I had startled the Green Heron out of the pond side undergrowth as I passed by.
Then he stood almost like a statue as a Tricolored Heron sauntered by in the water looking for a meal.
I didn’t see him catch anything despite his maneuver of looking through a tuft of fronds.
Undaunted, the Tricolored Heron kept on walking. Look through the greenery above his head and you’ll see an Alligator lounging on a ramp.
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, Charleston, SC
August 21, 2024
This Juvenile Red-headed Woodpecker’s movement in some dead trees caught my eye. I could hear cheeping from him and two or three others nearby.
The conundrum of where to look: I decided not to take my eyes off this one. If he flew I likely wouldn’t spot him as he blended in with the Spanish moss and snags. And I may not be able to spot the others.
He performed the classic rotation around the limb woodpecker maneuver.
He paused for a moment before zipping off into a leafy tree with no photo opportunity.
Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, SC
September 19, 2021
Letting it shine
And a slow starter
This Great Blue Heron flew across the pond as I approached. I had a nice view as the pondside reeds have been cut back.
The water was high and he didn’t stop at the edge of where they sometimes hang out, even with Alligators lurking at the edge.
The heron lifted up over that Hummock, headed for a nearby tree.
Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, SC
September 19, 2021
Tamron 19-400 MM lens, with some chromatic aberration in the flight over water images that Topaz sharpen made worse. The first two images are without any sharpening.
A beautiful blue-sky day as seen from the end of the dike at the big pond.
September 19, 2021
I borrowed Ted’s Tamron 18-400 MM lens this morning and put the range flexibility to good use when I spotted an Eastern Pondhawk on a Lily Pad.
I got a decent closer image of the dragonfly and his shadow.
And a nice view of the scene without changing lenses or cameras.
