Purple Pansies

Pansies

I try to visit my family in Connecticut a couple times a year. When I do go, I usually stay at my son and daughter-in-law's house in S. Windsor.

Their home is just beautiful and their yard is amazing. There are small garden's all over the yard in different places. These pansies are growing in pots on the back porch just outside the breezeway. They have all the colors and color combinations.

Purple is one of my favorite colors, so I chose to show you all these this time. Aren't they just gorgeous?

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)

The other day, while I was photographing the Osprey nest, I think this guy got a bit jealous or maybe he was just curious. He came right over to me and hung around very close as if to say, "photograph me; I want to be famous, too". It was a great opportunity to oblige him, don't you think?

Great Blue Herons can be found all over the United States; anywhere water is; they are not fussy, they like both salt and fresh water. They are tall, stately birds that move slowly and deliberately when stalking their prey. When they decide the time is right, they strike with lightning speed. They are similar to cats on a hunt. The Great Blue Heron's diet consist mainly of fish, but they'll eat anything, snakes, lizards, rodents, other birds and small mammals.

Great Blue Herons hunt alone and it is rare to see more than one of them in the same place. However, they nest in colonies. There may be as many as 100 nests in one tree. They are monogamous during a season, but find new mates every year. 

These birds are very long (38-55 inches) with a wing span of 66-79 inches. Despite their size, they only weigh about 5 or 6 pounds, due to hollow bones that enable them to fly.

Ospreys Nesting

Ospreys Nesting

I posted a photo of this family on April 26, if you want to see how much they've grown. I believe the one on the left is one of the chicks and the parents are in the middle and on the right. They only thing that leads me to believe that this is the chick is the one on the left has yellow eyes, while the other two have orange eyes. In the other post, there were 2 chicks and they were both still fuzzy at the time. Now this chick is nearly the same size as his/her parents. I have no idea where the other one is, maybe it's fledged???

Ospreys (Pandion halliaetus) are raptors in the Hawk and Eagle family. They are rather large birds with a wing span of 5ft, 6in and they are 23 inches in length from tail to head. The dark line through their eye is a  good identifying factor. They hover just before they dive for a fish and can be seen flying with the fish head first in their talons, once they catch their fish.

They are resident year long in Florida and can be found near any body of water where they can fish for food. Their diet consists almost exclusively of fish.

The Salvatore Dali Museum

The Salvatore Dali Museum, St Petersburg, FL

The Salvador Dalí Museum is an art museum in St. Petersburg, Florida dedicated to the work of Salvador Dalí. It houses the largest collection of Dalí's works outside Europe.

It is located on the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront by 5th Avenue Southeast, Bay Shore Drive, and Dan Wheldon Way. On April 18, 2012, the AIA's Florida Chapter placed the building on its list of Florida Architecture: 100 Years. 100 Places.

Double-crested Cormorant

Double-crested Cormorant

Double-crested Cormorants (Phalacrocorax auitus) grow to about 33 inches. Immature Cormorants, unlike the all black adults are brownish, with whitish plumage from the throat to the breast. 

Cormorants swim with their bills angled upward. Flocks often fly in a V formation. They can often be seen resting with their wings open drying. They nest in colonies in Cypress trees and Mangroves.

They live on the coasts and near large bodies of inland water. Florida has a resident breeding population and there are numerous migrants from northern U.S. from November through April.

This image was taken at Crescent Lake Park in St Petersburg, FL.

St Pete Skyline

St Petersburg, FL Skyline

I just happened to glance out my window and saw this the day before yesterday. These amazing clouds were due to a cold front coming in. The light on the buildings in the distance is what I noticed first, then the clouds. I just had to shoot this--it was calling.

There is no HDR or blending in this image. As a matter of fact, other than straightening, and noise removal, I didn't do a thing to this. This is how it came out of the camera.

The Dali

The Dali Museum

The building was designed by architect, Yann Weymouth. The free-form geometrical glass bubble is made up of 1062 pieces of glass and is 75ft tall at its highest point. This image shows only a small part of it. The bubble is named, enigma.The galleries house a collection of works by Salvidor Dali, dating from 1904 until 1989.

You can see another shot of the enigma in a previous post. I will be posting more photos of this innovative building as time goes by.

This building was shot in the late afternoon, using my Canon 6D, with my Tamron 28-300mm lens. Settings used were f3.5 at 1/2500th in Aperture Priority mode and +1/3 eV, ISO 320, at 35mm. I used the pattern metering mode to ensure a good exposure since I was shooting from dark shadows into the light.

free-form geodesic glass bubble known as the “enigma”. The “enigma”, which is made up of 1,062 triangular pieces of glass, stands 75 feet at its tallest point, - See more at: http://thedali.org/about-the-museum/the-building/#sthash.Dw8vutEw.dpuf

Yann Weymouth of HOK

Yann Weymouth of HOK

Granite Stone Gazebo

Granite Stone Gazebo

This gazebo was shown at a distance in a previous post. At that time, I promised a better look at this Gazebo.

This stone gazebo is a popular landmark in Rockport, MA. Unfortunately it is inaccessible to the public, but it is easy to get fairly closed to it. It is part of a private residence which overlooks the harbor and the Bearskin Neck shopping district in downtown Rockport. It sits out into Sandy Bay and the Breakwater, which I've also posted previously.

The gazebo is also a point of reference for artists and photographers (myself included).

Sunset in Bolton

Sunset Over a Sheep Farm

This shot was taken in Bolton, CT. Until I looked at it at 100% to check for noise or over-sharpening, I thought this was a pig farm; so, that's what I named the file. Once I saw it at 100%, I realized there were no pigs on that farm; they were sheep. I think I need to change the name of this shot or my eye glasses.

This beautiful sunset was a wonderful way to end our ride.

Sandy Bay, Rockport, MA

Rockport, MA Sandy Bay

Another image from my trip to Rockport; this one is looking across Sandy Bay. The Granite Stone Gazebo on the jetty is used for weddings and event photos. You can see some of the houses and lodgings in the background. I have a larger photo of the gazebo that I will post at a later time.

Salvia

Row of Salvia

While driving around in South Windsor, my son and I spotted this row of Salvia on the side of a farm house. I love the color and that splash of pink in the tree in the background.

Farming in Broad Brook, CT

Farming in Broad Brook, CT

After posting last night's shot of this tractor, my son let me know that this was not actually Bolton, CT. Since he was the one driving, and I was doing the shooting, I hadn't been paying attention to where we actually were. We were in Broad Brook, CT on East St. My apologies for any confusion and for my error.

As you can see by the dust this farmer is kicking up, he was going at a pretty good clip. I'm not sure what he's doing, but maybe one of my readers can tell me.

Another View From the Porch

Another View From the Porch

Earlier, I posted a vertical view from my son and daughter-in-law's home from their upstairs porch. That view showed the top of their shed. For a different perspective, I zoomed out and got this image.

Click on the image to see it larger.

This shot was taken from in the car through the window, while the car was on the highway going through South Boston. I was amazed that it came out as well as it did.

Does anyone know the name of this church? I tried for hours looking it up on Google, but couldn't find a match. Any help will be appreciated.

Dahlia Bud

Back side of Dahlia Bud

This photo was shot two days before it came in as a full bloom. I like the colors of the backside and the freshness and firmness of the bud. There are about 20 different types or species of Dahlia. This particular species when in full bloom are deep pink in color, like the outer petals around the edges, and round like a pom-pom. They are stunning flowers.

This image was captured at my son and daughter-in-law's home in South Windsor, CT.

Let me know in the comments what you think of it.

Hint of Fall Color in New England

Bolton, CT

While I was on vacation in Connecticut, I realized I planned the date about 10 days too early to see the amazing foliage in New England. The weather was very good; only 1 rainy day in the 10 days I was there.

My son, Joey, and I took a day trip to Bolton. We were born and raised in CT, but we came upon this little pond in a park we'd never heard of. What a surprise! The leaves were just beginning to turn and it made for just a hint of color. There was a lot of vegetation on the pond, so we had to look for a fairly clear area when we spotted this tiny island in the pond. There were just a few reds and yellows to add a bit of color to this photo.

Let me know how you like this photo in the comments below.

Brown-eyed Susan

Brown-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)

It's been a long time since I posted on my blog. I've been away from the blog and photography in general. Taking care of my elderly Aunt and working part-time took up most of my time. I had given up my photography clubs and generally wasn't taking any pictures. I don't feel safe walking around alone in the city or the woods, so I just didn't go out. I've joined a couple of groups and plan to try to get out at least a few times a month. Come back here and look for my posts. I do apologize to all my followers for being away for so long.

I bought a new camera, a Canon 6D and a new lens (Tamron 28-300mm EF VC) and went on vacation to my son and daughter-in-law's home in CT. Not being used to the camera or the lens, it was a little difficult finding settings and getting used to the weight. 

We had planned a day trip to Rockport, Massachusetts and I knew I had to get used to the camera fast. So, I walked around my son's yard and found a few flowers still in bloom in Donna's gardens. The one pictured is a Brown-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta). 

Brown-eyed Susans are known by several different names, Black-eyed Susan, Brown Betty, Gloriosa Daisy, Golden Jerusalem and Yellow Daisy. It depends what part of the country you are from. These flowers are in the Asteraceae family. They bloom in late summer and most of them had already passed. I was lucky to find this one in decent shape. Another day or two and I'd have missed it.

The foliage still hadn't begun, which was a bit disappointing, but the trip to Rockport made up for me missing the Fall leaves.

Southern Magnolia

Southern Magnolia

Southern Magnolias (Magnolia grandiflora) are not only beautiful flowers that smell magnificent, but they are also very interesting. Their stamen are like little flowers in themselves. Unfortunately, Magnolias only bloom for one day, leaving brown, dry petals, which are not quite as pretty as the petals were the day before.

However, the stamen stay to become beautiful soft, red cones which last a very long time. I've never picked up one to see if they are fragrant which makes me wonder why I've never thought to do that before.

Black Skimmer Landing

In keeping with the bird theme that seems to be very popular this week on our blogs due to a couple meetups that included bird shooting, here's just one more.

Just before sunset every night, the Black Skimmers, Laughing Gulls and Terns gather on the beaches to roost. This one, a Black Skimmer is just coming in. It's a pretty amazing sight to see them all lined up--usually facing the same direction roosting on the beaches.

As a bonus, I'm attaching a second image showing more of the flock. There are probably 100 or more birds on this beach just like this.

I've seen them flying at night picking up food on my canal in my back yard. It's amazing to watch how they get their food. If you look closely, you'll notice that their lower beak is quite a bit longer than the upper beak. That's so they can fly (really fast) with their lower beak in the water scooping up food to eat. They have very long wings for their body size. I'll see if I can find a photo where I've caught them swimming for a post later on.

Settings used for these photos are as follows. The shooting mode is in continuous in case one of them or many of them take off, ISO is 200 because although it is nearing sunset, it's still quite bright. The exposure is 1/250 at 7.1, in aperture priority at 250mm with my 55-250mm lens. I used partial metering off the beach so as to not blow out the whites. The shadows were lightened slightly using Lightroom.

Tricolored Heron

This Tricolored Heron was sitting at the edge of this pond the same morning I was out with my friends looking for Deer. Although my trip was primarily to hunt and capture Deer photos, I'm not one to pass up a bird shot.

This fellow was very accommodating. He was so busy gazing out over the water, I don't think he noticed me, because I was able to fire off several shots from several angles before I made him nervous enough to fly to the other side of the water.

The trick to bird photography is pretty much the same as for all wild life. Don't run up on them, instead move slowly toward them. Take a few shots from far away so he sees what you're doing isn't hurting them. Crouch down, as low as possible, so you appear less threatening. As you move closer, go even slower. Try not to appear to be stalking them as a hunter or a predator would. If the bird looks at you, look away and pretend you're not watching them. They'll think you're probably stalking something else. Practice your panning technique before your big hunting day, so you'll capture him in flight should he fly off. Be patient and you'll get the shots you want.

Settings used for this image were: Aperture Priority mode with partial metering on the Heron at 400 ISO for speed in case he flew off, and continuous shooting mode. Shutter set at 1/40th at F7.1, the sweet spot on my lens and 0 exposure compensation at 250mm with my 55-250mm IS lens.