Sunday, March 22, 2009

March 21, 2009

Today (Saturday) I spent the entire day (by myself, no kids) at Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge. Besides the fact that a wildlife refuge is named after me ... I wanted to go to see some of the beautiful birds that live there. I was not disappointed. It was fabulous! Oh, and besides the many different kinds of wading birds, waterfowl and birds of prey, I saw lots of gators! Cool.

I took hundreds of pictures. The lighting was not the best and in many of my favorite shots I am shooting directly into the sun, which causes a harsh quality to the photos. I will just have to make the trip again, and soon.

So I will take a break from Ella and her kitty, Ella and her dog, Ella and her blanket, to bring you various birds and gators.

One of the main birds I was hoping to see was the Sandhill Crane. I should backup and say that one of the motivations behind this trip to Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Preserve, was the absolutely beautiful photographs taken by Scott Helfrich. He posts his pictures on Flickr, and if you want to see some outstanding nature photos, go look at his. He has even published a book about the Sandhill Cranes. Add to that my photography teacher is an expert in nature photography, and add to that how excited I was to get picture of the Blue Heron (you can see them here, here, and here), I decided to try to get some photos of the Sandhill Crane.

The cranes were behind some tall brush and it was difficult to see them. At first I could not even see the chicks, then I saw them through my lens. Eventually they made their way out of the tall reeds and grass back to the edge of the water and I was able to get a couple of shots. They are not the best quality photos, but I was pleased to have been able to see them. I think the chicks are about three weeks old.

2 comments:

Lara said...

These photos are just stunning!

Melissa said...

Great pics girl! Love the baby crane.... I wish I could've gone with you (although I probably would've jumped on your back when I saw an alligators!

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