While the blog started as a record of my backyard garden and birds, it quickly grew as I discovered bird photography. This page contains images taken “beyond the backyard” during my travels around Central Florida (and beyond!)
May 14, 2012 - Ever since my terrific morning photographing the Least Terns at Fort Matanzas last spring, I’ve been counting the days until their return. I couldn’t wait to have more opportunities to photograph these little birds. They return to Florida in the last few weeks of April and begin their courtship behaviors immediately. Their nests are tiny […]
May 12, 2012 - (Rich picked the title. I hope you agree with him.) This is a Fractalized image of two Tricolored Heron babies taken last weekend at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. The nest was at waist-level and so close to the boardwalk that I had to add an extension tube to the Beast to be able to […]
May 11, 2012 - I wanted to go to Fort De Soto this morning, to try for a Black-Bellied Plover in full breeding plumage. But it was a long week, and I opted to relax instead. So here’s an image from several weeks ago…
May 9, 2012 - I had fun photographing the sunrise on the morning that I went to Fort De Soto to look for migrants. When I arrived at the East Beach turnaround, the sun was just beginning to peek out from over the horizon. I spotted a Great Blue Heron near me, so I tried to position him for […]
May 8, 2012 - Rich and I stopped at Lowry Park Zoo on our way home from Fort De Soto a few weeks ago. It was mid-day, so the light was horrible and the animals were asleep. I didn’t take many pictures. There aren’t as many wading birds nesting over the alligator exhibit this year, and I didn’t see […]
May 6, 2012 - While checking on the swan nests at Lake Morton recently, I’ve gotten to see some other fun babies too. In early April, I came across a flock of recently-hatched Mallard chicks, probably between 12 and 18 of them. In later visits, the babies were bigger, although in fewer numbers. They are certainly well-fed at that […]
May 5, 2012 - On the morning of the big Fort De Soto fallout, the forecast was for clouds and rain. I went over to Mead Gardens, figuring I’d get an hour of birding in if I was lucky. Mead is a local migrant hotspot, so I figured I might see some birds brought in by the winds of […]
May 4, 2012 - I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to photograph Laughing Gull courtship behaviors over the past two weekends at Fort De Soto. My mom asked me, “what’s with your recent interesting in photographing…that?” Well, it’s fun! Birds can be such clowns when it comes to flirting. And what photographer can resist a good action shot? The courtship begins […]
May 3, 2012 - A friend let me know that the Winter Park Osprey chicks had hatched, so I went over there on Tuesday night to see the babies. Almost as soon as I got there, Mama bent her head over into the nest, seemed to listen for a second, and then stepped aside…and then splat! went a waste […]
May 2, 2012 - As I teased on last Friday, I stopped by Lake Morton on my way home from Fort De Soto and found a newborn cygnet. I went back on Sunday morning to observe the nest and spend some time with the baby. This little guy has a band of followers (hi Kim! hi Pam!) who spent […]
May 1, 2012 - On Saturday afternoon I dragged Rich over to Winter Park for a romantic dinner and a nest-watching expedition. (It’s the birdie version of dinner and a movie!) The nest is on top of a platform close to Park Avenue, right across the street from a convenient parking garage. You drive to the top of the […]
April 30, 2012 - As frequent readers of my blog know, we adopted a black and white kitten last year. He’s been helping me review my recent images from Lake Morton, and he’s a little confused. You see, here’s the picture I took of a Black Swan cygnet in early April: …and here’s the picture I took of a […]
April 29, 2012 - After last weekend’s fallout of migratory birds at Fort De Soto, I so wanted to take a vacation day on Monday to go birding there. But I was good and responsible…and I went over on my next off-Friday. Wow! It was my first migration experience and it was just incredible. I had a total of […]
April 27, 2012 - I had the most incredible day today! I went to Fort De Soto to check out the migrants, and I finally got my first Scarlet Tanager male, along with a ton of orioles, grosbeaks, buntings, and a few warblers. Birders kept telling me that today was a “slow” day in comparison to last weekend’s fallout…but […]
April 25, 2012 - While we were at Fort De Soto last weekend, I told Rich that we needed to stop at the Gulf Pier to look for dolphins, and maybe sea turtles. Rich went along, but didn’t expect to see much. When we arrived, we were seeing dolphins every five seconds! They are hard to photograph, though, because […]
April 24, 2012 - Rich and I returned to North Beach at Fort De Soto on Friday morning. It was great – he dropped me off, went to get breakfast, and brought me breakfast on the beach! What a great hubby. In the meantime, I had found a couple of Laughing Gulls demonstrating courtship behaviors at the tidal pool […]
April 23, 2012 - Rich and I took a much-needed day off from work last Friday and escaped to Fort De Soto for a weekend photography adventure. We were glad we went Thursday night, which allowed us to get in one day of photography before the rains came. And of course, we missed the terrific migrant activity that the […]
April 22, 2012 - Last weekend I spent a morning at the Viera Wetlands. It was a cloudy morning, with sunshine in spurts, and I was just happy to be outside. The Great Blue Herons chicks are growing up quickly, as I wrote about last week. There were also many other signs of springtime around the wetlands. Sometimes the […]
April 16, 2012 - I visited Viera Wetlands yesterday morning in hopes of photographing the Anhinga babies from the nest that I observed back in March. I caught the adults building the nest and copulating, and I was excited to pair those photos with a few baby portraits. The nest was awesome, too – close to the berm, and […]
April 14, 2012 - Last week Rich and I were in Lakeland to judge the Florida State Science and Engineering Fair. We had a great time talking to the students about their projects. Afterward, I twisted Rich’s arm into taking a nice walk around nearby Lake Morton. I wanted to see if the Mute Swans were nesting yet – […]
April 8, 2012 - I hope this picture of a Mallard duckling doing the splits will bring a smile to everyone on Easter. More from Lake Morton in the next post!
April 7, 2012 - Last Saturday on the way back from Blue Cypress Lake, we stopped at Joe Overstreet Road on the way back to Orlando. It was mid-day, so I wasn’t sure there would be much bird activity, and the light wasn’t great. But Joe Overstreet can be a good place to see Crested Caracara, Bald Eagles, and […]
April 3, 2012 - Saturday morning was an incredible morning to be at Blue Cypress Lake. Some friends and I made the trip down the turnpike to the lake, which is near Yeehaw Junction. The lake is full of bass, which makes it a popular hangout spot for the Osprey population. Hundreds of Osprey nests can be found in […]
April 2, 2012 - On Saturday I joined friends Michael, Donna, and Susan on a much-anticipated trip to Blue Cypress Lake. The lake is a prime location for nesting Ospreys. I will post more on the trip and birds tomorrow – but for today, here are some teaser sunrise shots. :) The clouds added some interesting features to the […]
April 1, 2012 - …and now you don’t! I guess April Fool’s is a good day for a photographer to confess to some Photoshopping. :) I was photographing the Sandhill Crane colts at the Circle B Bar Reserve last weekend. I set my camera to the fastest frame speed, which I don’t often do, because I don’t need to […]
March 30, 2012 - I had such a good morning at Fort De Soto a few weekends ago, and it’s taken me that long to finish going through my images! I had four lifers that day: Common Loon, Red Knot, Lark Sparrow, and my first non-captive Great Horned Owls, with baby! Combine that opportunity with the awesome light at […]
March 29, 2012 - The weather forecasters had it all wrong last weekend. They said it would be partially cloudy on Saturday, rainy on Sunday. Try it the other way around, guys. So I went to Circle B on Saturday hoping for partial cloudcover, and I got thick fog until around 10:00. But that was ok, because at 10:00, […]
March 23, 2012 - Last weekend I stopped by a local park to photograph the Sandhill Crane colts that were born at the park a few weeks ago. Some friends had mentioned that there were great photo opportunities with this family, who are so friendly that the colts practically walk right up to you. My friends weren’t kidding! I […]
March 17, 2012 - Yesterday I took advantage of my off-Friday morning to visit the Circle B Bar Reserve, where a pair of Sandhill Cranes has been incubating a nest for the last four weeks or so. I knew the colts were due to be born any time, and I hoped to photograph them interacting on their nest with […]
March 16, 2012 - Can you imagine going through life with a bill as long as your foot? I watch the Long-Billed Curlew at Fort De Soto preening, and he amazes me. That long bill is great for digging up crabs from deep in the sand, but it’s pretty awkward to use to scratch an itch! I was rewarded […]
March 15, 2012 - The White Ibises at Fort De Soto last weekend were sporting some very brilliant breeding colors. A group of them fed for me in the little pool near the concession stand on the North Beach. When bright white birds with great red beaks stand there patiently pulling crab after crab out of the water, it […]
March 12, 2012 - I saw my first-ever loon yesterday at Fort De Soto. I’m pretty sure he’s a Common Loon. He was swimming not too far from shore along the North Beach. I had been thinking how neat it would be to see a loon, then I looked up, and there one was! Not many mornings give you […]
March 11, 2012 - Two years ago, Dyeyo found a Great Horned Owl nest at the Circle B Bar Reserve. He showed me his pictures, and I went with him the next weekend to see the babies, but they had already fledged. Ever since then, I’ve been itching to have “my turn” with Great Horned owlets. Today my turn […]
March 9, 2012 - Last weekend at Viera Wetlands I had a good time watching some Great Blue Heron nests. This first nest had two small chicks, and the parents were being careful to keep the nest built up well around their young offspring. One particularly long stick was rather problematic. It was so long, longer than the nest […]
March 8, 2012 - Last Saturday at the Circle B Bar Reserve, I heard a familiar drumming sound as I passed a dead tree. In previous years, Red-Bellied Woodpeckers have made their nests inside this particular tree, and I’ve enjoyed watching the cavity hole as food is brought in for the babies. So I stopped to watch the old […]
March 5, 2012 - We’ll conclude the “Lord of the Rings”-inspired post titles with the “Return of the Spring”…and of the Beast to Viera Wetlands! The weather for Saturday morning was iffy at best, with fog and wind in the forecast. I decided to head to Viera, figuring that the nesting Great Blue Herons and Anhingas would have to […]
March 4, 2012 - To continue the “Lord of the Rings” titles, this post is about “The Two Turtles” (and some birds, hehe). Rich was a very happy camper when I got home from the Circle B Bar Reserve with several pictures of turtles. He said I had to post at least one – after all, this site is […]
March 3, 2012 - As promised, here are more pictures from my morning at Circle B yesterday. Although I failed to find the Great Horned Owlettes, I did find several other nests. I love springtime at Circle B! The light was horrible (or rather, non-existent!) when I first arrived. I noticed the Osprey on Heron Hideout gathering nesting material. […]
March 2, 2012 - I braved the foggy weather this morning to go to Circle B for the first time in two months. It felt so good to get out there again! Most of the ducks have left, but the resident birds are starting to nest. I love this time of year. The weather wasn’t great for photography—the fog […]
January 29, 2012 - The most frustrating part about photographing ducks is that they give you far too many “butt-shot” opportunities. Of course, if I was a duck and I had to dive for food, I guess I’d spend a lot of time with my head underwater as well! I spent some time watching this Blue-Winged Teal diving, and […]
January 24, 2012 - On my last day of Christmas break, Dyeyo and I went to Viera Wetlands. The highlight of the morning were a couple of nesting pairs of Great Blue Herons. They brought sticks in to their nests, gave us courtship shots, and then initiated the egg-making process. I was using my new 1D and having fun […]
January 9, 2012 - Here’s an appropriate post for my first day back to work – “on the run!” This was an American Coot from the Circle B Bar Reserve from last Wednesday. I love to try to catch them as they run across the water. I got several good frames from this one, so I stitched them together […]
January 7, 2012 - Wednesday was a frigid morning at the Circle B Bar Reserve. The forecast had predicted a low of 29 at 7am, but my car’s thermometer was more optimistic, measuring 34. There was very little wind, and I was quite comfortable all bundled up in my old college coat. I made my way out to the […]
January 4, 2012 - On December 31 I made yet another trip to Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, this time with Dyeyo. He had never been on Blackpoint Wildlife Drive. We carefully planned to go on a day when it would be sunny with little wind. Then we got there and it was a little windy, and there were […]
January 3, 2012 - After a quiet morning at the Circle B Bar Reserve on Friday, Dyeyo and I decided to head to Lake Morton. Herman has been telling me about it for ages, and he always knows the good birding places! There were lots of Ring-necked and Ruddy Ducks sleeping on the lake. It was my first opportunity […]
January 2, 2012 - Last Friday, my dad and I headed to the Circle B Bar Reserve for the first time in several weeks. We decided to hike the Alligator Alley trail, where I had seen several Painted Buntings on my previous visit. But we were rather disappointed. We saw the usual herons and egrets, and a couple of […]
December 30, 2011 - After spending a cloudy morning cooped up in the house yesterday, the sun came out and I decided to head to Merritt Island to experiment with afternoon light at the Blackpoint Wildlife Drive. It was less windy than the previous day, and the birds were closer to the trail. The afternoon light was incredible! I […]
December 29, 2011 - Finally! I got to use The Beast for the first time in almost a month! After hearing friends talk about the great birds at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, I went there yesterday. Blackpoint Wildlife Drive was busier than I’ve ever seen it (both with birds and photographers :)). The birding wasn’t spectacular, due to […]
December 26, 2011 - With regret, I will be cancelling the remainder of the Circle B Photo Walks for the season. My work has been consuming every waking moment, and I find that I can no longer dedicate the time to our photo walks. I hope to resume them next year. If you were considering attending one, you might […]
December 14, 2011 - My dad and I held the December photo walk at Circle B Bar Reserve this weekend. We were joined by Dick and Emi, a wonderfully enthusiastic couple, as well as my husband and in-laws who were visiting from Texas. We walked the Heron Hideout trail, Marsh Rabbit Run trail up to the Wading Bird Way […]