Still no zoo photos–just out of steam this week! But here are some pictures I took over the Memorial Day weekend that I’ve been wanting to post. I got up early one of the days the weather was nice, and was shooting pictures by 6:30am. Seems a little insane to get up so early on my vacation, but nothing compares to morning light for creating pictures where you can feel the warmth when you look at them.
This is one of the first shots from that shoot:
See how the light makes the grass glow? And the angle of the sun leads to good shadows, which makes the composition interesting. If I had shot this later in the morning, it would have looked entirely different. Shot mid-day when the sun is high in the sky, and this shot would have been washed out and dull.
I walked into the grass a little way to get a picture of these flowers. I’m not sure what species this is. Possibly something called Winter Cress, but I’m not entirely convinced. Plants were never my strong suit!
A little further down the road, I came across a pair of Red Winged Blackbirds. The female flushed up off of her nest and sat on a cattail looking at me. The male started fluttering around, trying to draw my attention and move me along:
When I turned around from shooting the bird, I found myself facing this very large spider web. I’d say it was at least a foot wide, and a foot and a half tall. Another bonus of being out early in the morning. The angle of the sun made the web glow. Later in the morning, and I wouldn’t have seen it at all:
I made another attempt to catch swallows on the wing. I know of an area where there are many nest boxes clustered near each other, and when you walk by, the birds tend to fly around you in a group. Not the best image quality, but a cool picture, nonetheless:
A very peaceful morning to be out. Honestly, I enjoy the walking around as much as I enjoy taking the pictures. It’s like being on a treasure hunt when I’ve got my camera with me–you never know what you will find to take home with you. That encourages me to walk a little farther, and a little farther. Something amazing could be around the next bend. It’s good exercise!
