I made a late afternoon trip up to Delaware as I have so many times this spring. The wood duck had managed to sneak past me into a back water area; I caught just a glimpse of him and his girlfriend. I heard them calling and pretty soon he emerged and this time swam very near to me, less than 15'. As he passed I shot literally 100 or so pictures and processed the best of the lot. I read and look at many things on the net about photography and there is this consensus that pictures of wildlife have to be unobstructed close up views, I have had critics tell me to clone out sticks and things with processing software. I came to the conclusion that having these trees, sticks and brush in these some of these pictures is not a problem; it shows the birds in their natural habitat and it proves these shots were taken where the birds live. I have come to understand the pleasure in spending time with relaxed wildlife in their natural surrounding. I was standing in knee deep water last night leaning on a tree until well after sunset watching a group of 5 hen mergansers rest and loaf only 15 feet from my tree.
The forth shot here is an immature male hooded merganser. I first thought it was a scraggly female and then it occurred to me that the female should have red eyes and a yellow/blackish bill. This guy has yellow eyes and a solid black bill. I have to wonder how many times I have made this mistake identifying these birds.
The last shot is an osprey that made a couple of passes and then perched in a tree on the other side of the pond at least 150 yards away.
Awesome! Great reflection on the water. The sticks or branches DO give an added touch. The Osprey at that distance is excellent.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ray. FYI last summer there was an active osprey nest on a nest platform in Deer Creek near Pancoastburg. That's close to you so check it out!
Delete