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!

More Pet Photography Showing their Personality

I photographed 3 dogs recently.  One of the dogs had a cute little move when we got her attention, she lifted up her paw.  I managed to get this little move in my pictures.  I thought it was adorable.  She had very expressive eyes too.  Part of the goal in photographing pets, is to show their personality.  I visit pets in their homes (or a nearby park), so they will be comfortable and more likely to be themselves.

Craft Fair at Patuxent River Naval Air Station

For locals: We will be participating in the Arts and Crafts Festival at the Drill Hall at Pax River NAS at the St. Mary's County Camera Club booth. (near Lexington Park MD) We will be selling photo merchandise like mouse pads, and coasters, etc. Sat 12/4/2010 10 AM 5 hrs Free Admission. Shuttle bus for non base patrons is available behind the Frank Knox Building. It's a great way to get fun gifts for the holidays.

Bald Eagles at Conowingo Dam

Recently we took a weekend trip to Conowingo Dam (Fishermen's Park) near Havre de Grace Maryland to view the bald eagles. We were told 90 eagles had been sighted recently.  I learned quickly that I really needed a longer lens to capture the birds well; somewhere between 500 to 600 millimeter would have worked better. My images were not very close and not very sharp, but I’ll show you one of the better ones. Maybe I can try again next year.

When I am not pleased with the images I get, I sometimes look around at what might be better. I captured a photo of 3 fishermen by the dam in the early morning golden light and one of the vultures perching on a log. There were many vultures easily accessible and lots of stray cats as well.

More Pet Photo practice

I am learning to make high pitched silly noises to make the dog's ears perk up.  It seems to work better than squeaky toys.  It is very important in most cases to focus on your pet's eyes to get them sharp, since most people look right at the eyes of any person or animal in a photo.  We put DJ in a large bucket to add a little color and create a cute pose.

St. Mary's County Camera Club End of Year Competition

 On Oct 20th, the St. Mary’s County Camera Club had the end of year competition including all of the winning photographs from the monthly competitions.  I had entries in the Advanced Digital photos, 1 entry in advanced prints and 2 in Theme.  I was almost embarrassed to win Advanced digital 1^st place (Point No Point Lighthouse) and 2nd (Osprey Landing) and 3rd (kitten 2) and both honorable mentions, (St. Mary’s College of MD Sunset and Gladiolus) plus 2^nd place in advanced prints (Butterfly and Bee).  Several of the clubs best photographers spent a lot of time teaching and judging the club members at meetings, instead of competing.  I think it made it a lot easier for me to win.

Bluhaven Piers in St. Mary's County

Bluhaven Piers, a 50 slip marina in South County is 6 miles from the Chesapeake Bay at 48409 Smith Drive in Ridge MD.  It’s an excellent location for fishing, sailing or just meandering in the creeks.  I took this lovely photo with its’ peaceful reflections last autumn on a calm clear day. (Bluhaven photo and photo merchandise available here) Bluhaven offers covered slips, a ship’s store, Hobie kayak sales and rentals and the usual marina services like bath and shower facilities, electric power, mechanic service, internet and a boat ramp.  It is located on Jutland and Smith creeks, home to bald eagles, great blue herons, deer and osprey.  Nearby attractions include Point Lookout State Park and Historic St. Mary’s City.  Several good restaurants like Sheible’s, Spinnaker’s, Courtney’s and the Brome Howard Inn are in easy reach.  The staff I have met from Bluhaven have always been friendly and courteous.  For more information about Bluhaven, visit their website at http://www.bluhavenpiers.com or call them at 301-872-5838.