Blue Spectacular
Stalkers
This was a study in childlike curiosity. I was on an engagement photo shoot at Pamperin Park in Green Bay when we noticed a small commotion nearby.
A large egret had swooped in and perched on the railing of the small suspension bridge spanning Duck Creek. Nearby children saw the great white bird and got low to the ground, crawling toward the bird for a closer look. It was fun watching them plot among themselves and slowly inching their way toward their prey. They didn’t get much closer than this before the bird flew off.
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House Sitting House Wren
I happened to catch this house wren sitting in the doorway of its home, but it wasn’t there long. I was constantly swooping in and out to bring insects to the babies inside.
In an earlier post, I showed this same wren with a beak full of spider to feed the babes. See it HERE.
This bird was photographed on a recent trip to northwest Missouri. We’ve not been able to attract an wrens to nest in a similar house we have in our yard in northeast Wisconsin.
To view a larger image of this bird, click on the photo.
Burst of Paradise
Hiding In the Brush
A bit nervous about our presence, this Addra gazelle seemed to think it had found a place to hide in the brush.
The Addra gazelle, also known as the Dama gazelle, is the largest and tallest of all gazelles. This one was photographed at the Topeka Zoo.
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Remnants of Icarus
Icarus is the character from Greek mythology who tried to escape Crete on wings crafted by his father. Foolish boy didn’t heed his father’s warning not to fly too close to the sun. Wax, that held his wings together, melted and sent Icarus crashing into the sea where he drowned. I imagined this was part of the wreckage, washed ashore.
This scene was taken on the beach at Kewaunee, WI. (Not close to Crete…but, of course, it would have taken awhile to reach our shores.)
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Technicolor Throne
This skipper moth was overlooking the splendor of his kingdom from the comfort of his technicolor throne, a purple cone flower.
This is a photo taken on our recent vacation. This image came from a flowerbed just outside the gift shop of the Topeka Zoo. While the rest of our party went to look through the shop, I stayed outside to snap more photos.
To view a larger version of the king on his throne, click on the image.
American Celebration
An appropriate Fourth of July fireworks burst of red, white and blue – taken at Manitowoc, Wisconsin’s celebration.
The ship (on the left) is the World War II fleet submarine, USS Cobia (SS-245) – permanently moored on the Manitowoc River, adjacent to the Wisconsin Maritime Museum. The USS Cobia has a notable wartime history. You can learn more about it here: COBIA
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Aging Patriot
Freshwater Gar
A little synchronized swimming demonstration by two Freshwater Gar (or Garpike) in a marine display at Cabella’s in Kansas City. OK, they weren’t actually performing, I just happened to catch two gliding by, side by side.
According to Wikipedia: Gar bodies are elongated, heavily armored with ganoid scales, and fronted by similarly elongated jaws filled with long, sharp teeth. Their tails are heterocercal, and the dorsal fins are close to the tail. As their vascularised swim bladders can function as lungs, most gars surface periodically to take a gulp of air, doing so more frequently in stagnant or warm water when the concentration of oxygen in the water is low. They also appear to surface in fast-moving rapids. As a result, they are extremely hardy and able to tolerate conditions that would kill most other fish.
This was a difficult image to capture. The scene wasn’t as bright as it looks here. In order to get this shot at f/6.7 I had to kick up the ISO to 3200 and the shutter speed down to 1/20tth of a second. Of course, handheld with no flash through. I don’t think I’ve ever shot at ISO 3200 before. (Even in low light conditions, I try to keep the ISO no higher than 800.) If you look closely, you’ll notice the image is not quite as sharp as I’d like and there’s a bit of digital noise…but not enough to discard the image.
To view a larger version of this image, click on the photo.