outdoor photography

Water Hyacinth The other day I was walking down a trial by Lake Jesup and found some beautiful Water Hyacinth blooms.  They really are pretty flowers, even though some consider it an aquatic weed. They are extremely fast growing, and they can sometimes cover the entire surface of a lake, choking out sunlight, reducing water flow, and lowering the oxygen content of the lake water.  Water Hyacinth was first introduced into North America in 1884, and in Florida it became a significant problem, but it has since been controlled.  So even though the flowers invasive, I do enjoy seeing them in small quanities. Water Hyacinth

Savannah Sparrow at Marl Bed Flats When I first moved to Central Florida, the first places I visited for nature and bird photography were in Brevard and Orange Counties.  I didn't know of any good places to visit in Seminole County where I live.  Every new place I found was in another county. But last year I began discovering my home.  It turns out that, while Seminole Co may not have quite the same variety of birds that its surrounding counties my have, if you know where to go, you can actually do pretty well here.  And there are some places in the county that are quite beautiful for nature photography and  landscapes.  So I thought it would be good to collect my favorite birding and photography locations within Seminole County and share them. Econ River Area My favorite places in eastern Seminole Count are located near the Econ River.  I began discovering places around here in June of last year.  It was so fun to begin finding pine fores...

Marl Bed Flats HDR Canon Powershot S100 The other day I walked down the trails of Lake Jesup Park (Sanford Ave).  At one point the trail takes you along a row of palm trees which you can follow parallel to the lake.  But occasionally the land dips down and becomes extremely wet with several inches of standing water.  On this particular day, that was the end of the road for me. This little spot is a great place for Marsh Wrens, but they wanted to be heard not seen on this day.  I thought the sky was pretty, though, so I pulled out my point and shoot camera and took a few shots.  The above shot is an HDR image and the lower shot is is a single image from the middle exposure of the above image. Marl Bed Flats Canon Powershot S100

Pied-billed Grebe This morning I went to Lake Jesup Park on Sanford Ave early before work. I got there just after sunrise, hoping to find an owl or other early riser.  I didn't, but I did find an American Bittern, King Rail and all four wrens we have this time of year (Sedge, Marsh, House, Carolina).  There were no photographic moments, though, until I got into the car to leave.  I drove by the boat ramp, and I saw a Pied-billed Grebe dive and come up with a crab in its mouth. Pied-billed Grebe He was holding the crab in his bill by one of its legs, and he shook the crab until the leg came off. Pied-billed Grebe This left him with just a crab leg in his mouth. Pied-billed Grebe Then he fished out the rest of the crab. This time he had the crab by the claw. Pied-billed Grebe Usually when I photograph birds shaking their heads, the head turns out all blurry, but this time, I must have captured him right has he was beginning, and the head is ...

Marsh Wren I had a soggy but fun hour at Lake Jesup Park (on Sanford Ave) this morning. I walked the wet, grassy path to the row of palm trees, and then walked along those trees for a few minutes before turning back. It was fun to see/hear an American Bittern, Sedge Wren and two Swamp Sparrows (all too far away or hidden for photos), but a Marsh Wren came very close to me, and I was able to get some of my best photos of this species.  The first two photos here are actually two different crops of the same image. I couldn't decide which I liked better, so I decided to show them both. Marsh Wren This third image illustrates the benefit watching the background while photographing.  In the shot below, the bird is at a slightly different position, and the background is a little more cluttered than I would like. He's also facing the "wrong" way, so that the branch is nearly "touching" the wren's bill in the photo.  In the images above, the wren is in ...

Great Horned Owl This morning I went to a local park on my way to work.  The park has some beautiful Live Oak trees, and I decided to walk around there to see what I could find.  Almost as soon as I entered the wooded area (about 8am), I saw a Great Horned Owl fly away from me, and then another followed shortly after.  The first one landed not too far away from me, and its gaze was often just as fixed on me as mine was on it.  It let me photograph it for several minutes before I decided it was time to go to work--a very cooperative model, if I do say so myself. Great Horned Owl Great Horned Owl Great Horned Owl

Limpkin My intention this morning was to go to Marl Bed Flats, but it appears to be closed for construction, so I drove over to Lake Jesup Park on my way into work.  I didn't have much time to walk around, but by the boat ramp there was a Limpkin. Limpkin Limpkin It was also fun to see several Black Vultures and a couple Cattle Egrets. Black Vulture Cattle Egret