. What I
was able to witness though was some amazing courtship behavior of the
Terns. For some of the shots I was able
to get super low, actually shooting at an upward angle that created an effect
that makes it look like the Terns are placed on a cloud. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Great-horned Owl nest (Brecksville Reservation, Ohio)</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> A great opportunity
presented itself close to home for me in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. A nest of three Great-horned owlets in clear
view nesting in a rotted out tree.The parents were very elusive, only coming
around at night fall to feed the little ones. I visited this nest several times
at various lighting conditions including rain.
The rain gave some nice color saturation, it also kept everyone else away
from the nest! </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Arial; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Great-horned Owlet (Brecksville Reservation, Ohio)</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> All
three owlets fledged the nest above successfully and word got out that they were
roaming around the area. I took a trip up there one day to see if I could locate the owl which I
was told were lattering up nearby trees until they could learn to fly. This one
pose that this guy flashed me as the sun was setting always stands out in my
mind. My wife calls it the batman pose,
as the owls is turned around tucking its head in its wing. I have to agree with her assessment of the
caption. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Medina Raptor Center</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> I belong
to a photography group called MPEG, in which I am a group coordinator. Coordinators are in charge of organizing
photography shooting opportunities/events.
I held a first time shoot at the Medina Raptor Center, raising almost
$500 for this non-profit volunteer service that takes in and rescues injured
birds. It was actually the first time I photographed
captive birds as I normally prefer wild ones.
The shoot was fun and the money went to a great cause. We set various raptors up on different
perches on a stand that my dad created.
It was something that I enjoyed doing and hope to do again for years to come.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ohio)</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> Literally
the first shot I took during the New Year in 2013 was this Red-Morph Screech
Owl. I had been waiting for
some snow fall to return to this location to get some snow in my composition
and low and behold on New Year’s Eve night we got some snow. So New Year’s day morning off I went to try
and photograph the owl. After a couple
hours of patiently waiting the owl appeared and I got my shot I had been envisioning. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Avian/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Eastern-Screech-Owl/i-RfG6JXP/0/L/towpath130101-3436-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Avian/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Eastern-Screech-Owl/i-RfG6JXP/0/L/towpath130101-3436-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="313" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> Until
this moment, I had never seen a Grey-Morph Screech Owl. Seeing the photo below, I have to wonder how
often I have walked past them before! It
was amazing to see just how well they blend in with the tree. Something interesting that I noticed when I
got home is how the owl fluffed its feathers outside the tree cavity to
help it blend in better with the tree. I have to wonder, just how does the owl know
it is in the right colored tree? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Avian/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Eastern-Screech-Owl/i-2VvRZvh/0/L/firestone130406-6822-Edit-2-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Avian/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Eastern-Screech-Owl/i-2VvRZvh/0/L/firestone130406-6822-Edit-2-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"> Never
thought I would have Snowy Owls on this list twice. Truth is, the irruption this year is very
unusual. Snowy Owls are showing up ALL
OVER the eastern US. From Ohio, over to
Pennsylvania and all over the east coast and even Florida, yes FLORIDA! A report of one in Jacksonville Florida sent
photographers all over the state into a frenzy during a family visit with my
wife in December. People were driving
from Miami to the top of the state for a glimpse. Closer to home though I decided to check out Pennsylvania after
talking to several other photographers that had been there. My visit was on a wind driven rainy day,
making photography even more challenging.
The over 1.5 mile walk out to the location was difficult enough without
even taking the weather into consideration. But I’ve had these guys burned into
my brain since the first report appeared around here. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Avian/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Snowy-Owl/i-HffV5n7/0/XL/Presque_Isle131222-1583-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-XL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Avian/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Snowy-Owl/i-HffV5n7/0/XL/Presque_Isle131222-1583-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-XL.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-39655430145767989602013-11-04T22:22:00.001-05:002013-11-04T22:35:34.294-05:00Autumn in Ohio<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As fall comes to a close here in Ohio I can’t
help but reflect on how fast this year has gone by. Hard to believe that winter is right around
the corner. It has been a fascinating
fall season for me this year. Never
thought I would have spent as much time as I did this fall photographing fall
landscapes, waterfalls and such. Suppose
it is just myself trying to be a better-rounded photographer. It is nice to know that when wildlife that I
commonly photography isn’t active that I have another interest in photography
to fall back on. I think the light switch
flipped with my appreciation and interest in landscapes last fall. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">My friend had come up from Florida to
photograph the Wood Ducks, the Wood Ducks that were largely void last
year. So I was forced to show him around
some of the more scenic areas of Ohio so he didn’t go home completely empty
handed. Normally, this time of year I
would spend the majority of my time photographing the Wood Ducks up at North
Chagrin Reservation. So with the
presence of Duck largely not present, I took him around various places in
Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Bedford Reservation, and South Chagrin for
autumn landscape opportunities. As we
went around the various locations listed I found myself really getting into the
challenge of photographing landscapes.
More of a challenge mainly because you have usually create an
interesting focal point in a vast scene, sometimes that is more easier said
then done. Definitely makes you think
more and while I won’t get as excited over a landscape scene compared to a
wildlife scene, I do enjoy the change of pace and challenge of it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">This time last year, the only tool I really
had for landscapes was a Hoya polarizer.
I mainly used this to create more saturation in my colors as well as
decreasing about a stop of light when capturing waterfalls. When I photograph waterfalls, I like to
create a silky look of the water. Not
everyone is a big fan of this, but I like to think that it helps create a more
dream like feel to the overall image.
When my friend was up here last year I noticed he had some strange
looking square filters. Not anything
that would screw onto the front of a lens.
He had/has the LEE filter set.
Until then I had never heard of LEE filters before. At the time, the only filter I really knew of
was a polarizer. It was around earlier
this year that I found myself purchasing the startup kit for the LEE filters,
the foundation kit. Slowly adding to my
collection of expensive but </span><span style="line-height: 18px;">indispensable</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"> filters from them I know use a .6 and
.9 ND filter. Also a .6 and .9 ND Soft
Grad filter. I have to say for the purchase of those filters, I have used all
of them, and use them frequently when photographing waterfalls. So
with that I wanted to share some of my more favorite autumn landscape images
from this past fall. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcMOg6tZAdOrjv77CKzFaUIqxqmIfJvCST5F4NMokqdHzdYIIF7kCPeiLmfXT7DSPo5Xm-V6gfmf2nd3LbgVg5VNDPfuqpeEB5Cw0sUVyjv_ko3W9uWmLN-tKiAKuFPEF1XCjqhYj-Wak/s1600/SouthChagrin131006-0087-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcMOg6tZAdOrjv77CKzFaUIqxqmIfJvCST5F4NMokqdHzdYIIF7kCPeiLmfXT7DSPo5Xm-V6gfmf2nd3LbgVg5VNDPfuqpeEB5Cw0sUVyjv_ko3W9uWmLN-tKiAKuFPEF1XCjqhYj-Wak/s400/SouthChagrin131006-0087-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chagrin River Falls, South Chagrin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl3vfkLr2jk5N5eeTlOf-FHs5fUFww_c1IfSakta5RkL_7-MtsQYXCmGPyGsXTUDlrvOpVc1FxLpkuyYSmFdtNTkObHnPfca7WGbxTN9vkKWE7S3Q7SuHxZX3XdWbnQVVIZuMo9DHPyOw/s1600/SouthChagrin131013-0180-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl3vfkLr2jk5N5eeTlOf-FHs5fUFww_c1IfSakta5RkL_7-MtsQYXCmGPyGsXTUDlrvOpVc1FxLpkuyYSmFdtNTkObHnPfca7WGbxTN9vkKWE7S3Q7SuHxZX3XdWbnQVVIZuMo9DHPyOw/s400/SouthChagrin131013-0180-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quarry Rock, South Chagrin Reservation</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhNZ8u7AFqT5nL490imlXwGVWetw7xZlCH6bb0I0LysA66ZLY0fvKSDjNSY9MnBPxTkRCTLEpRoY0JLN-qYNBalYzRIHQKdM9AyaSu7149O1iiQ_YF302EigVLbw91eYX3q2RxdlI1Pjc/s1600/autumn131027-0426-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhNZ8u7AFqT5nL490imlXwGVWetw7xZlCH6bb0I0LysA66ZLY0fvKSDjNSY9MnBPxTkRCTLEpRoY0JLN-qYNBalYzRIHQKdM9AyaSu7149O1iiQ_YF302EigVLbw91eYX3q2RxdlI1Pjc/s400/autumn131027-0426-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Downstream Brandywine Falls, CVNP</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXgL0KHEP2skbbfz7_5qIr4ECCsKlHZGx4QRv44IxMx6ALSMqD7psENvsgZRSPN_DjXWn6RL1CMcTgKCG8ZccjxFabQX35Gj4yg6-x0Zo60iIdTWauoy-sAIASpPKJc-XLKsEVDVhcKHM/s1600/bedford131102-0501-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXgL0KHEP2skbbfz7_5qIr4ECCsKlHZGx4QRv44IxMx6ALSMqD7psENvsgZRSPN_DjXWn6RL1CMcTgKCG8ZccjxFabQX35Gj4yg6-x0Zo60iIdTWauoy-sAIASpPKJc-XLKsEVDVhcKHM/s400/bedford131102-0501-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bridal Veil Falls, Bedford Reservation</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStxOrYzw3HkBfuWUyUFbKQAy53ISNVNHPfWUa6DpCdUEt_V0yZZkQ8VB-0_14TguI7krzHti0vhe1rcjTiGHC_y5xB4Wm3t8xfem-C-zmawZvV0R9XJ137rt1pd7ZSg0s_2dkI1OMvWY/s1600/autumn131026-0406-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStxOrYzw3HkBfuWUyUFbKQAy53ISNVNHPfWUa6DpCdUEt_V0yZZkQ8VB-0_14TguI7krzHti0vhe1rcjTiGHC_y5xB4Wm3t8xfem-C-zmawZvV0R9XJ137rt1pd7ZSg0s_2dkI1OMvWY/s400/autumn131026-0406-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blue Hen Falls, CVNP</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbm7_YXR18q2XR319_PFHwQJjxXiTXgmw6mENnrwI6wl83QV4IjGIeBBgsaVpt2FQEPaJtCTbhXVIGx_OjkEuHIpGPi-aSjBipPVswhOnVN6omnxHiyepAxK1q8lWcf9QjMoxDPXWNxzY/s1600/Autumn131017-0223-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbm7_YXR18q2XR319_PFHwQJjxXiTXgmw6mENnrwI6wl83QV4IjGIeBBgsaVpt2FQEPaJtCTbhXVIGx_OjkEuHIpGPi-aSjBipPVswhOnVN6omnxHiyepAxK1q8lWcf9QjMoxDPXWNxzY/s400/Autumn131017-0223-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brandywine Falls, CVNP</td></tr>
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Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-61460807702673115972013-06-14T18:00:00.001-04:002013-06-21T19:12:03.615-04:00Timing is everything..<div class="MsoNormal">
As any wildlife photographer knows timing is everything and
sometimes Mother Nature’s timing does not sometimes coincide with us photographers. One can have high hopes of timing a visit
just right in order to see baby Burrowing Owls as they just emerge from the
nest. When I was down last year, they
emerged around the last week of April.
This May however, it seemed to happen much sooner as the ones that I saw
mostly had lost all their fluff but was still cool to see none the less. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-dDsGQBM/0/L/florida130514-0144-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-dDsGQBM/0/L/florida130514-0144-Edit-L.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby Burrowing Owl<br />
Cape Coral</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Much of the trip this time around was to catch all the
shorebirds in their glorious breeding plumage along the west coast of
Florida. My wife and I stayed in Sanibel
Island at our favorite cottage, the Blue Dolphin Inn. Little did I know I would find some of the
shorebirds that I sought out on the beach in front of the Inn and residential
area. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-9J8NDqQ/0/L/florida130516-0797-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-9J8NDqQ/0/L/florida130516-0797-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yellow-crowned Night Heron<br />
Sanibel Island</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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We arrived early in the morning to Estero Lagoon which was
my first visit to this location. I timed
our visit to coincide with low tide to maximize my shooting opportunity for
shorebirds. I find it is best to time
these visits, when possible with low tides as many of the shooting areas along
the coast are very tide dependent. Also,
some areas have been really impacted by tropical storms that have reshaped the
beach. So at normal/high tide there
isn’t that much beach left exposed. We
arriving to Estero Lagoon and found the area to most void of wildlife activity
which was surprising. A couple Ospreys’
were spotted as well as a Black Bellied Plover and a couple other little
shorebirds but that was about it. I was
later told that I did not go far enough south (10 minute walk from where we
parked), though I did not see any other photographers on the beach that
morning. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Switching gears, my wife suggested we head over to my
reliable spot that was north of Estero Lagoon, Bunche Beach State
Preserve. My previous visit to this
location was last year in December and I really liked it. One thing that I noticed about Estero Lagoon
is it was more populated with beach goers then Bunche Beach is, even though
both are public beaches. I believe the
big difference is that at Estero the beach is lined with hotels as well as
vacation condos. Bunche Beach on the
other hand is set up off to the side of the main population and each time I
visit there I find that I am largely by myself in a vast open area that is
exposed during low tide. At often times,
it can be found to be overwhelming having such a large area to explore and seek
out birds. I found it is best to arrive
an hour or so before low tide so you can push out towards the ocean as the tide
retreats from the beach. In any case, I
made three visits to Bunche Beach all during the morning and enjoyed the peace
and solitude of the area, only being joined by a couple other
birders/photographers and my wife on two of the mornings. I
enjoyed great views of Wilson Plovers, Black-bellied Plovers, Skimmers, Caspian
Terns, Ruddy Turnstones as well as others.
Most of the shorebirds were in breeding plumage which made me very happy
to see. I know one thing that was happy
to see me, the no-seums, sandflies, and whatever else enjoyed dinning on my
legs. Remember playing connect the dots
when you were younger? Yeah, you could
probably play multiple games out of the hundreds of red dots I have all over my
legs from those guys. Such the life of a
nature photographer I suppose.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-V4p5v5R/0/L/florida130515-0222-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-V4p5v5R/0/L/florida130515-0222-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Skimmer<br />
Bunche Beach Preserve</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-g7JDjj4/0/L/florida130515-0458-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-g7JDjj4/0/L/florida130515-0458-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruddy Turnstone<br />
Bunche Beach Preserve</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Another place that was visited a couple times was “Ding”
Darling Wildlife Refuge, a place that I have had great luck in past
visits. This time not so much
though. I have often heard from
various people that they have visited this location and not had any luck. Up until this visit I never believed
them. I haven’t seen the place so empty
in all my visits. Another location that
is closely connected to the refuge is Bailey’s Tract. This place consists of a walking trail (not
really sure of the length). During this
visit we discovered multiple Black-necked Stilt nests. Now of course when we were there for some
reason I left my big glass back at the cottage we were staying at and only had
my 70-200mm. So after we saw all the
Stilts I was kicking myself for not throwing my backpack in the car. Luckily the cottage was a short drive from
where we were so I high tailed it back there and picked up my long glass and
raced back hoping they would still be in the same area, and they were. I was able to get some shots of these guys
and even a couple portrait shots as well which is something I have always been
a big fan of. In any event, this
location is worth revisiting next time. <o:p></o:p><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-bF9C5Br/0/L/florida130516-0913-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-bF9C5Br/0/L/florida130516-0913-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black-necked Stilt<br />
Bailey Tract</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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One of the photographers that I met up with this trip, Bob
Blanchard showed me a great spot for Scrub Jays in Cape Coral. This was the first time I have seen a Scrub
Jay in all my visits to Florida amazingly.
One would think that with all my visits down here I would have run into
them by now. These birds were so tame that
they landed on my head as well as my wife’s head. It really was a sight to see. I was amazed at the size of them, being
roughly the size of a Blue Jay. I really hope we can do a better job at
protecting these guys habitat so this does not become another endangered
species. According to what I read, they
currently have a “threatened” status.
Bob was recommended to me from Troy Lim whom I had talked to. I had hoped to meet both that day but was
only able to hook up with Bob, had a great time though. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-cLvG8t9/1/L/florida130514-9944-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-cLvG8t9/1/L/florida130514-9944-Edit-L.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Florida Scrub Jay<br />
Cape Coral</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Having only a short
time in Sanibel I did not have time to explore and find the Scrub Jays as well
as the Burrowing Owl babies (which I saw later). Typically, I pride myself on doing my own
research and exploring new areas on my own.
To me, it makes the final capture that much more rewarding. The second place Bob and I shot at was in
southern Cape Coral, the baby Burrowing Owls.
The nest that we worked had some of the younger owls. Though, these ones were still fairly old as
they had lost all their baby fluff much to my demise. Still, I felt very fortunate to see and
photograph these little guys as my last trip I had missed seeing them by one
week. What is ironic is that I ended up
getting more photos of the adults then the babies, simply being because they
were spending a lot of time in the burrows. <o:p></o:p></div>
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It seems like every
time I am out with these owls I have an encounter with those lovely Florida
fire ants. Much like last time, I did
this time as well, looking down on the ground seeing that I had just disturbed
an angry fire ant mound. Mental note for
next time to pick up those ant pant guards that go around your ankles to keep
those critters from crawling up my legs.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Another location that Bob and I visited is a great location
for Black-necked Stilts, nicknamed by him as “Bobs’ Mudhole” and rightfully so,
the area consists of a large marsh type pond that one can wade through if so
desired. Of course I was up to getting a
little dirty as always! The water level
was a bit to high still for the Stilts to nest and I was told that if the water
level remains high or increases that the Stilts would not nest there this
year. The water, at most, was around
knee deep and occasionally I got stuck in the thickest mud I have ever been
in. The mud, at those times seemed to
resemble quick sand as it suctioned you to the marsh below and quite a bit of
effort was required to remove ones footing from the bottom. In an event, I did come away with some decent
opportunities there with the Stilts, Spoonbills, and some juvenile American Pelicans<o:p></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-sjn34ZW/0/L/florida130515-0707-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-sjn34ZW/0/L/florida130515-0707-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Roseate Spoonbill<br />
Fort Myers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">American White Pelican<br />
Fort Myers</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-nWVBzfX/0/L/florida130515-0681-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-nWVBzfX/0/L/florida130515-0681-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black-necked Stilt<br />
Fort Myers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I found that the
Pelicans seemed to mimic the Black Skimmers I encountered at Bunche Beach in
that they seemed to always want to stay huddled closely together and a lot of
effort was required to get a shot of one broken off of the group. Safety in numbers I suppose. Unfortunately my visit to this location had
less than stellar light most of the time as we had some heavy cloud cover to
the west.<o:p></o:p></div>
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After heading back to Ocala I paid one of two visits to Flagler
Beach where I met up with Michael Libbe whom I have conversed with several
times and follow his work on several photo sharing sites. He offered to show me around the area and
provided me with some great entertainment, he was a great shooting companion as
was Bob. When I awoke early Sunday
morning and was packing my car up there was a large cumulous cloud looming not
too far away with very frequent lighting coming from it. Taking a look at the radar on my smartphone before
I left I saw that there were storms to the north, east, and south of where I
was going. Dang! Should I go, or shouldn’t I go. It was a two hour drive out to the east coast
from central Florida so certainly I did not want to make that drive only to sit
in my car due to thunderstorms. I called
my friend Michael and he said the weather changes every 30 minutes down here
and that he was still going. So after a
few moments of torturing myself on what to do I decided to head for the
coast. I got there shortly after
sunrise, no thanks to a detour on Hwy 206 that added 10 minutes to my driver,
grrrr… When I arrived, meeting Michael
at Marineland we had a cloud layer on the east coast so as it turns out the
detour I ran into didn’t affect my morning shooting too much. We arrived to Flagler Beach and what a
beautiful beach it is. Having only been
to Daytona Beach many moons ago I was turned off by the eastern beaches from
that. I predetermined that this outing I
was going to try out my Skimmer Pod that I had purchased about a year ago. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3M2Z8Rh6HwFXCA6JqypVAgP0iuQgRdEynt9ZElWCsZLx8KON1Kvy1xIHFLJIHRZu8orpaS-phl79AgMmSRNCTXrbbJd3AN1Mr5YqDnrhSXcAgYQLtBqcF-YG6KphhR6Ax2uQ_hrBUbfY/s1600/photo+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3M2Z8Rh6HwFXCA6JqypVAgP0iuQgRdEynt9ZElWCsZLx8KON1Kvy1xIHFLJIHRZu8orpaS-phl79AgMmSRNCTXrbbJd3AN1Mr5YqDnrhSXcAgYQLtBqcF-YG6KphhR6Ax2uQ_hrBUbfY/s320/photo+(2).JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
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I knew I wouldn’t be
submerged in water here so this was the perfect opportunity to try this
out. It really worked well, making me
even more mobile scooting across the sand compared to pushing my tripod. As we were walking along the Least Tern
colony we saw that some were nesting while others were still courting. We noticed an extremely small roped off area
up ahead and when we approached Michael spotted a Wilson’s Plover running out
of the area. We both said, “there has
got to be a nest in there” and sure enough there was. It took a few minutes to spot it but there is
was a nest cradled in the sand with 2-3 eggs.
We spend some time with this Plover capturing different poses from this
male or female. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wilson's Plover</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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That alone, made the trip worthwhile in my opinion having
never seen or photographed a Wilson’s Plover nest that was a mere 10 feet
away. We back tracked down the beach
back towards the Least Tern colony when I spotted a large gather of Terns down
my the ocean. What we had was a large gathering of Royal Terns, Least Terns,
and Sandwhich Terns, my Skimmer Pod came into great use here allowing me to
belly crawl across the sand with much easy which allowed me to approach these
birds very close without startling them.
Photographing the Royal and Sandwhich Terns I found to be an exercise in
frustration as they tend to gather in groups much like the Skimmers do. It was all worth the effort though as we
spent a great deal of time working this gathering of fairly tame Terns. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Royal Tern</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Was even able to
capture and witness some Least Tern courtship behavior as well. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Least Tern courtship</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Went back to this spot at the end of the week hoping some of
the babies would have hatched but no luck.
When I parked in the “parking lot” another photographer approached me
and asked what my name was, ended up being Jim Urbach who resides in Florida
and is a moderator on Naturescapes, a nature photography forum that I
frequent. Was great to meet him that day
and shoot with him. We went over to the
Wilson’s Plover nest first and had some stellar golden morning light on
it. The Royal Terns that were on the
beach on Sunday were absent this visit, had better luck with the Least Terns
though. I found that it was much easier
to get shots of them on the beach front rather than behind the roped off area,
just a matter of timing and patience I found.
They allowed you approach fairly close when belly crawling to them
across the beach. Just keep in mind to
watch out for the waves breaking behind you and catching you, which one of them
did. Luckily, it broke a little ways out
and just washed up beneath me, but the water felt nice. <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span> <o:p></o:p></div>
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Finished out the photography part of my trip shooting the
two dozen Black-bellied Whistling Ducks that frequent a DRA (Drainage Retention
Area) where my in-laws live. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-PWT4qDN/0/M/florida130523-2041-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-PWT4qDN/0/M/florida130523-2041-Edit-M.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black-bellied Whistling Duck</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I like to
try and get out there with these guys whenever we are in Ocala visiting my
wife’s parents. Each time I have visited
this spot for these Whistling Ducks it seems I come away with some images I am
really happy with that are a little different, given that that they are walking
around on grass I try not to make them look to boring. So difficult to time a trip up with hatchings as it various
from year to year, guess we will just have to move down to Florida so I will
have better luck then. All in time, all
in time. <span style="font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-55205337655573332312013-03-19T22:37:00.001-04:002013-03-21T19:58:13.919-04:00Everglades National Park<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
Florida Everglades, a destination in Florida I have wanted to visit for several
years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being as much into avian
photography as I am I found it strange that I was actually going down there to
concentrate 90% of the time into the beautiful and unique looking landscapes
down there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While my travels went much
better then how they did last month when I went to Ocean Shore, the weather did
not work out in my favor as I had hoped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>None the less, my friend and I made the best of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was accompanied by Don Hamilton who lives
in Florida and spends every other weekend in the Everglades during the winter
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As another friend of mine said, we
were “hardcore” because we were camping down there during our stay…chilly stay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of people thought I was crazy thinking
I was going to be eaten by an Alligator or one of those Pythons they have all
over down there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Honestly I had those
thoughts a couple times thinking, “am I crazy sleeping out here in the middle
of now where?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No cell reception down
there, at least Verizon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had to drive
to Anhinga Trail in order to get cell reception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Up until my trip there, the furthest south I
had been in Florida was Naples when my wife and I visited Corkscrew
Sanctuary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">So
anyways, I flew in on Thursday to a complete overcast. My friend picked me up
from the airport and we were off for some shooting for the late afternoon into
evening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We stopped by to visit the
Burrowing Owls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We spent the late
afternoon into evening there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of my
shots I was not happy with due to the lighting that we had.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even using flash (more so then I would
usually use) I was not real please with those shots.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We headed back and crossed our fingers that
the weather would improve some over the next few days.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We
left the next morning at 5am for the Everglades in a drizzle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That would be the story on and off for almost
the entire weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We arrived to the
Everglades just before sunrise, no sunrise to be seen that day or really any of
the other days with the exception of Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We set up camp in the late afternoon after exploring the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were originally going to stay for two
night but only ended up staying for one night due to the showers and cool
weather that we encountered during our stay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>None the less, I came back with a few good shots from the area, including
some stellar images of a Red-Shouldered Hawk. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not the stellar landscape images that I had hoped
for but sure can’t complain when you come home with some good wildlife
images.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-nbRKm5R/0/M/Everglades130302-6209-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-nbRKm5R/0/M/Everglades130302-6209-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Turkey Vulture that thought he was a bus!!</td></tr>
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<br /></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-whwpPX4/0/M/Everglades130302-6155-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-whwpPX4/0/M/Everglades130302-6155-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Double-Crested Comorant</td></tr>
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<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">We
did get a fairly decent sunset opportunity on Saturday evening before we left. At
a favorite location of my friend in Everglades National Park is where I
captured this sunset.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span> </span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-h53VKkN/0/M/Everglades130302-9592-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-h53VKkN/0/M/Everglades130302-9592-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset at Everglades National Park</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Sunday we focused
on a sunrise opportunity on the east coast. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We got skunked on the sunrise (boy I thought
avian photography was frustrating!)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
decided to try my hand at some timed exposures I have seen others do along the
coast line. I came away with one image
that I was happy with the results.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-RjZjxjM/0/M/Everglades130303-9623-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-RjZjxjM/0/M/Everglades130303-9623-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ocean 'scape in Jupiter Florida, receding tide</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"> We then followed that up with some photos of
Orchids and Sunday evening we went back to visit the Burrowing Owls and got some sweet light at the end of the evening. Unfortunately we were in a location that did not offer us any good photo opportunities for the sunset. It was beautiful to see none the less. </span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-Z365vgh/0/M/Everglades130303-9653-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-2-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-Z365vgh/0/M/Everglades130303-9653-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-2-M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Acker's Sweetie Orchid (hybrid)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-WKSS9g9/0/M/Everglades130303-6435-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-WKSS9g9/0/M/Everglades130303-6435-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-WKSS9g9/0/M/Everglades130303-6435-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Burrowing Owl at sunset</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-WKSS9g9/0/M/Everglades130303-6435-Edit-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
<br /></div>
Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-35936862756993362972013-02-20T03:08:00.001-05:002013-02-20T03:08:59.315-05:00Damon Point State Park, Washington - Snowy Owls Experience<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Damon
Point State Park, Ocean Shores Washington, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>January 31<sup>st</sup> – February 3<sup>rd</sup>
2013.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was my destination for a two
day photography outing with Snowy Owls, a first for me with this species.As
with new species that you first capture, the fact that I have never encountered
one makes it all that more special to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Damon Point is a 61 acre State Park on the southeastern tip of Ocean
Shores.In 2012 there was an irruption year for these Snowy Owls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was unable to make it out to Damon Point
last year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So when I heard this winter
the area was experiencing a rare “echo” irruption I made every effort to make
it out there in hopes of capturing my first Snowy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Accompanying me on this journey were two
friends of mine, Don Hamilton and Tinman Lee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">**Before I get to my
experience, I do have to disclose the travel aggravations that I endured.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The aggravations ultimately made my
experience <u>even more</u> unforgettable in the end.**</span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So flashback to a couple weeks ago when I
was sitting in Akron/Canton airport waiting to fly out on an undisclosed
airline with a 6:30am departure time to Detroit then on to Seattle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My plane ended up being delayed because of
mechanical problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I was bumped to
fly into Atlanta instead of Detroit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During
the flight down to Atlanta I wondered if they had switched my luggage between
the two planes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would have my answer
to that when I land in Seattle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I
land in Atlanta, and find out my connecting gate is on “the other side of the
world”, clear across the airport and was about to begin boarding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So here I am speed walking with my Gura Gear
bag on my back fully loaded with my gear as I felt like a running back in the
NFL sprinting through the airport dodging incoming linebackers for the opposing
team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Guess all the running with the
heavy load would prepare me for my adventures at Damon Point though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Arial; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I made it to the gate in Atlanta and get my
assigned seat at the check-in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Whew!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Should be an easy ride now
into SeaTac now and was relieved to finally be on the last leg of my flight
into SeaTac.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friend was to land at
noon and I was originally supposed to land shortly after 11am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had hoped to get in a couple hours of
shooting that day that would not come to be as I found out after I landed in
SeaTac.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, fast forward to SeaTac, I
finally land at the airport shortly after noon PST (an hour later then I was
supposed to land). <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Boy was I glad to be
in Washington to begin my Snowy journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I wonder if my bags arrived with me or if they were clear across the USA
still getting snowed on??<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would come
to find out from the agent at the gate that my bags were in Detroit on my
original plane and would not arrive until 5:30pm!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dang, there goes my shooting with my friend
for the day as I had my tripod and head in the luggage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Forget the clothes; I can pick up extra
clothes at the store, a Gitzo tripod…well not so much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I was told go to baggage claim and they
would deliver my luggage to my hotel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Cool I thought, that works for me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I should have known it would not work out like that on what was the
worst traveling experience for me ever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I come to find out Ocean Shores (where I was staying) was outside their
delivery radius and they would have to go through FedEx and my luggage would not
arrive until Saturday morning sometime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>WHAT!!!!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those were
approximately my words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trying to
contain my cursing at the poor lady that was trying to help me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“That isn’t going to work for me, I flew
across the country for Snowy Owls, to photograph them and I have photography
gear in that luggage that I need, “ I said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I might as well stay at the airport until my luggage arrives, which is
ultimately what I ended up doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was
given a $25 voucher for airport food for my headaches, which I split with my
friend since they gave him nothing because he wasn’t “affected” by the
situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah right, he was stuck
there with me as the rental car was in my name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We got something to eat with the voucher (which was another story in of
itself).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Off to get the rental car,
thinking to myself what are the odds I don’t have a rental car or hotel
room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the end, I had both.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We killed time at REI (a sporting goods
store) where I bought myself something to make me feel better after the day I
had, an upgraded headlamp which I needed for the Snowy Owls anyways even though
I had brought one with me from home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This one is 2x brighter though,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>that
headlamp will always have a special place with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Arial; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Finally we get to the hotel at 8:30pm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Off
for an early start the next morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After
a short breakfast at the hotel we were off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>BTW…if you are traveling out to Ocean Shores, I HIGHLY recommend staying
at the Guesthouse Inn & Suites.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After we found were we had to park, onward we began what ended up being
4-5 miles of walking in a span of two days as we zig-zagged across the
Point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sooooo worth all the effort and
soreness that I endured and I’d do it all over again!.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We came to our first of many Snowy Owls just
as the sun was rising and I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief knowing all my
aggravation was going to be well worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We had some clouds in the morning that burned off as the day went
on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were lucky in that the first owl
we encountered the sun seemingly broke through a clear patch in the horizon to
give us that stellar light before it disappeared again for about another
hour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-5tLvBF2/0/L/oceanshores130201-3684-Edit-Edit-Edit-3-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-5tLvBF2/0/L/oceanshores130201-3684-Edit-Edit-Edit-3-L.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Was so happy to see our first Snowy Owl on Friday morning!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We
found some Snowy Owls in some interesting perches on the first day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Found a lot of them perched atop of
evergreens and found one that was almost cradled in one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was nice to be able to mix up different
habitats with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-xPfwL9Q/0/L/oceanshores130201-3772-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-xPfwL9Q/0/L/oceanshores130201-3772-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We worked around looking for some higher ground to get near eye level for Mr. Sleepy here. </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Both
days we left for the Snowy Owls walking to them in darkness and left them in
darkness being guided by our headlamps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
second day there we had some strong winds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On an open piece of land like Damon Point there was nothing to break the
wind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would guess 25 mph winds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Temps were warmer then Ohio so can’t complain
there. </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Arial; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
winds died off as the day wore on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
found the Snowy Owls closer to the ground that day as they tried to shield
themselves from the wind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We really
lucked out with the weather as this time of year in that part of the country it
is usually overcast and raining.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Abundant Snowy Owls on various perches, fantastic weather, and met some
great local photographers out there as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Can’t go wrong with that recipe!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heeding
the warnings of fellow photographers Tinman and Conrad Tan we brought lots of
water with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What I took out with me I
slimmed down on by the second day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ditching my backpack on the second day to cut down on some of the weight
I was hauling around and only taking two lens and my fanny pack with me that
was so packed it was bulging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">We
took a short rest in the afternoons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This was taken by my one of my friends, Tinman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A pair of Snowy Owls had just left this piece
of driftwood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided to take a snack
break and to stretch my back where they were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was so a cool feeling to be in the exact location where they had just
been resting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sounds weird, but I almost
felt their presence there still. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggrIIhp-FV0Q5NCjNYAbxNru1AUnSVQcIK7-5E0cmGwKm-reXVegR_9AJi3ETf7xcWfyETN4yVuLHNlwbdrRoEmwHGOVfX-vJHS38ubpcQznqocQMuDYHxVqkocMLGunxtvbJ5lFPWFv4/s1600/josh3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggrIIhp-FV0Q5NCjNYAbxNru1AUnSVQcIK7-5E0cmGwKm-reXVegR_9AJi3ETf7xcWfyETN4yVuLHNlwbdrRoEmwHGOVfX-vJHS38ubpcQznqocQMuDYHxVqkocMLGunxtvbJ5lFPWFv4/s320/josh3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photographing Snowy Owls can be exhausting! Photo taken by my friend Tinman Lee.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
scenery around Damon Point was breath taking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On a clear day you can take in great views of Grays Harbor, the Olympic
Mountains, and Mount Rainier.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-jDZsm8V/0/L/oceanshores130201-3765-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/RecentWork/Recent-Work/i-jDZsm8V/0/L/oceanshores130201-3765-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
first Snowy Owl experience will definitely go down in the books as one of my
more memorable photography trips.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-35668032814374011922013-01-05T23:58:00.002-05:002013-01-25T00:15:34.082-05:00Upcoming MonthsWell I booked a short trip out to Ocean Shores Washington for the
"echo" irruption of Snowy Owls that is happening out there this year.
It will be my first experience with a Snowy Owl, and have been told they
are a real sight to see. I have a particular fascination with owls.
Something about the eyes, they portray a certain amount of mystery and
curiosity within me I suppose. Meeting up with a couple friends of mine
out there that will share in the experience as well. Hoping to have a
great time with the owls and them. <br />
<br />
<br />
Then, I will be going off to the Everglades....first
time there as well. Really looking forward to that trip. I plan to do
some landscape and wildlife photography. Never thought I'd hear myself
say, "I'm going to do landscape photography." The Everglades is a
beautiful place for that and I have a good friend of mine guiding me
down there. We will be camping in the 'glades, the best way to
experience them. Should be a different and exciting experience. I
will be flying in with some shooting time to burn up before we depart
for the glades so I am hoping to work on some more Burrowing Owls before
we head out extremely early the next morning. So stay tuned tuned for
some upcoming posts....Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-14186731044956158762012-12-19T00:16:00.001-05:002013-01-25T00:19:45.157-05:00Be back soon....Stay tuned.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Sorry to have been absent from my blog lately, well since my April Florida trip. I shall start my blog up here soon with some of my newest adventures. Rest assured, I have not been absent from photography at all. With some remarkable experiences least of which the Ruby-Throated Hummingbird nest that I had the oppurtunity to photograph just outside of Columbus Ohio a few months ago. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-vsTudCTvJffMln33OHZljNsvcvHXp3oD7tHRwd7pIcMkfEvw9KEUXlA8pO4KqOfERajHRupZl779u0rSwRsB50VLJDTW1elfKXFg1J4YWy1BI1ZBTk-CSGP5K0PTsUk7NUT2iFcUeLA/s1600/7935433400_4f90521e9b_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-vsTudCTvJffMln33OHZljNsvcvHXp3oD7tHRwd7pIcMkfEvw9KEUXlA8pO4KqOfERajHRupZl779u0rSwRsB50VLJDTW1elfKXFg1J4YWy1BI1ZBTk-CSGP5K0PTsUk7NUT2iFcUeLA/s320/7935433400_4f90521e9b_z.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruby-throated Hummingbird nest, Gahanna Ohio</td></tr>
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<br />
The beginning of August I was back down in Florida again. I got some great shots of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks in Ocala Florida.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioWMQbjUaNH2nu1buUx1Y3VRbSFQ6MwgNRxb1XvCFMRcZGKhe874919_ehJ_T_PYPomUoCqbkMFG-0_SJuZRbFBGMxSCg7YY0bRlqou8Fcdg_PPG15nYY5gZCrhUlkVYwzBD6o8wrJg5Q/s1600/BlackBellied120802-6764-Edit-Edit-Edit-2-Edit120802.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioWMQbjUaNH2nu1buUx1Y3VRbSFQ6MwgNRxb1XvCFMRcZGKhe874919_ehJ_T_PYPomUoCqbkMFG-0_SJuZRbFBGMxSCg7YY0bRlqou8Fcdg_PPG15nYY5gZCrhUlkVYwzBD6o8wrJg5Q/s320/BlackBellied120802-6764-Edit-Edit-Edit-2-Edit120802.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Ocala Florida</td></tr>
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<br />
I also paid a first time visit to Fort de Soto. Not the best time to visit there becuase as I laid on the sand for my shorebird photography it was like laying on a hot skillet. None the less, I was able to check the place out and get my barings. A very cool place indeed! <br />
As for places I hope/am visiting in the future...well I guess you will just have to stay tuned! Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-81203838488273380392012-06-05T03:23:00.002-04:002012-06-05T17:34:53.950-04:00My Photography Filled Florida Birthday<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For my birthday this year my wife decided to send me down to Florida for 3 1/2 days of photography filled fun. I went down to Florida at the end of April (sorry for the late blogging) and met up with a photography friend of mine that lives down there. During my stay we photographed many things and racked up some major mileage on his car. One goal of mine was to photograph the Burrowing Owls. Something that I tried to do in December of 2011 but had miserable luck at. I kept three of the photos (never processed them) as motivation to do better the next time around. Below are some of the Burrowing Owl photos that I photographed during my stay in the sunshine state. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" height="313" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Burrowing-Owl/i-Sdk24N6/0/L/Florida120421-1798-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Burrowing Owl - The big yawn. So tired from me taking all those photso of him</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Burrowing-Owl/i-5ZRvBK2/0/M/Florida120421-1600-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/Burrowing-Owl/i-5ZRvBK2/0/M/Florida120421-1600-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="313" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Burrowing Owl - Taken just after a rain storm passed. So colors were nice and saturated.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Another place that we visited was Blue Cypress Lake, a first for me. There we took my buddies kayaks out onto the lake and made our way around. I took my 300mm with me as I could easily hand hold this lens and stash it easily in the kayak. I really like the 300mm as a lightweight alternative to BIF lens. It served me well on this trip and really put it to use for the Osprey and some other static images of other species. Here are a few images of the Ospreys I captured during my visit to Blue Cypress Lake. </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Falcons/Osprey/i-RNpfctX/0/M/Florida120420-1020-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Falcons/Osprey/i-RNpfctX/0/M/Florida120420-1020-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Osprey</span></td></tr>
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<a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Falcons/Osprey/i-QVSLGRT/0/M/Florida120420-0920-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Falcons/Osprey/i-QVSLGRT/0/M/Florida120420-0920-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Also ran into some cooperative Barred Owls and baby Limpkin that struck a pose for me while in the the kayak. What a great birthday present from my wife!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/WadingBirds/Limpkin/i-KJqQNmM/0/M/Florida120420-1378-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/WadingBirds/Limpkin/i-KJqQNmM/0/M/Florida120420-1378-Edit-Edit-M.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Baby Limpkin - Photographed from a kayak</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/BarredOwl/i-bDkpckr/0/L/Florida120422-2198-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Birds-of-Prey/Owls/BarredOwl/i-bDkpckr/0/L/Florida120422-2198-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Barred Owl</span></td></tr>
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<br />Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-49685248138829492782012-01-20T20:15:00.001-05:002012-01-27T17:56:58.784-05:00San Carlos Bay Bunche Beach Preserve<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A new location that we visited and a new favorite of mine is San Carlos Bay Bunche Beach Preserve, doing a little research ahead of time and finding the low tide time pays off greatly at this location much like Ding Darling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the tide is out the area is loaded with all kinds of shorebirds, which is a personal favorite of mine to photograph.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I had a lot of help regarding this location from two Florida friends of mine, <a href="http://swfloridabirder.blogspot.com/">Bob Pelkey</a> and <a href="http://marinascarrphotography.com/">Marina Scarr</a>. Never would have come to know of this place if it weren't for those two. Thanks to both of you! The banded Piping Plover below was reported to the Great Lakes Waterbird Research Program at the University of Minnesota. During my visit I also photographed another Piping Plover, but the other one had not been banded. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GF3_z434yTO2tr1b6APFFHTHzbSXxIdzUfVn85LbTo6aqSukCtx6uH2a4B5pkwjeGwYeAmGc_-EoseGc0U8mdh5Mds5I8Jo5gu5K0Sj4jJTPNjNmBNugOVu-wTo_w1wVptVUWwiiFtY/s1600/Bunche111228-6157-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GF3_z434yTO2tr1b6APFFHTHzbSXxIdzUfVn85LbTo6aqSukCtx6uH2a4B5pkwjeGwYeAmGc_-EoseGc0U8mdh5Mds5I8Jo5gu5K0Sj4jJTPNjNmBNugOVu-wTo_w1wVptVUWwiiFtY/s400/Bunche111228-6157-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Endangered Piping Plover</td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On our particular visit I was able to see 200+ Black Skimmers which was quite a sight, even more so when they all simultaneously exploded into flight on occasion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My first visit there was a windy one, and one that found me leaving my waders which I brought with me in my vehicle. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With Gulf temps in the mid 60’s and the wind left me quite chilled but with all the action going on at this location that helped take my mind off the somewhat uncomfortable conditions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My second visit, I remembered those waders though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimqbFuWH2folWqdOSsEIbgOzbCkh9Mwz433jTsH41jSxZfKHLDHlReF6vOajaiaz26pPmWArUm-aEAi0NeVcBNepQmPUsa3kkTIfSYv2bGmSyS9Mh59ELPS6VLumli6qnT6_KwKLFLYSo/s1600/Bunche111228-6230-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimqbFuWH2folWqdOSsEIbgOzbCkh9Mwz433jTsH41jSxZfKHLDHlReF6vOajaiaz26pPmWArUm-aEAi0NeVcBNepQmPUsa3kkTIfSYv2bGmSyS9Mh59ELPS6VLumli6qnT6_KwKLFLYSo/s400/Bunche111228-6230-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White Ibis</td></tr>
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was able to photograph Snowy and Piping Plovers at this location, two shorebirds that I badly wanted to see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the Snowy Plovers I noticed were banded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Other notable sightings were Reddish Egrets, Little Blue Herons, a Bald Eagle, Snowy Egrets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwkzXlq6S6KTEbkbJTTUCPnglBWLclgUA-j-RZhMXE1eey7et_ogkdQpGvTxQ12bDWUJcmV5mou7horZusUH1CTDnqqL6ihp47Di-Fepax1EL6jUjYyCtQuizKeji793beTdfjhqygJug/s1600/Bunche111228-6187-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" nfa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwkzXlq6S6KTEbkbJTTUCPnglBWLclgUA-j-RZhMXE1eey7et_ogkdQpGvTxQ12bDWUJcmV5mou7horZusUH1CTDnqqL6ihp47Di-Fepax1EL6jUjYyCtQuizKeji793beTdfjhqygJug/s400/Bunche111228-6187-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snowy Plover</td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">If you are ever in the Fort Meyers area in Florida, this location is one that is definately worth checking out. </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div>Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-34308049279021908152012-01-16T22:14:00.000-05:002012-01-16T22:14:08.981-05:00J.N. "Ding Darling" Wildlife Refuge, Florida<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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</style> <![endif]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">My wife and I just got back from a trip from Southwest Florida for the holidays.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We spend several nights on Sanibel Island visiting some familiar photographic grounds and others not so familiar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We made several trips to J.N. “Ding Darling” Wildlife Refuge located on Sanibel Island.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have had good luck there in previous visits to this location and would highly recommend visiting this location if given the opportunity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You never know what you are going to see around every bend on the road.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt4qKHy39Ousjb_8WjCwadjZg5uLaaSLkT5plA10rIZ-yhffPA8bdzfuMayFdOZFSV4LfcaOlgOzsTMjQckUEhnKKiwSu_Qr3kr9OPjKgqFFndFtc763jr_RgZnypX1fErh-sESmUz2VE/s1600/DingDarling111229-6606-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt4qKHy39Ousjb_8WjCwadjZg5uLaaSLkT5plA10rIZ-yhffPA8bdzfuMayFdOZFSV4LfcaOlgOzsTMjQckUEhnKKiwSu_Qr3kr9OPjKgqFFndFtc763jr_RgZnypX1fErh-sESmUz2VE/s400/DingDarling111229-6606-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White Pelican coming in for a landing.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You pay a fee and drive your vehicle throughout the 4 mile stretch of roadway through the Refuge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is always a good sign when you drive along and you see multiple cars pulled off the roadway and several photogs lining the roadside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had good luck with the several visits we made to this location this time around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was able to photograph Tricolored Herons, Anhingas, White and Brown Pelicans, Snowy Egrets, Great White Egrets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also seeing an occasional Spoonbill which seemed to be less numerous then in our past visit in the summer last year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsKpcvJUAUb5m_Ulyo3Hyz4cHX7lyxp_lRYcAzf2QRh1RAHchwMHU0j0FPtTNqZTOiqKj6gzmHTAsZHRzAykshHuv2PSPckm0tg2Loh_ej1hJ7NUaMwTKQctshFeuwyt7aYPGPt-dg3Yo/s1600/DingDarling111229-6517-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsKpcvJUAUb5m_Ulyo3Hyz4cHX7lyxp_lRYcAzf2QRh1RAHchwMHU0j0FPtTNqZTOiqKj6gzmHTAsZHRzAykshHuv2PSPckm0tg2Loh_ej1hJ7NUaMwTKQctshFeuwyt7aYPGPt-dg3Yo/s400/DingDarling111229-6517-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White Pelicans, gulls, and shorebirds preening</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Species at this location at times can be far off but more often than not are well within photographic range and are quite tame as they are used to the vehicles and human traffic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Excellent opportunities for flight shots exist as I had a great experience photographing the various White Pelicans at "Ding Darling" Other times during the year you can yield great result of Spoonbills in flight. The refuge is closed on Fridays to give the wildlife a break from us humans and vehicle traffic. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOBZurH8BEatYzL8tRuv_VIf28XeMka1PHxvmki_cZ2GEKiG-hAJzeRdU-eBOyWHAODs2pWVybylfBfHggL3nEOqnqCqAfhLlWswXEFU-5XRDeownOnekHv0xxhymA9k0uGZfAmjaeB8/s1600/DingDarling111229-6775-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjOBZurH8BEatYzL8tRuv_VIf28XeMka1PHxvmki_cZ2GEKiG-hAJzeRdU-eBOyWHAODs2pWVybylfBfHggL3nEOqnqCqAfhLlWswXEFU-5XRDeownOnekHv0xxhymA9k0uGZfAmjaeB8/s400/DingDarling111229-6775-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit-Edit.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Egrets</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt;"><span> </span></span>Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-80407393818761550242011-11-24T20:11:00.001-05:002012-01-16T22:23:20.410-05:00W.K. Kellogg Bird SanctuaryKellogg Bird Sanctuary is a Michigan State University research field station located in Augusta Michigan. Wintergreen Lake, which is the primary focus for the majority of waterfowl hosts a wide variety of species. Any given day you are likely to see Trumpeter Swans in fairly large numbers. The Trumpeter Swan present a unique opportunity for in flight shots. Morning are best for in flight shots as the Trumpeters are often landing into the early morning soft sunlight. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-pDDPkSG/0/L/KBS111105-4322-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-pDDPkSG/0/L/KBS111105-4322-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trumpeter Swan in flight</td></tr>
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If you have never seen a Trumpeter Swan up close this is the place to see them. I was amazed at the size of them as they are the largest North American bird, a very majestic looking bird. Feeding of local waterfowl is allowed which also can present unique opportunities for portrait shots of the Trumpeter Swans and some of the Mute Swans as the come right up to the fence on the boardwalk. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-sTtnfNh/0/L/KBS111105-4404-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-sTtnfNh/0/L/KBS111105-4404-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trumpeter Swan</td></tr>
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A smaller pond hosts a rather consist visitor, a male Hooded Merganser. This pond is very tricky to shoot, as it is mainly and evening light location and the large trees surrounding the pond only provide pockets of light that you have to patiently wait for the resident Merganser to swim into. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-h7B9pbk/0/L/KBS111105-5033-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-h7B9pbk/0/L/KBS111105-5033-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hooded Merganser</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-q8HKMLM/0/L/KBS111105-4782-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/KelloggBirdSanctuary/KelloggBirdSanctuary/i-q8HKMLM/0/L/KBS111105-4782-Edit-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-88233277433006637512011-10-30T21:46:00.000-04:002011-10-30T21:46:51.893-04:00North Chagrin Reservation, OhioEvery fall dozens and dozens of photographers flock from all over the country to North Chagrin Reservation for a chance to photograph Wood Ducks. Every fall, Wood Ducks fill Sunset Pond and allow photographers to get within arms reach of them, seemingly unafraid of human presence. The surrounding trees make for beautiful reflections in the water during fall which only enhance the photos taken in this area. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/WoodDuck/i-XcS8BZC/0/L/NChagrin111022-3068-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/WoodDuck/i-XcS8BZC/0/L/NChagrin111022-3068-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood Duck Hen at North Chagrin Reservation 2011</td></tr>
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The beautiful orange, red, and yellow foliage make for the most vibrant reflections in the ponds. Living in Ohio, I feel very lucky to have such a unique opportunity as I have to photograph Wood Ducks in such a manner that does not require a blind due to their shyness at other locations.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/WoodDuck/i-jJG6Rcc/0/L/NChagrin111010-2522-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/WoodDuck/i-jJG6Rcc/0/L/NChagrin111010-2522-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood Duck Drake at North Chagrin Reservation 2011</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/WoodDuck/i-pMzgtbr/0/L/NChagrin111010-2711-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Waterfowl/WoodDuck/i-pMzgtbr/0/L/NChagrin111010-2711-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hen and Drake Wood Duck Pair at North Chagrin Reservation 2011</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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At times they come in so close that you can not focus your camera on them and you simply take in the moment. Fall brings the most unique opportunity to photograph Wood Ducks at North Chagrin Reservation. If you love Wood Ducks and fall, North Chagrin Reservation is a must see to any photographer and/or nature lover. Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3107823697467445330.post-47348486629136257632011-09-11T16:48:00.000-04:002011-09-11T16:48:55.626-04:00Shorebirds at Point Mouillee Michigan<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--> <m:smallfrac m:val="off"> <m:dispdef> <m:lmargin m:val="0"> <m:rmargin m:val="0"> <m:defjc m:val="centerGroup"> <m:wrapindent m:val="1440"> <m:intlim m:val="subSup"> <m:narylim m:val="undOvr"> </m:narylim></m:intlim> </m:wrapindent><!--[endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal">I made my first of many trips to come to Point Mouillee, Michigan at the end of August with two good photographer friends of mine.<span> </span>Point Mouillee hosts a wide variety and number of shorebirds that use the area as a stopover point to feed and rest on their migration journey from various parts in the Northern Hemisphere to parts of South America, Cell #3 being the primary target for photographers and bird watchers alike.<span> </span>To reach Cell #3 a 3-4 mile bike ride is needed from the parking lot that takes you through at times tons of biting insects.<span> </span><span> </span>Shooting conditions will get you muddy and wet all the while swatting away pesky mosquitoes and biting flies both in the water and the surrounding dike of Cell #3.<span> </span>A bug mask that I bought for the trip came in handy during the bike ride and at times while photographing in the muck.<span> </span>But it is all well worth it to get those eye level shots and nice gradient blurred background s that can be had there due to the surrounding environment.<span> </span>Below is a photo that I took of Cell #3 with my 17-40mm that shows the area in which we were photographing.<span> </span>If you look closely you can see some of the shorebirds along the water’s edge that we were photographing.<span> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-B6bHHbm/0/L/Mouillee110827-0345-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-B6bHHbm/0/L/Mouillee110827-0345-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">Our trip had us arriving just before sunrise on Saturday.<span> </span>Once we unloaded our gear and loaded up our bikes we were off to make the long bike ride.<span> </span>Once we settled on a spot to focus our photography at (sand spit on the east side of Cell #3) we spotted and photographed a very rare visitor to this area of the country, a Hudsonian Godwit.<span> </span>This extremely rare visitor, in its winter plumage was with us for both days were at Point Mouillee, giving us many different views /poses of shorebird.<span> </span>The Hudsonian we found to be very cooperative and unafraid of us.<span> </span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-whbrxDk/0/L/Mouillee110828-0995-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-whbrxDk/0/L/Mouillee110828-0995-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We were also able to photograph a Red Knot, Adult and Juvenile Semipalmated Plovers, Short-Billied Dowitchers, Least and Greater Yellowlegs.<span> </span> </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-D52T8cS/0/L/Mouillee110827-0651-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-D52T8cS/0/L/Mouillee110827-0651-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">We saw a group of Phalaropes as well but were unable to photograph them as they were concentrated towards the middle of Cell #3.<span> </span>We decided to stay there all day Saturday eating our sandwiches that we had brought along with us.<span> </span>During the afternoon I focused on some in flight shots of the numerous Caspian Terns in the area that were fishing in Cell #3.<span> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-L2tTwwF/0/L/Mouillee110827-0320-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://www.momentsinature.com/Shorebirds/PointMouillee/PointMouilleMichigan2011/i-L2tTwwF/0/L/Mouillee110827-0320-Edit-Edit-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span> </span>Luckily we had blue skies during the duration of the time that was spent on some in flight shots of this beautiful Tern.<span> </span>Saturday evening brought clouds and some spotty showers to the area as well as some increased winds out of the north.<span> </span>Earlier in the day they were out of the east and we were protected from them by the surrounding dike.<span> </span>This all combining to make less then par shooting conditions as the wind was really working against us in capturing these shorebirds with the reflections in the water.<span> </span>We left the area and headed to a local hotel and to grab a bite to eat for the night and to recharge the batteries for another day of shooting. </div><div class="MsoNormal">After a well needed meal and a good night’s rest Sunday morning had us arriving from our local hotel at 5:30am with sunrise at 6:54am.<span> </span>Wind was again an issue that morning as the wind speed had picked up over night, though we did have great morning light.<span> </span>The Hudsonian Godwit was with us again and offered us more great shots and allowed me to capture my first wing stretch pose of any shorebirds. <span> </span><span> </span>We ended up packing up around 9:30am and headed back to the parking lot after a successful but exhausting weekend of shorebird shooting.<span> </span>I look forward to a return visit to the area next year for more shorebird shooting.<span> </span>In my experience I would put Point Mouillee, Michigan at the top of the list along with Conneaut, Ohio for shorebird photography.<span> </span></div>Joshua Clarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05696153696320807886noreply@blogger.com0