Great Blue Heron Portrait Session.

After the osprey leave our nearby nest, other birds such as bald eagles and great blue herons often visit to look around and “play” in a borrowed nest.  I wanted to share a sequence of photos of this great blue heron. It was feeling lively on the particular day I photographed and I was thrilled with the various poses that resulted.  It was almost like having a family portrait session. Now let me see your right profile, your left profile and please lift your right leg, thank you!   I was glad I had the patience to wait for all of the ways it moved.   Now if only I could do it again with a longer lens.  These are all heavily cropped from the originals.

This last photo was taken on another day when it was windy, but I think it is the same heron posing.

Red Shouldered Hawk: Taking advantage of the unexpected

I took a friend's advice and visited St. Mary's College of Maryland one morning in search of a great blue heron.  Blue herons are fairly common in St. Mary's County, but they are fairly skittish and fly away the instant I bring out my camera.  I didn't see any herons, but I have learned to look around to see if I see anything else interesting to photograph.  I photographed a few red winged black birds clinging to the tall grass and some tall fluffy grass fronds, but I wasn't particularly impressed with the angles and backgrounds.  The birds were too small even with my 300 mm lens.  As I was getting ready to leave, I noticed a large bird in the top of a nearby tree.  I slowly walked toward it, trying not to scare it away.  I didn't know what type of hawk it was until I got home.  Red shouldered hawks apparently like deciduous forests and mainly eat small mammals.  I identified it by its red underparts and brown body.
A little patience can lead to unexpected results!

Great Blue Heron at Great Falls

I saw several Great Blue Herons at Great Falls National Park this weekend. I’m determined to get some good photos of them. They hang around our yard from time to time making noisy comments to the world. Grooonk! They are such graceful birds, with such a nasty voice. To see the bird with a fish, visit my facebook page. Just look for Calm Reflections Photography.