outdoor photography

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail This morning I was at Central Winds Park, my favorite birding local birding location in the fall, and a Tiger Swallowtail landed right in front of me.  In fact, I had to back up in order to get these shots.  In the background were cypress trees and bare sky, and these three shots were taken with me standing in slightly different places.  I think you can see the difference it makes where you stand.  The first image below was the shot I took right when the butterfly landed.  I wanted to get the shot before I re-positioned myself, but I don't really care for this shot at all.  The sky in the background is making me alter my exposure, and I still have bright spots that compete with the subject for attention.  So I started moving around to see if I could find an angle on the butterfly that would be only distant trees.  The second image below was the result I was able to achieve if I moved to the left--a little better, but ...

Econ River Wilderness Area Trails The Econ River Wilderness Area is another of my favorite places ot visit in Seminole County.  It's only about 10 minutes from my home, so I can visit there on a whim, which is nice.  The wilderness area covers about  240 acres that extends from Old Lockwood Rd to the Econ River just north of UCF.  There are approximately 3 miles of trails that will take you from pine flatwoods and and sandhill habitats into hard wood and river swamp environments closer to the river. The trails are pretty poorly marked, but if you know your east from the west, it's not much of a problem.  The area is very long from east to west and narrow from north to south, so as long as you know you're heading east, you're going to make it to the river, and as long as you're heading west, you're going to make it to the parking lot. There's one little pond on the property that is visible from Old Lockwood Rd.  There's a trail that will take you ...

Northern Parula This morning I went to Central Winds Park on my way to work for about an hour.  I had a pretty good time.  I went the trees between the playground and the lake, and I found three Northern Parula on and near the ground.  As I watched them, it became clear that one was young and had just left the nest, and the parents were feeding it.  It could fly but apparently still dependent on its parents for food.  I also found about 5 American Redstarts including 2 females.  And, I finally found a Blackpoll Warbler--my first of the year and my first photos ever.  It seems a rule with me that my first photos of any species are terrible (back-lit, grainy, etc).  This morning, my Blackpoll photos were a notch above terrible, so I figured I'd risk sharing a couple. Northern Parula with a treat for the kiddo Blackpoll Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly (Black Morph) ? Trumpet Vine...